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Posts by Carly Sandifer

Jul 8

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What obsessions will end up in your writing?

As writers, we carry within us memories that end up in our writing. These memories that “mark” us could be a scene or the basis for a novel. When I’m looking for something to write about, I’m often compelled to go to a memory or story that has stayed with me.

Author Siri Hustvedt says that, as a child growing up in Minnesota, a suicide of a boy in a barn down the road from her house marked her. The event later showed up in her poem, “Weather Markings.” Read more

Jul 4

A tale of a vigilante copy editor

How many times have you seen a sign (or anything for that matter) with punctuation or grammar errors and itched to fix it?

In Brooklyn, NY, someone at the sculpture park at the Pratt Institute did just that. Check out the story and 4-minute video at the New York Times.

Jul 2

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How to preserve your memories in a travel journal

One of the best things about traveling is the anticipation before the trip. Another is reliving the memories later.

If travel is on your agenda this summer (or winter depending on where you live), it’s a perfect opportunity to write a travel diary. You’ll capture memories of your holiday and likely return with material you can turn into stories, poems, or maybe even a travel story you can sell.

Pack these travel writing tips for your next trip:

1. Observe and write with all your senses. Note the scents as well as sights. Record what you hear. Once when I was traveling through a village in southern Greece, I saw an older couple walking up the road with a flock of sheep. When I remember that trip, I hear the ringing of the bells that were attached to their collars. If I hadn’t gotten out of the car to photograph the couple, I wouldn’t have heard the sound. Read more

Jun 26

Experience a coffee shop vibe at your desk

Sometimes the world is just too loud. When my blogging partner Carol and I used to meet at various coffee shops to write together, we found that sometimes it worked. Other times, the noise of blenders grinding up Frappuccinos drove us away. We’d dream of creating a writing utopia with just the right amount of quiet to focus and brainstorm ideas.

Some writers like music — with and without words — and others like to work in a quiet zone with just the hum of the refrigerator or traffic whooshing by outside. Still others like the background noise and energy of a cafe. If you like the commotion of a cafe as your writing soundtrack, you might like a website called Coffitivity that offers that coffee shop vibe without leaving your desk. Read more

Jun 24

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Do you write in a lab or a factory?

I’ve always called my writing space, my “writing room.” This room is where I have three bookshelves crammed with books, my table with my computer and office supplies, and my chair and file cabinet. But inspired by this post from Seth Godin, I’ve decided to call my writing room my “writing lab.”

We work either at a lab or a factory, Godin says. People who work in labs are searching for breakthroughs at the risk of making mistakes because making failures helps us learn what works, he says.

Factories are all about churning things out – Twinkies, car parts, widgets – in the most efficient possible way. Read more

Jun 20

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Master class tips for reading and writing poetry, part II

The more I read and write poetry, the more I see how it helps me approach other forms of writing. In my last post, I wrote about tips for reading and writing poetry. Here are several more tips from a master class I attended taught by poet Matthew Shenoda:

  • Make the title a jumping off point. I usually start out with a working title but then change it at the end after the poem is fully formed.
  • Analyze the “story” the poem tells, it’s angle, and how it pulls you in. Read more

Jun 18

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Master class tips for reading and writing poetry, part I

Do you ever struggle to figure out what a poem means or how to approach writing one?

I’ve always loved poetry so when I studied for my MFA, I attended every poetry workshop that I could, even though it wasn’t my focus in the program.

One of my favorite classes was a master class by poet and teacher Matthew Shenoda.

One of Shenoda’s tips was to read poetry conceptually. He suggested we ask ourselves these questions:

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