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Posts from the ‘Writing Life’ Category

Dec 1

Letting go of the old to make room for the new

In my last post, I wrote about poet and author Raymond Carver’s law: “…to use up the best that was in him each day and to trust that more would come.” Carver exemplifies this philosophy in his last book of poetry, A New Path to the Waterfall, where some of the best poems are also some of the shortest.

My favorite is a poem called “Quiet Nights”—four short lines about life, death, and rebirth. This poem reminds me of my process of becoming a writer and an artist—each day dying to the old and reawakening to the new, pulling at my ropes, wanting to set sail to the next new place my writing will bring me. And what about Carver’s Law? I learned that I don’t need to hold anything back, that I can give my all each moment on the page because, in giving everything I have, I make room for the new. Read more

Nov 29

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One writer’s law: trust that more will come

I tend to view the world in terms of poetry, finding meaning and metaphor in everything from the way the rain falls here in the Pacific Northwest, to the process of replanting a lilac tree, to how my grandmother drags branches to her burn pile or shells peas while watching the sun set over the Olympic Mountains. This may be why I admire Raymond Carver’s poetry so much—because he writes about common people and events, yet manages to transcend their commonness into something beautiful.

When I first discovered Carver, nicknamed the great “American Chekov” for his short stories, it was his poetry that drew my attention. Carver’s last book of poems, A New Path to the Waterfall,written while he was dying of cancer, quickly became my favorite as I read it over and over, each time moved to tears, especially over the introduction by his wife and fellow poet Tess Gallagher. Read more

Nov 28

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No power? No problem. Write On

As winter sets in for many of us, it’s more important than ever to have a plan in place for power outages.

One day last winter, I left my day job to dive into my writing at home. I hoped to interview someone for a project with a looming deadline. As I drove into my neighborhood, I realized the power was out. The sun was beginning to set, so I quickly collected several flashlights and loaded them with fresh batteries. Read more

Nov 24

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Transform your life by writing thank-you notes

While I aim to live each day with a spirit of thanksgiving, I love having a holiday to reflect on gratitude.

Expressions of gratitude reinforce the good I see in my life and remind me that the intangible gift of creative passion and the chance to make a difference with words are more important than any material object money can buy.

This Thanksgiving, I’m grateful for everyone who has inspired and fueled my writing passion: Parents who supported my aspirations from the very beginning; teachers who didn’t give up on me, including a second-grade teacher who helped me learn to read; and mentors who read my very bad first drafts and still saw the promise of something good. Read more

Nov 23

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Writing to the beat of a different drummer

Sometimes, getting into my writing groove is about as easy as slipping on my favorite pair of jeans from my freshman year in college. In other words, it’s impossible.

I have various tricks for when my muse needs to be conned into action: wearing headphones to help myself focus, doing a five minute timed write to warm up my writing muscles, or giving myself a reward when I reach my word quota for the day—maybe a small piece of chocolate (hmm…is this why I can’t fit into those jeans?).

Sometimes, I write to music to help myself stay focused. For my current project, I’m creating a playlist that so far includes Moonlight Sonata, Adagio for Violin, Bach, and Lorenna McKennitt. While writing my memoir, I listened mainly to Norah Jones and Brandi Carlile. Different books inspire different music and vice versa.

But sometimes other sounds can help me write too. Read more

Nov 18

Unstick your writing mind

Do you ever feel like you’ve hit the writing wall and you’re not sure what to do? Relax. Read these posts to reveal a strategy that will put you back on track.

Stuck on what to write about? Consider these big ideas

Do you have a deep desire to write but aren’t sure where to start? Find the answer by asking the right questions. Read more

Nov 17

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Use all six senses to make your story come alive

Sometimes, I don’t like to read another author’s work while I’m writing, other times I do. Since I began writing my current manuscript, I’ve started and stopped several books. But last week I picked up Neil Gaiman’s American Godsand haven’t been able to put it down. I find myself asking, “How does he do it?”

American Gods is a wildly creative and beautiful story. What I love most is how the story is so otherworldly—people coming back from the dead, gods walking around among us—yet feels so absolutely real as if it were playing out in front of me. Read more

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