Were You Watching the Oscars Last Night?
And did you see this? Notice all the cool old typewriters in the background!
Trust, and Just Show Up
from my most recent newsletter… Are you still writing when you show up and nothing happens? You know, those times when you are all prepared to write and your fingers are on the keyboard and you are staring at the blank screen, and nothing happens? The other day in class, one student was berating herself during check in. “I sat there for a whole hour and didn’t get anything done.” I hear this a lot during check ins. “I showed up but I just struggled.” “I showed up but only…read more
Completing That Book: The Seven Stages
From my Newsletter, Winter 2008 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A student sent me an email. She’d been working on her manuscript a long time, and I’d asked her if she’d gotten it done. She said she was surprised that it was almost done but there were more things than she thought involved in finishing. I told her, well there are always stages to “doneness,” and it helps to realize that there are at least seven completion points. She immediately asked, oh, can you tell me what they all are? This is my answer….read more
The Seven Basic Plots
From my Newsletter, May 2007. Last newsletter I promised a fuller description of my new favorite book, “The Seven Basic Plots” by Christopher Booker (no kidding, that’s his name!). It’s published by Continuum in paperback and it’s over 700 pages long. (See the link below if you are interested in purchasing it.) Whether you’re working on fiction or a memoir, it’s helpful to think in terms of plot, so here’s the synopsis. The Seven Basic Plots Are: –Overcoming the Monster (think Jaws) –Rags to Riches (David Copperfield) –The Quest (Odysseus)…read more
Courage: Completing the Book
From my Newsletter, December 2006. This year I had the opportunity to work with two magnificent writers, helping them complete their manuscripts. One was writing fiction, one non-fiction. I was amazed to observe that the necessity for both was the same: to let go of their own attachment to the writing or the stories in order to serve the needs of the book. I watched one (the non-fiction writer) letting go of large swaths of good material to focus on the real story. I watched the other (the fiction writer)…read more
The Library
Yesterday I left the library with my arms full of books. I realized how much I love books! And the library! I love that I can walk in looking for one particular book (in this case, one I’d forgotten at home when I left the house in the morning) and end up seeing other books on the shelf that interest me that I wouldn’t have thought of. And because it’s the library I can just grab them without worrying about whether I really need them or not. Then I go…read more