A slip of paper I stuck in a book three weeks ago as a bookmark (in Elizabeth McCracken’s excellent short story collection: “Thunderstruck”) brought me to tears this morning when I rediscovered it. The simple phrase – “Work together as a society” was the result of an artistic exercize that I gave my Teen Writing Academy students this past summer at the Ross Creek Centre for the Arts. During the two week intensive, I challenged the five writers in the Academy to write down 50 things they fear. They, in turn invited their peers to add their fears to the …
Tag: writing
Last week I painted my nails black, cast a few spells, spent two days whispering a 400+ page manuscript to myself, and then, on the evening of what would’ve been my mother’s eighty-first birthday, I sent a book-shaped thing called The Witches of New York to my keen-eyed literary agent, Helen Heller. You’d think by now I wouldn’t get jittery during this part of the writing process, but I do. I do! (Just ask my dear family.) It’s to be expected, I guess, because by the time I reach this point, I’ve become quite attached to the story and its …
Life… Maybe it’s because I’ve been writing about witches, but I’m feeling superstitious these days when it comes to saying anything about my current novel in progress. The work takes up the bulk of my waking hours and has seeped into my dreams as well. These are good things when it comes to writing and revising (hurray!) but it also means that there will be periods of radio silence in my online presence from here on out. Blog posts and social media updates will have to come in dribs and drabs until the book is finished. (But I promise there …
We had a taste of spring over the long weekend, (or perhaps “tease” might be the more appropriate word.) Nevertheless, there was enough sun and warmth to bring both me and the bees out of hiding and into the yard for some much-needed buzz and dance. It’s amazing to see them move in and out of the hives this time of year. They waste no time in dragging out the old, so they can begin to find their way to whatever pollen is available. They are eager to get on with constructing, nurturing, feeding the new. We are going into …
The first dusting of snow found its way around the yard last night. While it didn’t cover all the unfinished business of autumn, it was enough to sugarcoat the land, exposing wonders here , there, and everywhere – the hop of chickadees circling around an empty feeder, the stealth of a cat winding through the trees. I am home, snug and sound, the wood stove ticking away as I renew my friendship with my desk. This is what’s in front of me at the moment. A collection of notions and needles. no tion 1 a (1) : an individual’s conception …
Lately I’ve been chasing after the bliss that comes from unfettered art making. That, I’ve learned, is where the “good stuff” lives. For me, the start of a new project means writing page after page of thoughts, ideas, scenes, dialogue etc., just so I can get to something good. I circle around the tale — searching, looking for one shining sentence that will grab hold of my imagination and cause me to say, “this is where the story begins.” The process reminds me a lot of being a voice student in university. One teacher I studied with, the amazing Dr. …