I facilitate Jumpstart writing workshops in Petaluma, California and here, online, with you. People new to writing have a hard time saying “I’m a writer.” So did I, until my writing teacher, Pat Schneider, made me say it out loud. And now I’m encouraging you to say it out loud. Come on. I’ll say it, too. I am a writer. Again, louder. I AM A WRITER. There now. . . and if you weren’t able to say it louder, fake it until you make it. No need to fake your writing. . . Just fake having confidence in your writing. And now . . . select a prompt and Just Write!
Tag: Pat Schneider
I am from . . . Prompt #52
Based on the poem, “Where I’m From,” by George Ella Lyon. Learn more about this woman, with the unusual name (for a woman): George Ella Lyon. “In the summer of 1993, I decided to see what would happen if I made my own where-I’m-from lists, which I did, in a black and white speckled composition book. I edited them into a poem — not my usual way of working — but even when that was done I kept on making the lists. The process was too rich and too much fun to give up after only one poem. Realizing this, I decided to try it as an exercise with other writers, and it immediately took off. The list form is simple and familiar, and the question of where you are from reaches deep.” George Ella Lyon Watch and listen to George read her poem. Note from Marlene: I had the…
I’d like you to meet Pat Schneider.
I am fortunate to have experienced the wonderful and intrepid Pat Schneider, founder of Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA) . . . both in her books and in writing workshops. Pat was born in 1934, lived in tenement housing with her brother and single mother where there was seldom food in the cupboards, let alone on the table. When she was ten, Pat and her brother went to live in an orphanage. Those early experiences deeply influenced her writing, and fueled her passion for those who have been denied voice through poverty and other misfortunes. Through the help of a caring teacher, Pat was awarded a scholarship and was able to attend college, where she met her future husband. And so a life of writing began for this remarkable woman who lives and loves passionately. Here’s a story about Pat, from her website: I was a young poet, published in…