Tag: The Write Spot

  • “Vulnerability is my strength.” — MK Asante

    “I’ve always known that I had a story to tell about my education. I don’t mean school. I mean my coming of age.” — MK Asante, filmmaker, professor, hip-hop artist, essayist and memoirist. The Writer magazine, July 2014

    MK Asante

    “I didn’t have the courage to do it [write] until more recently. I was ashamed of some of the things I wrote about in the book. I didn’t want to deal with those things. As I had more distance, reflection and time, I realized that vulnerability is my strength, and everything I’ve been through is not something to be ashamed of.”

    How about you? Are you ready to write your story? You can jumpstart your writing with prompts posted on The Write Spot Blog.

  • How’s the weather? Prompt #93

    “How’s the weather?”

    It’s a question often asked. And sometimes we really want to know the answer.

    Right now, Summer 2014, Northern California where I live, is experiencing a drought. Lawns are brown, cars are covered with layers of dust and dirt, flowers and plants are drooping. But I’m not complaining. We have plenty of water to drink and the public pool is a great place to cool off.

    Breana.weed  How’s the weather? We want to know!

    Photo by Breana Marie

  • Books on writing

    There are more how-to-write books than we have time to read. IF we tried, we would spend all our time reading about writing and not writing. But there are a few especially good how-to write books. Here are some of my favorites. What are your favorite writing books?

    Dorothea Brande was an early proponent of freewriting. In her book Becoming a Writer (1934), she advises writers to sit and write for 30 minutes every morning, as fast as they can.

    Peter Elbow advanced freewriting in his books Writing with Power and Writing Without Teachers (1975), and freewriting has been popularized by Julia Cameron through her books The Artist’s Way and The Right to Write.

    A few more writing books:

    Aronie, Nancy Slonim – Writing From the Heart

    Baldwin, Christina – Storycatcher

    Barrington, Judith – Writing the Memoir, From Truth to Art

    Baty, Chris – No Plot? No Problem!

    Bennet, Hal Zina – Write From The Heart

    Clegg, Eileen M. – Claiming Your Creative Self

    DeSalvo, Louise – Writing As A Way of Healing

    Epel, Naomi – Writers Dreaming

    George, Elizabeth – Write Away

    Goldberg, Natalie:   Living Color, Long Quiet Highway, Wild Mind, Writing Down the Bones, The Great Failure

    Heffron, Jack – The Writer’s Idea Book

    Kabat-Zinn, Jon – Wherever You Go, There You Are

    Keene, Sam and Anne Valley-Fox – Your Mythic Journey

    Kelton, Nancy Davidoff – Writing From Personal Experience

    King, Stephen – On Writing

    Lauber, Lynn – Listen to Me

    Lamott, Anne – Bird by Bird

    Lara, Adair – Naked, Drunk and Writing

    Nelson, Sara – So Many Books, So Little Time

    Rosenfeld, Jordan – Make a Scene

    Saltzman, Joel – If You Can Talk, You Can Write

    Schneider, Pat – Writing Alone And With Others

    Smith, Michael C. and Suzanne Greenberg – Everyday Creative Writing

    Ueland, Brenda – If You Want to Write

    Walker, Christine – A Painter’s Garden

    Walton, Todd & Toomay, Mindy – The Writer’s Path

    Zimmerman, Susan – Writing to Heal The Soul

    Just a few of my books on writing. Yes, I have two copies of Jordan’s Make A Scene: One for my personal use and one for lending.

                               writing books 1                                writing books 2

  • Jiffy Pop! . . . Prompt #92

    Today’s prompt. . . look at the photo and write whatever comes up for you.

    Jiffy Pop!

    Jiffy Pop

  • Your name could be here. . .

    Fridays are Guest Blogger Days on The Write Spot Blog. Contact Marlene if you want to be a guest blogger on The Write Spot Blog, ~600 words,  inspiring and encouraging for writers.

    Lola.200You can read what other Guest Bloggers have written by clicking here.

     

  • Writing and editing is like sculpting a garden

    I love to work in the garden, pulling weeds, and occasionally being creative with new plantings. I love tugging at weeds and hearing the slrrp as they surrender their grip and let go. Writing is a lot like weeding . . . letting go and enjoying the moment. Not always worrying about the end product; just enjoying the moment of complete surrender.

    Later, after the writing seedlings have sprouted, it’s time for editing, which is a lot like pruning. When I’m pruning a fruit tree or a rose bush, I make a few snips, stand back to see how it looks and how it’s shaping up. It’s the same with editing. . . . make a few changes, then re-read. Keep what’s good and continue pruning until the piece has shaped to satisfaction.

    Crepe Myrtle & Sage 8.09

  • Yard sale, garage sale, tag sale . . . Prompt #91

    Yard sale, garage sale, tag sale. . . whatever you call ’em, what do you think about ’em?

    Or . . . write about an unusual find at a yard sale, garage sale, tag sale . . . whatever you call ’em.

    renoir dancingSandy's birdhouse    IMG_1442

  • What I know . . . Prompt #90

    What I know . . .

    Write whatever comes up for you.

    StatueManJane

    Photo by Jane Person

  • The only sin writers can commit is . . .

    “The only sin writers can commit is not to write.” — Eleanor Hyde, originally in the August 1976 issue of the Writer Magazine, reprinted in the August 2014 issue.

    Note from Marlene: So, you are itching to write and need a jumpstart? Go to the prompts page of this blog for ideas.

    Click here for more prompts and read what others have written. Scroll down and click on a plaque.

    Writing Prompts

     

  • We all have an intuitive sense. . .

    I think we all have an intuitive sense, but we get side-tracked by what others think or we get distracted by all the “noise” both inside our heads and outside. It’s hard to get quiet and listen to what we think. But when we do, we experience the joy of discovering what’s going on for ourselves.

    A passage in Reading Water, Lessons From The River, by Rebecca Lawton, describes a situation when Becca was a white water rafting guide and had one person, a friend, in her raft. They capsized, lost the boat and nearly drowned. Becca managed to save the life of her friend.

    After it was all over, Becca asked her friend: “Do you regret running it?”

    Becca’s friend answered, “It might have been the right choice for you,” she said, “But from now on, I’m making my own decisions.”

    Here’s an idea for getting in touch with your intuition and writing deeply.

    You can use suggestions for relaxation from the June 24, 2014 Just Write Post, “Listen to your body as a way to creativity.”

    Settle comfortably in your chair. Breathe in deeply through your nose. Exhale loudly. Take a few deep breaths and let go. Release your worries. Let go of your fears. Just let go.

    Follow your inner sense, your intuition, your gut level feeling  …  pay attention, use what you’ve got. Don’t fight it. Relax into your own judgment and decision making.

    Choose a writing prompt and Just Write.

    Old meets new bridge.Jim C. March Old bridge meets new. Photo by Jim C. March.