Where do you feel most comfortable writing? A busy coffee shop? The public library? A park? A favorite chair in your bedroom? I write most often at my desk, which is in front of a south-facing window. With Ponderosa pines just outside the window, this space feels like a tree house. I can watch whitetail …
Sit. Stay. Good writer!
Brinkely and me. Photo: Theresa Duncan I returned to Anne Lamott's words this week. I like her bottom line view of writing and life. In listening to her 2017 TED talk, I heard something I hadn't noticed her say before, "Keep your butt in the chair." As spring reluctantly arrives in the mountains and snow …
Write this! Photo Friday 3.22.2019
So much of writing is setting the scene for your reader. Effective scenes are written in detail, then of course, edit, edit, edit. You want to make your reader see, smell, hear, taste, and feel the scene as though they are in it. Write this scene as detailed as possible. Going further... Edit your scene. …
Write Ideas
Writers are inspired with stories and scenes almost everywhere we go. Coffee shops. Business meetings. The checkout line at the grocery store. These ideas may or may not pertain to what we are currently writing, but they are great ideas. Many great ideas. How do we keep track of them? Some writers keep a journal. …
When to Write
All professional writers I have read or spoken with have a specific time to write. They treat writing like it is a job because, well, it can be work. Sometimes it flows easily; other times we find ourselves looking at a blank page or a blinking cursor. A palpable panic can lock up our writing …
The Why of Writing
Why do you write? Answering this question can be a powerful tool. This is a very personal exercise. Perhaps you have done it before. I have done it several times and use it as a reminder, often being surprised by something new that comes to mind. Write a list to fill in the blank of …
The Journey Begins
"If you hear a voice within you saying, 'You are not a writer,' then by all means write, and that voice will be silenced." Adapted from Vincent van Gogh Like many writers, I struggle with my writing practice. When do I have the time to write? Writers, good ones anyway, are said to be avid …
