“Everything is gestation and then birthing. To let each impression and each embryo of a feeling come to completion, entirely in itself, in the dark, in the unsayable, the unconscious, beyond the reach of one’s own understanding, and with deep humility and patience to wait for the hour when a new clarity is born: this […]
“Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself.” —Charlie Chaplin Tell me about a time you were willing to make a fool of yourself—to take a risk where you knew you could fall flat on your face. Tell us the story of the risk and what happened after.
The Benefit of Being a Fool Read More »
“Time can do all sorts of things. It’s almost like a magician. It can turn autumn into spring and babies into children, seeds into flowers and tadpoles into frogs, caterpillars into cocoons, and cocoons into butterflies. And life into death. There’s nothing that time can’t do. Except run backwards. That’s its trouble really, it can
“If I tell you my character has grey hair, you will not see her. If I tell you she has a tiny scar at the upper left corner of her lip from which protrudes one grey whisker—you will make up the rest of her face with absolute clarity. If I tell you my character is
The Power of the Quirky Detail Read More »
“The measure of a man is what he does with power.” ― Plato Try to remember the first time you understood the concept of power. Who had it? How was it used? How did it make you feel? Think about the power you have now. How do you use it? Deny it? Avoid it? How do
Author and writing teacher Laura Davis draws on her years of leading domestic and international writing retreats to discuss the benefits of joining a writing retreat.
The Ten Top Benefits of Traveling to a Writing Retreat Read More »
“The fun choice is often the best choice.” —Nina Wise Tell me about a time this was true in your life.
“The world of imagination in which the writer must live is constantly being invaded by the enemy, the mundane world.” —Margaret Walker Make a quick list of everything that gets in the way of your writing. Then pull out a clean sheet of paper and begin again, with the words, “In order to write, I
Obstacles to Writing Read More »
TODAY WAS MY BIG DAY. I woke up nervous this morning at 4:30 AM and couldn’t go back to sleep. Finally, after being here for almost a week, it was time for me to teach! That’s why I came down here to begin with, and despite having 20+ years of experience teaching writing successfully, I
Live from San Miguel de Allende #8 Read More »
Today, I slipped out of the San Miguel Writer’s Conference with Maria Caponi, a multi-talented, adventurous world traveler I met at my writer’s retreat in Tuscany last spring. Maria is attending the conference, too, and we wanted to spend some time together. So we hatched a plan to take for the afternoon off from workshops
Live from San Miguel de Allende #7: In the Garden Read More »
Having my first experience of simultaneous translation tonight through an earpiece: Spanish to English. Tonight’s keynote speaker is Mexican novelist and journalist, feminist and activist, Brenda Lozano yes. This is how she introduced herself: “I am part of a young generation of women who fight from the trenches—in my case from culture—for freedom of expression,
Live from San Miguel de Allende #5 Read More »
I first learned of San Miguel de Allende forty of so years ago when I was in my mid-twenties and my mother was in her fifties. She raved to me about this place for twenty years before I ever saw it for myself. My parents divorced when I was a teenager, and my mother took
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“When you become addicted to what frees you instead of to what keeps you unhappy, your life changes.” — Nina Wise Can you make a case for a positive addiction, as Nina does? Have you ever replaced one addiction for another? If so, tell us about it.
A Positive Addiction Read More »
