“One ought only to write when one leaves a piece of one's own flesh in the inkpot, each time one dips one's pen." --Leo Tolstoy
Someone Who Loved Me
"At the end of the day people won't remember what you say or did, they will remember how you make them feel." — Maya Angelou
Describe someone who made you feel loved. Make the description so vivid that the reader feels loved, too.
... [Continue Reading]What I Know
“In the past, memoir was the country of old people, looking back, a reminiscence. But now people are disclosing their lives in their twenties, writing their first memoir in their thirties, and their second in their forties. This revolution in personal narrative that has unrolled across the American landscape in the last two and a half decades is the expression of a uniquely American energy: a desire to understand in the heat of living, while life is fresh, and not wait until old age—it may be too late. We are hungry—and impatient now.” --Natalie Goldberg, from the introduction of Old Friend from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir
In the heat of living, what do you want to understand about your ... [Continue Reading]
My Many Lives
“I have walked through many lives, some of them my own, and I am not who I was, though some principle of being abides, from which I struggle not to stray.” --Stanley Kunitz, The Layers
Respond to these three prompts, each for fifteen minutes. Do them in a row:
Who I used to be
Who I am today
Who I am becoming
... [Continue Reading]Finding Joy
"Joy is the best makeup." — Anne Lamott, Grace [Eventually]: Thoughts on Faith
Tell me about a time you were truly happy.
... [Continue Reading]What’s in Front of Me
“I think the one lesson I have learned is that there is no substitute for paying attention.” --Diane Sawyer
Write about what is in front of you right now. Write about the rug, the floor, the window, or the tree outside the window. Choose something ordinary that you see every day. Observe it so closely that you find something new to say about it. Write your way into the heart of the object you’ve chosen.
... [Continue Reading]Going Back to a Place You Once Knew
"Never write about a place until you're away from it, because that gives you perspective." --Ernest Hemingway
Tell me about a place you knew intimately that you haven’t been to in at least ten years.
... [Continue Reading]What I Can’t Do
“Clear your mind of can’t.” --Dr. Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784
Tell me about everything you can’t do. Now, in a second piece, tell me about everything you can do.
... [Continue Reading]The New Door
“There is no poetry where there are no mistakes.” --Joy Harjo
Tell me about a mistake you made that ultimately opened a new door.
... [Continue Reading]My Heart’s Longing
“It doesn’t matter to me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.” --Oriah Mountain Dreamer
