I will experiment with writing at several different times of day (in the same day), for several days in a row, mixing it up with an occasional day off, etc., to see whether there are some patterns and habits that work better than others.
I will look for magazines and journals that publish the kind of things I like to write.
I will develop a habit for working in several different forms and stages of creative production in parallel, keeping lots of balls in the air—stream-of-consciousness exercises, first drafts, editing and polishing, final drafts, brainstorming exercises, idea-mapping, creative play, etc., in short fiction, personal essay, memoir, flash fiction, a book-length project or two, etc.
Topic: My writing day
I will learn to work in noisy, public places (as a change of pace, not for the bulk of my work).
Topic: My ideal place to write
I will develop more one-on-one social contact with other writers.
I will experiment in combining my everyday writing routine with travel.
I will read with greater intentionality and more careful attention.
I will also read for the joy of reading.
I will make some income writing.
I will win a writing contest.
I will attend more readings by writers whose work I enjoy.
I will subscribe to more periodicals that publish fiction.
I will write on nights when I’m sure that I’m much too tired to write.
Topic: Life in the suburbs
When someone makes a suggestion about a text I’ve written, I will pay careful attention.
I will go on a retreat to a beautiful place when I can write in a peaceful setting.
I will write second (and third) drafts of some of the many first-draft pieces in my possession.
I will open a separate checking account for my writing work.
I will start a QuickBooks file to track the finances of my writing career.
Topic: Imagination as the root of “intuition”
I will return to the practice of keeping a reading list.
Topic: The waterfall at Cade’s Cove, Tennessee
I will schedule writing times and then honor them, even when presented with the tempting offer of a social outing. (But not every time.)
I will explore more deeply the development of characters.
I will experiment with unusual forms.
I will write a six-word bio. (Or many of them.)
I will idea-map on a more regular basis.
I will seek out workshops on some specific areas of writing craft: characterization, writing dialog, etc.
When I travel, I will keep travelogues. But I will try to tell a few interesting stories or observations instead of an exhaustive journal of the trip.
I will figure out how to enable Gallery 2 software to make it easier to incorporate images into my blog.
I will pursue the idea of using my blog as a form of postcard for my next big trip.
Topic: Deception
I will refine a couple of pieces to read at the Spectrum Center Community Reading on April 13.
I will write a book to dedicate to Gika. (Guess who suggested this one.)
Topic: The smell of the bathroom at Latina Café.
I will fire an irritating graphic-design client (or all of them).
Topic: Pasteleria
I will go to the beach.
Topic: The new cathedral in Houston
I will take a few days off from writing to reflect on having completed the 50/50 class.
I will beat myself up about letting my writing habit lapse for a couple of weeks when I had been doing so well.
I will stop reading books about creativity.
Topic: College roommates
I will still think of myself as a creative person even if I’m not having a creative day.
I will feel free to disregard writing advice that doesn’t make sense for my style and voice.
I will agonize over the last exercise, dragging it out for days and days and days.
I will leave this exercise unfinished in the interest of getting on with writing.
And then I thought of a few more things that ought to be on the list.
I will put together the curriculum for a workshop on new technologies for writers.
I will reinstitute the good filing habits that fell by the wayside when I started the 50/50 class.
I will remain curious about ways to improve my writing practice.
I will try to have lots of fun.
I will get better at it.
Note: The assignment was to “make a list of fifty things that might come next for you as a writer.” I’ve been working on it on and off for the last 19 days. Enough!
The items marked with a “strikethrough” line have already been completed.
“This is my city, and I am as much a Roman as anyone here.”
—Words that I will put in the mouth of a fictional character one of these days
The prompt is to describe a place—a location “that is meaningful and powerful for you,” and then to write about who you are in that place. I’m thrilled and terrified by this assignment. No one who knows me will be surprised at my choice. It’s the place that I return again and again—Rome.
I’m excited by the task because I’m always happy to think about Rome. I can talk about it for hours and hours. I’m scared because …more
I watch the videos (or listen to audio podcasts) from TED.com both as a source of inspiration for writing…and for life. I found this one so captivating that I wanted to share it with my blog readers.
Jill Bolte Taylor is a neuroanatomist who suffered a major stroke. In this video, she talks about what she experienced.
What do you see when you look up from the leaves you’re nibbling and watch me passing? Why is it that on some nights, you dash for the woods? I never bring any dogs or children to frighten you, so I hope maybe we can be friends.
Tonight you looked pretty content as I walked by on the trail. I thought about a lot of things I’d like to say to you. But I know that you have a short attention span, so rather than go on and on, I wrote a tiny poem for you. I hope you like it:
Little rabbit friend,
munch without worry tonight.
Dine in grassy calm.
Note: A strange assignment: write a letter to an animal. I thought about writing to one of my late, lamented pets, but most of what I have to say to them is too private and personal to publish here. So I wrote a note to one of my casual animal acquaintances instead.
For several years, I’ve tormented many of my friends, confidants, and co-conspirators with long reveries about how writing is a lot like walking. Each is a habit, an exercise that is practice and performance at the same time, a Zen meditation, an everyday struggle, and a source of daily joy in tiny doses.
Today’s writing assignment is on the theme of “halfway,” which brings to mind the pattern of landmarks that tell me how far I’ve come and how far I have to go in my daily Memorial Park regimen. So I thought I’d take a break from writing about thinking and thinking about writing to take my beloved readers on a walk at the park (from the indoor comfort of my writing chair, to whatever place you like to read). …more
Who was the man whose life ended last night beside the running trail? Was he a regular at the park? How often had I passed him going the opposite way? How many times did he lap me jogging as I walked the three-mile loop? Did we ever nod at one another, give some sign of recognition as fellow members of the community of park denizens? Would I have recognized his face were it not for the abrasions and the pallor of his skin? Will I recall him by some process of elimination as I scan faces in the coming weeks?
Did he feel any warning signs of the cardiac event or cerebral accident, or was he enjoying his run until the moment he was struck down?
At All Times, in All Seasons, the Earth Casts a Slim Wedge of Shadow into Space; When the Moon in Her Journey Passes Through that Umbra, Let Us Gather Under the Stars to Reflect, One to Another, That There Is No Charioteer Who Illuminates the Day, Nor Huntress Who Hides from the Sun’s Face, But Only Reason That Lights Our Understanding of What Nature Has Ordained
There will be a total lunar eclipse beginning at 9:01 p.m. Central Standard Time on Wednesday, February 20, 2008. My roommate and I have decided to make this astronomical treat the occasion for a party. If you’re reading my blog and you find yourself in the Houston area on February 20, if you’d like to join us.
Note: The prompt was to “create a working title that is the longest one you’ve ever written.” I’m not in the habit of giving working titles to any of my texts, so coming up with any title at all made for a challenging assignment. I like the idea of looking up at the ruddy, darkened moon and thinking of all the fanciful explanations that primitive people might have conceived for this lovely phenomenon. Giving myself permission to turn this exercise into a party invitation was the cherry on top.
This piece is so far from being complete that I thought it might clarify matters for my readers if I put my note at the start instead of at the end, which is where I usually have been placing notes about the texts.
The assignment was to write about a book that’s had a big influence on me. I’m having a hard time figuring out exactly why this has been the hardest exercise for me since the 50/50 class started. I love books—lots of them! I could name many books that have had a profound impact: The Chronicles of Narnia, any Ray Bradbury short-story collection, The House of the Spirits, Illusions, Walden, A Christmas Carol, Welcome to the Monkey House…the list goes on and on and on. But I settled on One Continuous Mistake a few moments after receiving the assignment, and I’ve been chipping away …more
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