writing

Anna Quindlen and Me

05.23.2012

She wasn’t the prettiest, the thinnest, the most popular girl but she was really smart and seriously focused and as ambitious as any of the guys. These were the heady days of feminism after all. Anna was a sister.

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: Writing No Matter What

04.04.2012

I dare you to raise your hand if you’ve never sat in front of the screen or paper and just thought, shoulders slumped, I don’t wanna.

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: The Paris Review Interview

03.14.2012

No, not the actual Paris Review. MidLifeBloggers version of it, which focuses on those parts of the Interview that we remember the most: the what do you write with and when do you write questions. I got the idea for this after reading some of Sarah Piazza’s postings on her new blog. She used [...]

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: The Blind Point & Write Exercise

03.07.2012

Here’s a quicky for you: Pick up the book or magazine that is closest to you. Without looking, open it to a page. Without looking, stick your finger on some point on that page. Now, open your eyes to see what you’ve pointed to. Whatever it is, take 15-20 minutes to write whatever comes into [...]

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: Using Music to Amp Your Creativity

02.29.2012

I mostly hone in on the emotional notes of what I’m working with. It’s how what I see or hear or smell or taste makes me–or a character I’m writing about–feel that I want to focus on.

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: Writing Practice with Photography

02.22.2012

Have the aliens landed? Is this a strange, deformed child appearing in our midst? Or is she some mutant species, like us and yet not? Here is another view, taken on that same evening when she was first sighted. Is that evil in her eyes? Are those holes even her eyes? What can we [...]

Read the full article →

Wednesday Writers Workshop: Employing the Proust Phenomenon

02.15.2012

And as soon as I dried my hands, I was knocked over by an overwhelming urge–to bury my nose in them. The smell, the familiar smell provoked such a strong and positive response that it shocked me

Read the full article →