I loved this. I love this. I forget that you're a person writing, sometimes, because yours words (especially the blisteringly good advice) become The Words that I needed to hear, as if completely perfectly ordained/constructed. Then your human voice slaps me awake, slaps me into being a human writing again, writing toward The Words. The Word. The Supreme. The practice of it. The homework.
I'm in my sixties and not doing an MFA. My daughter who'd paid an arm and leg [okay, ten years to pay off student loans] said it wasn't worth it. It'd be better to create my own program.
I've gone to a handful of writers conferences [mostly the same one a handful of times] and collected reading lists, prompts, essays on craft, etc. I've compiled my own reading list of what interests me. I've taken a couple workshops that were inspiring and a couple that were total duds, one in which the instructor took over my poem and changed it into what she wanted to see, not what I intended.
I write, sometimes have a critique group look at a piece, submit, publish, read at open mics, go to a once monthly writing group where everyone is younger than I am. This gives me insights into what others are reading and writing and why. I don't teach because I can't tell anyone how I do what I do, and I'm retired so don't need the income. When I was an at-home mother part-time writer, I sandwiched the paid writing in between everything else.
I'd like to see a group document that suggests reading material/instructional material that people have found useful in creating their own programs. Obviously, Rilke and Le Guin would be on your list. I suggest Animal Joy by Nuar Alsadir and Ten Windows by Jane Hirschield.
Great footnotes. 10/10. Stay weird.
hey you weren't supposed to read those! (thank you)
I loved this. I love this. I forget that you're a person writing, sometimes, because yours words (especially the blisteringly good advice) become The Words that I needed to hear, as if completely perfectly ordained/constructed. Then your human voice slaps me awake, slaps me into being a human writing again, writing toward The Words. The Word. The Supreme. The practice of it. The homework.
Thank you.
This is so wonderful...one aspires to have such readers, but even having one reader of such depth is a blessing and incredibly rare
Instructive and incredibly entertaining!
Thank you Kim, I live to entertain
I'm in my sixties and not doing an MFA. My daughter who'd paid an arm and leg [okay, ten years to pay off student loans] said it wasn't worth it. It'd be better to create my own program.
I've gone to a handful of writers conferences [mostly the same one a handful of times] and collected reading lists, prompts, essays on craft, etc. I've compiled my own reading list of what interests me. I've taken a couple workshops that were inspiring and a couple that were total duds, one in which the instructor took over my poem and changed it into what she wanted to see, not what I intended.
I write, sometimes have a critique group look at a piece, submit, publish, read at open mics, go to a once monthly writing group where everyone is younger than I am. This gives me insights into what others are reading and writing and why. I don't teach because I can't tell anyone how I do what I do, and I'm retired so don't need the income. When I was an at-home mother part-time writer, I sandwiched the paid writing in between everything else.
I'd like to see a group document that suggests reading material/instructional material that people have found useful in creating their own programs. Obviously, Rilke and Le Guin would be on your list. I suggest Animal Joy by Nuar Alsadir and Ten Windows by Jane Hirschield.