Writing Update

and a change to my page's description.

These updates I will offer to you every quarter as I fill my notebooks. I’ll give you a little “check-in” to let you know how things are going, and you can check in with me as well in the comments below, or send me a note.

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Peek Behind the Curtain: My Writing Process

First let me tell you a bit about my notebooks. This idea came from Natalie Goldberg’s little book, “Writing Down the Bones”. Natalie tries to fill a full-size notebook for each month. However, I’m limited with time to write, so I’m using a 5x8 size notebook that has 80 pages and I’ve found this easy to fill over a 3-month period in my current season of writing. Most anything I write by hand, goes in this notebook. Notes I take from writing seminars, short stories, glimmers, memories, poems, and long stories too. The size is perfect to keep with me at all times.

I’ve created a key in the front of my notebook that uses color coding to denote the months, writing subjects, and symbols to show the phases of the moon. I use this little notebook to help keep the fluff out of my head and the thoughts and inspiration flowing.

Writing is exercise and I can tell a difference if I skip a few days. Setting a timer and sitting quietly with pen and paper, sometimes with a prompt—but not always, using my senses to describe a recent scene, past scene, or current scene or perhaps a free flow of prose. Time is my biggest limiting factor, since I work a full time job in the “real” world, so this little notebook helps me keep my creative ideas, thoughts, and stories alive.

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Courses Completed and Upcoming

I recently completed an intense six-week course offered by Janisse Ray called The Magical Craft of Creative Nonfiction. Wednesday evenings, we met for a couple hours via zoom every week. It was such a great class full of talented men and women. Janisse is such a calm, guiding mentor for us all. I’m still digging up diamonds from that mine of information compacted into such a short time. Janisse is currently on hiatus as she works on finishing up her latest book, but when she offers this course again, I highly recommend you jump at the opportunity.

Janisse has been a blessing in my life for over 20 years, when I first read her book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, and now she’s more than a mentor, she’s my friend and neighbor as well. There are certain people you cross paths with in your life that are there for a reason and when they cross your path again years later, pay attention.

I am so thankful for the community of writers she has created through her courses. We support each other here on Substack and in a small Georgia Writing Cohort group that meets via Zoom once a month. My key takeaways from our recent meeting:

1.) Writing is writing whether you are journaling, substacking, posting to social media, or shipping your work out on Submittable.

2.) I’m not the only weird person walking around with story ideas in my head, banging to get out.

3.) Our desire to write will ebb and flow with things happening in our life. We have to keep the spark alive through community and encouragement.

I continue to be inspired by Janisse’s Journey in Place correspondence course, although I’ve fallen woefully behind. There is great community building happening in the comments section of those posts.

I’m looking forward to an upcoming tarot course which begins Monday, April 1st with Deb Bowen. This will be a 38-week course that dives deep into the meaning of tarot and how it can help guide you on your spiritual journey.

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What I’ve been Reading and Listening To

I believe what you consume is life altering, be that a healthy diet or healthy listening and reading.

Books:

The Enchanted Life by Sharon Blackie

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

Enchantment by Katherine May

The Power of the Crone by Clarissa Pinkola Estes

Podcasts:

Substacks:

Second Flush by Courtenay Budd

Letters From Love with Elizabeth Gilbert

Rx Nature by Jeanne Malmgren

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I hope you enjoyed the quarterly peek behind my writing curtain.

Keep writing, keep learning, and keep filling your mind with good intentions.

Many blessings to you!

B