Last summer, I gave myself some much-needed permission in the form of an imperative: I will read promiscuously. It was such a success that I decided to do it again this summer. (To be fair, I’m a pretty rangy, voracious reader all year-round, a left-over from my early adolescent days of picking up whatever cover […]
Summer Reading (2024) Read More »
I had a friend who loved March: he was a Gemini, and cited “the push and pull, the back and forth” nature of this month in New England—essentially, that the month had “two faces.” I thought about this idea as I walked around the block in “productive meditation” this morning. On Friday, it was 60
The Fickle Nature of New England March Read More »
Why are we drawn to what we’re drawn to? What clues to the creative process might be revealed from our obsessions? Can these obsessions yield art? Here are the opening passages from a failed essay on cats (yes, I know): In Milan Kundera’s novel Immortality, which I first read in 2004, there is a chapter
Cats, Or, I’m feeling irreverent today Read More »
It occurred to me this week, as I muscled through the final section of Draft 10 of my current long-form project, that a rest would soon be in order. I have a tendency to rush—in writing and in life—as many of you likely do, and also a tendency to burn out. Even with some life
Rest & Re-Vision: Surving Project Fatigue Read More »
Since finishing Jenny Odell’s fascinating book, HOW TO DO NOTHING: RESISTING THE ATTENTION ECONOMY, I’ve spotted a red-bellied woodpecker (twice) on our backyard birdfeeder, identified that curious grey-capped hopper foraging in the rose bushes as a catbird (thanks, SK!), watched a red-tailed hawk hunt (and shit!) in a church’s backyard while waiting to pick up
How many drafts of a story, or essay, or book, do you write before it feels “done”? Ten, twenty, fifty, one-hundred story drafts? More? I used to think it made the most sense, when writing, to write as much as possible, only to later go back and pull all the unnecessary stuff out. Revision seemed
A Good Story Is Like a Seven-Layer Cake Read More »
