I can remember sitting with my peers in our little desks as we scribbled away in our journals, responding to the teacher's writing prompt of the day. Compared to learning the multiplication table, journal writing was one of the better parts of the school day. Our thoughts were our own, and teachers couldn't really put…
Tag: Writing
Finding a Little Place
Lately my writing has been taken over by job applications, personal statements, and cover letters. I've been aching to find a moment for myself and write freely. I've undergone two job interviews now, applications to professional programs, and a multitude of the impersonal monotony that is online applications. Planning for the future and trying to…
Writing It Out
As hundreds of writers are heaving their way through NaNoWri 2014, I am feeling overwhelmingly at peace with a short(ish) story I just finished. Awhile back, I was trudging through a lot of personal chaos. In many respects, I still am. In 20 days I will be finished with college and embarking on a very…
Braving the story
Over Labor Day weekend I found myself happily holed up at my family's cabin and it made me think how wonderful it is to have a place to just be. I think we all search for places like this, and most people try their best to make their home that safe place where they can…
When to stop and when to keep going
So, I recently was working hard on a new post, only to find out all my subscribers got e-mailed out a drafted version of it. Needless to say, I am feeling unhappy this occurred. I was really excited about my post and getting to share it with everyone. It has been a few days in…
Writer Stereotypes: True or False?
The other day I was thinking about some common stereotypical conceptions about writers. 1. Writers are loners. 2. You have to be a tortured soul to make good art. 3. You have to have something good to write about. For the first one, I have always known I like solidarity. I think everyone who grew…
Sharing Gratitude
A while back I reached 100+ followers (that weren't family and friends... although you guys are just as important!). I honestly am pretty sure half of them probably aren't actual humans... but regardless, it was a pretty weird feeling. Whether or not there are a 100 of you out there reading this or not, I…
The Growing List
I've always seen those lists people make of "Things I've Learned Lately" and I've always been intrigued by them. I personally love learning new random things, like how very nonchalantly the NYT wrote an article about books bound in human skin. Why would I ever care to know that? Yet, here I am reading with…
Kids say the darnest things…
Today I was rummaging through my closet at home and figured it was time to sort through all that childhood nostalgia. It has always been hard for me to judge what I will appreciate having kept and what I really just need to throw out. I was one of those kids that had an incredibly…
My first NaNoWriMo Road Block
My NaNoWriMo Stats So Far: I'm crawling along on that word count! Haha. To be perfectly honest, I am so tempted to scrap the story I am doing for NaNoWriMo. That probably sounds awful (to me it most certainly is!), but I've learned that there are some definite pros and cons to picking up a…
Simply & Softly 