I don’t want to give away what the “number one overlooked skill for every author” is but I am confident many of you will find yourself cheered and even motivated by it. I am.
With Thanksgiving in the United States just hours away, my attention has turned from word counts to baking. The holiday tends to kick off what’s known as my “baking season” and it’s my number one distraction from writing during November and December. This year, however, I have to balance the measuring ingredients with getting the words to the page: I have a goal of a full rough draft manuscript by December 31.
I can see myself meeting that goal and can’t wait for the day I can print out the full draft (sorry trees) to start the revisions. As a writer, here are the top three things I’m thankful for right now:
What do I mean by access to writers? Whether it’s connecting 140 characters at a time on Twitter or hearing an author speak about his or her writing via video, we can find inspiration from our favorite writers on a daily basis. One of my most treasured experiences from the last two years of Aspen Summer Words Writing Retreat has been hearing Nikky Finney read her poetry and share her stories. I could listen to her strong, powerful, tender voice all day long. In the video here, she reads “Left,” from her latest collection of poetry Head Off and Split.
What are you thankful for this year?
The tips here for gaining perspective on your writing are worth bookmarking to reference again and again.
Yesterday, I saw the documentary “One Night Stand” about the 24-hour journey of four musicals from the page to the stage. As a writer, I found it galvanizing (and as a theatre major, thrilling). This film also made me think of my friends participating in NaNoWriMo and the unbelievable crunch to get 50,000 words down in 30 days. One of the writers featured in the film described producing a musical in one day as the “ultimate cure for writer’s block.” What could you do if you gave yourself 24 hours and a seemingly impossible goal?
Whether you’re looking for a two-minute break from your writing, or need a “you can do it boost,” here’s a little clip for you.
I’m not a fan of picking on journalists, but this site Unnecessary Journalism Phrases is an interesting refresher to peruse before editing your own work.
I’m too close to finishing a manuscript draft to participate in NaNoWriMo, which starts today. If you’re trying to decide, read this encouraging take on it.
I stumbled across this video of Mary Karr and wanted to share, especially for all my fellow creative nonfiction writers. This is an excerpt from her keynote at the 2010 Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference. (p.s. I promise to share authors other than Mary Karr. Or this that a trick? Happy Halloween.)
This essay by Dinah Lenney on memoirists and voice is one of the most original pieces I’ve ever read on the subject. Here’s a small taste:
“First person narrative, memoir in particular, is like jazz; largely about the player, about where he riffs and scats, and how and why, and whether or not we come away from the material — the narrative, that is — feeling different for having read.”
