We are bombarded by sound almost constantly, especially if living in a large city. Cars, sirens, people talking and yelling. When working in an office, there is the background noise of constant conversation and the cacophony of phones ringing and computer keys clacking. If at home, it may be the insistent cries of a baby, children fighting, or the constant clamor of the TV. Lawn mowers and leaf blowers disturb quiet communities. Sometimes, we have to just shut it out in order

I've found this to be true of most creative people. We crave solitude. Why? I believe it's because we need time to be alone and quiet with our thoughts. Alone time feeds our spirits, because it gives us time to contemplate. We spend a lot of time trying to understand other people, ourselves, events, and work out how to deal with them. We also need that time to give our creative side a voice, to determine the best way to write, draw, paint, sing, compose, or choreograph our th

Sounds hopeless, doesn't it? Lamott is right, though, we are all going to die, and we'll have struggles in between. Who wants to read a novel that only reminds us of grim reality? Unless . . . unless that book shows us how to live in the face of the grim reality. And, I don't mean merely survive, I mean dance in the hospital gown with your butt hangin' out; bling out the body cast; put baseball cards on the wheels of your wheelchair; tattoo your bald head kind of living. Now,

Some of us remember the days when individuals "ran away" to parts unknown free of jobs, commitments, and all other encumbrances that might get in the way. The reasoning behind this behavior? To find oneself. While I don't believe that abandoning responsibility to discover one's true self is necessary, I do agree with Rushdie that it is critical to writing with authenticity. Think of the pre-teens with the mature voices singing about the pangs and heartache of love. They know

In my humble, questionably wise opinion, I think Aristotle was onto something. Writing thoughtfully can, sometimes, allow us to do more than entertain or even merely educate our readers. We have the opportunity to inspire, to cause them to think beyond their normal everyday realm, to open new doors of possibility, and of reality. We can introduce readers to the wider world that exists beyond their own sphere. That's the thinking like a wise person part. Then, we have to find

I read this and thought what a "novel" idea. *groan* Sorry. Bad jokes are my specialty. Actually, I was a bit surprised to read this. This idea influenced me to get back into writing for magazines. While not exactly short stories, it works well for me as a nonfiction writer. I agree with Niven. Having to keep the story (or article) short and to the point. For me, having to tell the story in 2,000 words instead of 75,000 is a challenge and an excellent exercise in beginning we

Discipline. I think I heard somewhere that it's a bad word not to be used in polite society or by children under the age of 45. Anyway, the Messrs. Merriam and Webster write that discipline is "training that corrects, molds, or perfects the mental faculties or moral character." Well, alrighty, then, maybe this is a concept I should become more familiar with. Joking aside, I do find that the more I write, the better I get and the more frequently the muse seems to sit on my sho

First, who names a kid Wadsworth? I mean, come on, the teasing he must have gotten. I don't know; I haven't done the research, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that it must have been a family name. But still. My grandmother is a Rahmoeller. You won't find THAT in either of my kids' names! Just sayin'. As writers, we have a plethora of resources available to us dealing with how to begin our books or short stories, our articles and essays, but just how often do we se

Writers often wonder, "Why bother?" Writing is SO hard. It requires discipline, insight into human nature, willingness to bare one's soul, and choosing to put one's labor of love out in the world for total strangers to pass judgement. However, as Mr. Miller points out, "Writing is its own reward." Once the first, and usually bad, draft has been edited, rewritten, and fine tuned, we read our work with satisfaction, and perhaps a bit of surprise, that it's actually worth readin