Once upon a time, I took a jewelry-making workshop. As soon as we sat down, the instructor handed us a stack of blank white copy paper and said, "Draw a simple jewelry design. Don't worry about how you would actually make it, just get an idea on the page." Now, there was a gentleman in the class who was training to start a new career, after … [Read more...] about When Creativity is Scary: The Bad Biker Boy and the Blank Page
The Art and Craft of Writing, Part 1: Where does “writer’s voice” come from?
We had an interesting question come up in the Authority community, looking for resources to develop the "music" of writing: What's the best way to make the words flow together? How can we create writing that has more artistic and creative power? Obviously, that's a huge question, and one that won't get answered in a single blog post. But … [Read more...] about The Art and Craft of Writing, Part 1: Where does “writer’s voice” come from?
The Creative Learning Cycle that Produces Glorious Writers
Ever heard this? Writing can't be taught. We have to teach ourselves, word by painful word. And most people probably won't ever get any good at it. Very macho, very tough love, and also completely untrue. Some writers love this point of view, which strikes me as, Pull the ladder up, boys, I'm aboard! … [Read more...] about The Creative Learning Cycle that Produces Glorious Writers
Going from “Sometimes I Write” to “I Am a Writer” (New Workshop)
When I was in college, a lot of smart people thought that our society was becoming "post-literate" -- that the written word wasn't going to matter much any more. I didn't buy it, because even then (and, my friends, those were the internet dinosaur days) I could see how much the web relied on writing. There's so much advice out there for … [Read more...] about Going from “Sometimes I Write” to “I Am a Writer” (New Workshop)
