Wild Angels Brave the Cold- Wings Don’t Freeze

The fifth class met on another bitterly cold evening. Our numbers were slim but we still managed to write, using the proprioceptive method, work-shopped our homework and managed not to have time for our in class assignment.

How does that happen? Reading and reviewing our work takes time. We had poetry that was involved and needed care to read, absorb and ponder. Joan shared about a childhood memory of food, mmm cabbage. I still love boiled potatoes and cabbage with butter and salt and pepper. Linda gave us an interesting look into how a soldier might interact with our previous president about the war.  Velma gave us a rousing piece about a group that played at the Cathedral. Bhagwan shared his take on eating strawberries at a past Wild Angels group, while I shared my Twitter poem, done in three stanzas.

I think I covered it all.  The challenge for us is to really dedicate ourselves to our writing by giving it the time and dedication it deserves.

If you are part of a group, or writing on your own you, keeping to a schedule of writing is vital. It is a muscle that must be worked constantly to build up strength, and burn fat!  Ok, the fat is a side benefit to a writing schedule.

Keep writing.

Creating Your Life Short Story

Telling our stories
Telling our stories

I was recently sent a story by someone who asked, “Should it be a short or long story?”  The text was just about 12 pages making it a longer short story.

The thing is this story could go two ways. The themes of invincibility, love, and loss addressed in the piece could be expounded upon, fleshing them out with more details. Or, instead of it being a linear piece, beginning from the person’s experiences as a child to where they are now as an adult, it could become an essay about its major theme of invincibility. The shorter piece would bring in the life experiences but not necessarily in sequential order.

What are the advantages and disadvantages to the different styles?

The longer linear piece is the easiest to write for the new writer. All you are doing is deciding on a theme then starting from the beginning until you reach the end. You begin with an introductory paragraph that will set up the piece for the reader. You can use bold headlines to introduce the next life experience. Then you end the piece with a concluding statement. Simple.

The disadvantage to this style is that it can be a bit tedious to the reader. Engaging the reader in your story is important; but if you are inexperienced this could be difficult over a longer piece.

The shorter essay has an advantage that it engages the reader right away and moves them along. The chance for boredom is less but it does require more skill for the writer to weave an interesting story with all the different elements and themes to be covered.

I suggest reading your piece out loud. Where do you hesitate? Do you feel uninterested at any point or is there a section that is really exciting? Then read it aloud to someone else. Do their eyes glaze over? Or are they at the edge of their seat.

If you are a new and experienced writer reading out loud can be really helpful. Creating a dedicated audience to give you honest feedback is an invaluable asset to any writer.

When writing out your life story play with different styles. Look at someone like David Sedaris store who does short essays throughout his book.

But most of all don’t be afraid to start.