Writing as Self Help

Many people view writing as self help, that’s not a secret. This is why so many people I know have journals. But what about when this so-called self help is public?

I’ve mentioned before how much I adore Joan Didion, and I am very much looking forward to reading her latest and greatest, Blue Nights. The New Yorker featured an article about Didion, her family, and Blue Nights, which I enjoyed reading as it explored family relationships, writing relationships, and all of their connections.

Enjoy: http://nymag.com/print/?/arts/books/features/joan-didion-2011-10/index5.html

National Author’s Day

Today is National Author’s Day. I think this calls for a celebration here at A Story Every Day, since this IS a site that celebrates us all as authors and writers. Let’s share our favorite authors and give them some attention and recognition!

Who is your favorite author/writer and why?

Personally, I love Joan Didion because she writes in a straightforward manner yet there’s so much packed in that you may not even realize at first read. The “straightforwardness” is there, and true, but can also be deceptive.

I also adore John Irving – I just started reading his works, and so far I’ve read “A Widow for One Year” and now I’m reading “The World According to Garp.” His characters (and writing) appeal to me because they are humorous in a completely non-comical way. There is something so honest, so bare about them (I think this is really because of the way in which he writes) that makes me fall in love with them.

“I’m not telling you to make the world better, because I don’t think that progress is necessarily part of the package. I’m just telling you to live in it. Not just to endure it, not just to suffer it, not just to pass through it, but to live in it. To look at it. To try to get the picture. To live recklessly. To take chances. To make your own work and take pride in it. To seize the moment. And if you ask me why you should bother to do that, I could tell you that the grave’s a fine and private place, but none I think do there embrace. Nor do they sing there, or write, or argue, or see the tidal bore on the Amazon, or touch their children. And that’s what there is to do and get it while you can and good luck at it.”
― Joan Didion

College.

I was talking with a friend at work yesterday when I realized that my college education wasn’t exactly necessary for my job. While there were certainly benefits (for example, I can write coherently), I feel as if much of my college education and the learning that went into my diploma and development is being wasted on mindless emails and mindless tasks.

I started wondering – how much of my college education is withering away at the back of my brain? Why doesn’t my job (which would only consider people with a BA or BS) use more of the critical thinking and skills I learned back on campus? How… necessary… is a college education for many jobs out there? Even upper level jobs – if you’ve been at a job long enough, surely you’re learning the skills to keep moving up, just as you graduate to the next level each year in high school and even college and begin taking higher level classes.

What do you guys think? Are college educations going to waste sometimes? How often? If we don’t use the critical thinking and skill sets we learn all the time, how necessary is college in the first place?

Don’t get me wrong – I am a full supporter of higher education and I think everyone should have the opportunity to go to college/university. Instead of thinking that just because most jobs don’t use that education, people shouldn’t bother with it, I actually think the reverse. Our jobs should use it somehow. How do we work through this catch that they don’t? Is the bachelor degree becoming less valuable as more and more people have it? Should it be cheaper because of that?

I want to hear your thoughts. I want to hear your college and “after graduation” stories. Sometime I’ll share mine as well – but for now, let me hear it!

The Versatile Blogger Award

Thanks to Bardic Blogger (bardicblogger.wordpress.com) and Tammy Holloway (http://tammyholloway.wordpress.com/) I was nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award! Considering my blog hasn’t been around that long, I’m honored and flattered to be recognized!

The Award has three parts:

#1: Thank the person who nominated you.

#2: Pass this award to 15 newly discovered bloggers and let them know you included them in your post.

#3: List 7 things about yourself.

Okay, here goes:

#1: Thank you to Tammy Holloway & the Bardic Blogger. I’m honored!

#2: I’ve been doing a lot of blog reading lately, trying to connect with people on WordPress, talk about writing and stories, and get into blogging. It’s been fun. Luckily, it’s also made it easier for me to think of 15 newly discovered blogs that I’m really interested in and I think are great! These are in no particular order.

1- Tammy Holloway. She’s supported A Story Every Day, and I love reading her posts that play off of the words “write” and “right.” She is encouraging, inspiring, and just… honest! http://www.tammyholloway.wordpress.com

2- The Daily Writer. Features posts on writing, interviews with writers, writing conventions and the like – everything having to do with writing. A great resource! http://rosymoorhead.co.uk

3- Siobhan Curious. I love the posts here about education, and honestly, I usually agree with them. I’m fascinated by the topic of writing and learning intertwined, as well as the subject of teaching writing, so naturally I find myself interested in this blog. They always get me thinking! http://siobhancurious.com

4- Cresting the Words. This blogger likes language. So do I. This blogger likes playing with words. So do I. This blogger writes. So do I. … Enough said! crestingthewords.wordpress.com

5- BohemiaSpeaks. I’m not usually a huge fan of poetry, but I really like this blogger’s stuff. The fact that this poetry has actually captured me speaks volumes. http://bohemiaspeaks.com

6- C.B. Wentworth. Candid and personal. I genuinely enjoy reading what she shares and seeing how we relate. cbwentworth.wordpress.com

7- The Witty Gritty. So recently discovered that I’ve only read the post about seating on airplanes. It was too true. And also funny, in an odd way. thewittygritty.com

8- Words from the Woods. She relates writing life to her real, every day life. catwoods.wordpress.com

9- L.S. Engler. Blogs about her writing journey, and blogs about writer and author quotes (my favorite part!). http://lsengler.com/

10- Caffeine for the Creative Soul. Puts writing into drawings, and vice versa. Love it!  http://timcoffeyart.wordpress.com/

11- Savvy Writing Careers with Rebecca. Provides tips and insights into writing careers and freelancing.  http://savvywritingcareers.wordpress.com

12- Writers in the Storm. Professional and published sharing their journeys, and their thoughts. They work together to support each other through the wild ride of producing some stellar work, getting feedback, revising, getting published, etc!  writersinthestorm.wordpress.com

13- Brainstorms & Bylines. Helpful for new writers and savvy writers a like. Gives newer writers some encouragement and a lot to think about.  barbaratyler.wordpress.com

14- Wordsmith Six. Six writers who delve into different genres and topics, sharing their stories and their experiences as well as their views and thoughts. Always some kind of provoking thought to read. wordsmithsix.wordpress.com

15- The Urban Hippie. I simply love her photography style, and I find it inspiring for my own.

#3: List seven things about yourself.

Hmmm. Well, as you can imagine, every one in the world has much  more than seven things going on. I’m just going to list seven things that relate to me deeply, and you can get an idea of a brief mold of where I come from…

1. Italy/Italian. I speak Italian; I’ve lived in Italy three times. Speaking in a different language makes me feel like I’m deeply using my brain.

2. Horses. I’ve ridden since I was 9. I have a beautiful thoroughbred who I am very much in love with.

3. Writing. Well, obviously.

4. Photography. I like to take pictures. Of everything. I like to mess with them in Photoshop and Lightroom. It’s an art I’m actually good at – I certainly can’t draw or paint so well!

5. People. I believe in relationships. Take that as you will!

6. The outdoors. I like to hike, camp, run, bike, rollerblade, and breathe fresh air. It’s important. This is why I don’t like large, humongous cities and I’m not sure I could ever live in one.

7. Travel. It’s how we learn, and it’s how we become independent. (Try it if you don’t believe me! 🙂 )

What are your favorite blogs? Why do you like them? I’m excited to hear!

Shel Silverstein: “Every Thing On It”

As I was driving to work yesterday morning, I heard a segment on NPR about Shel Silverstein, a poet who I adored when I was a kid.

Shel started out with “The Giving Tree,” which many of you may remember fondly, and then moved into humorous poetry. Many kids, teenagers, and even adults don’t like or appreciate poetry, but Shel used humor and some silliness to entertain everyone with his poems. While some might see his work as “for kids,” I think we could all agree that everyone, regardless of age, can enjoy it.

His most recent collection has actually been built by his family, who went through 1,500 of his remaining poems to choose the 145 for “Every Thing On It.”

My favorite poem, on NPR’s website, is called “Italian Food.” I’ve posted it below.

I still love Shel Silverstein’s work because I find it inspiring when I can just giggle at it, enjoy it for what it is, and then still see some deeper meaning that only adults may pick up.

 

What do you guys think? Do you like Shel Silverstein’s work? Was it a a part of your childhood as it was a part of mine?

 

Italian Food

Oh, how I love Italian food.
I eat it all the time,
Not just ’cause how good it tastes
But ’cause how good it rhymes.
Minestrone, cannelloni,
Macaroni, rigatoni,
Spaghettini, scallopini,
Escarole, braciole,
Insalata, cremolata, manicotti,
Marinara, carbonara,
Shrimp francese, Bolognese,
Ravioli, mostaccioli,
Mozzarella, tagliatelle,
Fried zucchini, rollatini,
Fettuccine, green linguine,
Tortellini, Tetrazzini,
Oops—I think I split my jeani.

 

Link to the NPR article and interview with Mitch Myers, Shel’s nephew: http://www.npr.org/2011/09/20/140566486/shel-silversteins-poems-live-on-in-every-thing

Story of the Bookstore

I guess you could say my story tonight is the story of the bookstore. I read this article on CNN yesterday. It’s the story of Borders, the once-thriving-now-defunct bookstore that has closed its original Ann Arbor store as of Monday.

The chain saw its demise thanks to “technology and management issues,” according to the CNN article. I think it spurs the debate about books versus e-books, and whether the development of technology to “print” books for products such as the Kindle and Nook mean the end of “real” books.

I start thinking, what is the definition of “real” book turning into? It may no longer mean a printed paperback or hardback in our hands. Then I wonder, would Borders have survived if it seemed less like a huge departmental bookstore and more like a small town library? Don’t get me wrong – I spend many an hour in Barnes and Noble and I spent quite some hours at Borders – but to me, nothing compares to the tight aisles of and old worn couches of a tiny bookstore nestled in some small space in town.

What do you guys think? Did Borders not survive largely because of Kindles and Nooks? If the atmosphere had been different, would it have meant a different path for the stores? Are tiny bookstores (despite the potential of more financial obstacles) more likely to survive and are they more appealing to readers and writers for the atmosphere?

Delay

Sorry the delay in A Story Every Day! I’ve been #ontheroad and now watching Hurricane Irene!

Handwriting

I don’t know about you, but I still prefer to write some things by hand. Thank you notes, for example. Poems, as well.

But when I sit down to write a story, I like to sit at my computer.

In thinking about that writing process, I came across a CNN iReport article about handwriting:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/IREPORT/08/12/handwriting.analysis.irpt/index.html.

I’ve heard that even adult handwriting isn’t as neat anymore, thanks to keyboard and word processors. What do you guys think? How important is our handwriting (and its neatness) these days?

I’d like to say that it’s still pretty important. I see it is one of the physical representations of ourselves, and of our stories. Typing a poem or a story is one thing; handwriting is another. Some of the questions that spring into my mind, then, are how are they different, and why are these differences important? What roles do those differences play in telling our stories?