How it took me three days to force myself to make the zucchini bread and four days to finish this blog post--even though it was so easy to do once I stopped thinking about it. (Long title for a post, huh? But it sort of says it all…) Ever have those days, months or years? … Continue reading Overwhelmed? Me too…
Okay, Rach. What the heck is NaNo? Sounds like something from Mork and Mindy, doesn’t it? NaNoWrimo Actually it’s my lingo for NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, traditionally done in November and now also in July. This is NaNoWriMo’s description of itself: National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to creative … Continue reading To NaNo or Not to NaNo, That Is the Question
On Detours Detours--what a waste of time, huh? Driving home from a weekend away, engrossed in conversation with my travelmate I didn't pay attention to the signage on the way out of Regina. What felt like moments later, I felt a shift in direction as we passed through the Qu’Appelle Valley. I’d taken the wrong … Continue reading On Detours and Finding Your Way Home
or Seeing the Unseeable A week ago, I received a gift of teeth--and the gift of perspective. For the first time in my life, I was able to see a part of myself I understood so little about. My mother always insisted I had a big mouth. In fact, more than once she has noted … Continue reading Perspective and The Gift of Teeth
In the beginning, there was the written word... Of course, like most writers, I’ve always known that I wanted to a writer. As a little girl, I lived in my mind and lost myself in books. I can still remember the joy of writing my first stories when I was a pupil in the tiny one-room … Continue reading Writing—The Beginning of My Journey
This weekend, I had the opportunity to discuss creative process—which just happens to be one of my favourite topics. These are questions I've been asked many times, so you might be wondering about them too. When you write in the first person (“I”), are you writing about yourself? Not specifically--it's really genre-specific. Anyone who's read … Continue reading Creative Process: First Person, Present Tense
Creative Nonfiction is a sub-genre of nonfiction Less than two years ago, I was a die-hard fiction girl through-and-through, and the more literary, the better. I felt cursed with my poetic ease. I wanted to write novels. I wouldn't have believed it if you told me I'd become a fountain spouting creative nonfiction. But I … Continue reading Creative Nonfiction–What in the World is That?
A minimalist lifestyle can help you see reality with a sense of clarity you cannot get when you've got too much surplus in your life. I remember going to my paternal grandmother's house for Christmas the year I turned 7. I don't remember a lot about her house, but I do recall the stacks of … Continue reading Clarity Through De-Cluttering
Sometimes my short stories come one snippet at a time. I’ll suddenly have a character or a setting in my head, but the story is not clear. Usually, I open a new file and type out what’s in my head. I toss the ideas into a bulk folder called “Unfinished.” Once in a while, another … Continue reading Short Stories One Snippet at a Time
Once in a while, the first draft of a short story works. These are the stories you start and finish in one sitting. They usually need a second and maybe a third draft before they are ready to submit. Please understand that this rarely happens. When short stories are quickly written in one go, I … Continue reading Stories that Come Out Great in the First Draft