Believing in our own writing doesn’t end when we have set a period after the last line in our first draft. In fact, that moment is when the hard work of keeping our confidence up begins. Too often, we take our authentic and electric first draft and hammer the life out of it. We polish it to within an inch of its life, rub out its distinguishing features and make it proper. We make it sound like what we think it’s supposed to sound like. We re-create it so it reads like something that takes no risks and will be a guaranteed B-. We edit out the strangeness, the uniqueness and the surprises. We don’t trust that our spontaneous creativity has merit, so we sand it, bleach it, boil it until it’s smooth, see-through and limp. I’m not arguing for ignoring all language conventions; our readers do have to comprehend our intent. But we need to attend to our writing the way we honor moonrise and sunset. We are excited by these natural phenomena because each and every one is specifically different depending on atmospheric conditions, where we are on the planet and what is in our hearts at that moment. The genius resides in the infinite details, and we should hold to our writing no differently than we do when we rejoice that today’s sunset is like no other.
Upcoming Events
Workshop Reading: April 7, 2019 2:00 – 4:30 p.m. Amherst MA Thursday Evening & Friday Morning Workshop Members will read from their work. Free & Open to the public. maureen@maureenbjones.com
Malibu Retreat: February 3 – 6, 2010 All writers welcome, no matter the genre or experience level. This is your time to celebrate your writing! https://www.writingfulltilt.com/retreats/P
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