Volume IIII, Issue 25
June 22, 2015
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“Whether you think you can, or you think you can't--you're right.”
~ Henry Ford Dear ,
I was planning to use this deceptively simple word "can" in today's zine to discuss what we can accomplish as writers if we are willing to dream just a little, to take one small action after another in the direction of those dreams. Given I just found out last week that I can soon cross off one of the highest items on my bucket list (I received the happy news
that a poem of mine will appear in The Writers' Almanac on July 8th), it seemed apropos.
But this plan seems, in light of the devastating horror that happened in
Charleston so recently, way too narrow in focus. Not that it's not meaningful, or important, to achieve our writing dreams. But language is so powerful, containing as it does our best—and worst—beliefs and aspirations. It allows us to create blueprints for successes in all manner of endeavors, and to inspire
ourselves and others to take action toward them.
So I invite you to, in addition to considering your own personal goals and aspirations, use "can" to cause as much peace and love as possible in every encounter you have this week. It's easy to feel hopeless in the face of the kind of hatred and
evil that leads to such violence and destruction. But you can make a difference. How do I know that? Because you already have. You already do.
This week, I'm featuring a tiny excerpt from the second book of Rachel Joyce's that my book club read—back to back with the first—because we loved it so much. In the first, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry,
an ordinary man, dressed in a lightweight coat and yachting shoes, decides on the spur of the moment to take off on a 600-mile pilgrimage across England to see a dying friend. Can he make it? Yes, he can. And in the second, The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, the ordinary woman and friend Harold is on his way to visit must confront her past, confess a terrible secret, and forgive all involved, including herself. Can she do it? Yes, she can, with the
support of seen—and unseen—others who love her. And isn't that, after all what undergirds every accomplishment worth
achieving?
That seems like the best segue I'm going to find
to say thank you, on this day after Father's Day, to all the fathers out there who have made the world a better place through loving and supporting their children—including the father of my children.
Here he is with our
daughter Amanda and our son Dan, on one of our many happy family camping trips "back in the day." Thanks, dear, for the great gift you've given me in our children, and for all you've done to help them grow into the terrific people they are. And thank you, , for being a peace-maker and a love-bearer in so many ways in this world that needs peace and love so desperately. Can you keep doing this, even in the
face of what seem impossible odds? Yes, you can. And will.
Love and light, Maureen Upcoming WordPlay
DELICIOUS MEMORIES (Writing about Food in Any and All Genres) Food not only nurtures and sustains us, it’s a rich source of metaphor and memory! We’ll explore our connections with food as we write of when, where, what, with whom, how — and even why — we ate! You can use your food writings to create a family cookbook, individual
essays, stories, or poems, scenes in fiction or memoir, a food blog, etc. — or just for your own pleasure.
WHERE: North County Regional
Library. 16500 Holly Crest Lane. Huntersville, NC 28078
WHEN: July 15th, 2015, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
COST: Free!
TO REGISTER: To register online, please click here.
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SPINNING WORDS INTO GOLD (Fulfilling Writing Dreams and Goals; Creating New Writing; Revising and Polishing Your Writing) Does writing fulfill you? Do you wish you were writing more? Jumpstart your writing life and learn to keep your words flowing. Learn specific techniques and exercises to create nonfiction, poetry and/or fiction.
Whether you would like to keep a journal for your own personal growth, spin stories for your loved ones, or further a career as a professional writer, experience the satisfaction of developing a writing practice that works for you—come spin words into gold.
WHERE: The John Campbell Folk School, 1 Folk School Road, Brasstown,
NC 28902 WHEN: Sunday, August 23rd through Saturday, August 29th, 2015
TO REGISTER: Call the John Campbell Folks School at 1-800.FOLK.SCH (365-5724). Or register online here. $594 for one week-long session, plus lodging and meals. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNDER CONSTRUCTION (Fulfilling Writing Dreams & Goals; Creating New Writing; Revising & Polishing Your Writing) This class is designed to fulfill your writing dreams and projects.
You’ll set goals and support structures and watch your writing flow! You’ll also get feedback on your work (any genre) and learn revision tools and methods. Each week, writing prompts will generate material for new writing or further a piece in process, whatever your preferred genre. Through examples of accomplished writers, you’ll learn techniques to aid you right where you are in the process.
WHERE: Covenant Presbyterian Recreation Center, 1000 East Morehead Street, 28204
WHEN: Wednesday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to noon: September 2, 9, 16 and 30, October 7, 14, 21 and 28, November 18, December 2, 9 and 16 COST: $399 for 12 classes
TO REGISTER: To register by check, please email info@wordplaynow.com for details. To register online with a credit card, please click this secure
link. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GIFT OF MEMOIR (Preserving Family History; Writing for and about Your Family; The Art of Memoir) Our life stories are a precious legacy. Putting them in writing is a gift to all who know and love us—they can be treasured and enjoyed for generations to come. It is also a gift to ourselves. As best-selling author Rachel Naomi Remen says in her
book Kitchen Table Wisdom, facts bring us to knowledge, but stories bring us to wisdom. If you are interested in writing family and/or personal life stories—those significant tales of adventure, transition, love, loss, and triumph, as well as lovely everyday moments from times past or the present, come learn specific tools and techniques to retrieve and record them.
WHERE: Covenant Presbyterian Recreation Center, 1000 East Morehead Street, Charlotte, 28204. Click here for map.
WHEN: Thursday mornings, 10:00 a.m. – noon:
September 3 and 17, October 1 and 15, November 5 and 19, December 3 COST: $229 for 7 sessions.
TO REGISTER: To register by check, or for more details, please email info@wordplaynow.com. To register online with a credit card, please click this secure link.
More WordPlay opportunities here.
Featured Writing
an excerpt from
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy
A Novel by Rachel
Joyce I am someone who has always run from
difficulty, and it dawns on me that I don't
have to go on that way. We write ourselves
certain parts and then keep playing them
as if we have no choice. But a tardy person
can become a punctual one, if she chooses.
You don't have to keep being the thing you
have become. It is never too late.
You can check out this luminous book here.
WordPlay Now! Writing
Prompt This is WordPlay -- so why not revel in the power and potential of one good word after another? This week, it's "can."
PROMPT:
You've heard that old cliché about every journey beginning with a single step. Rachel Joyce's character, Harold Fry, is proof that this is so. He made it all the way to Queenie by taking one small step after
another.
Choose a dream of your own, anything from being on time to having a beautiful perennial garden to writing a book to causing world peace. Create an "I can" list of at least 25 tiny steps you could take toward that dream. When I say tiny, I mean it—what can you do in fifteen minutes or less? Now pick one, and do it. Tomorrow, pick another.
Keep writing down every tiny step you can think of, and keep taking tiny steps, remembering
these words of Harry Chapin's: "It's got to be the going not the getting there that's good." (from his song "Greyhound.")
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MAUREEN RYAN GRIFFIN, an award-winning poetry and nonfiction writer, is the author of Spinning Words into Gold, a Hands-On Guide to the Craft of Writing, a grief workbook entitled I Will Never Forget You, and two collections of poetry, This Scatter of Blossoms and When the Leaves Are in the Water. She believes, as author Julia Cameron says, "We are meant to midwife dreams for one another."
Maureen also believes that serious "word
work" requires serious WordPlay, as play is how we humans best learn -- and perform. What she loves best is witnessing all the other dreams that come true for her clients along the way. Language, when used with intentionality and focus, is, after all, serious fuel for joy. Here's to yours! |
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