Volume IIII, Issue 39 September 28, 2015 Word of the Week: because Dear ,
My grandson Rhys and I made zucchini bread together last Friday—from cracking each egg into the bowl to dumping in the vanilla to stirring in the zucchini. He stirs a mean whisk! And then we ate some for lunch. Why? Because we wanted to. How good does life
get?
At two and a half, Rhys hasn't started asking "Why?" yet. But he will. And I can't wait. Because then I'll get to tell him, "Because..."And is there anything more fun than explaining the whys and wherefores
of baking--and of life?
I've loved the word "because" ever since I watched this as a kid. (Did you guess before you clicked?) It'll be a few years before I can share it
with Rhys, but that day will come.
Meanwhile, check out just how much range "because" can have in this week's featured writing from Brevity magazine, an essay by Kathrine Leone Wright. (And if you have "original, previously unpublished works of creative PROSE—which includes (but is
not limited to) short fiction, flash fiction, and creative non-fiction" that's 2,500 words or less, moonShine Review has extended their deadline to September 30th. Guidelines here.
And if you're near Charlotte and free this Saturday and want a day devoted to writing (because you love to write), I do have two spots left in the Fall Writing Retreat.
Love, light, and happy writing, Upcoming WordPlay
FALL WRITING RETREATThis Saturday, October 3rd
Two spaces available
(Writing as Renewal / Creating New Writing
Tools
for a Writing Life)
Renew and delight yourself. The Fall Writing Retreat is an opportunity to create new pieces of writing and/or new possibilities for our lives. Enjoy various seasonal prompts; they elicit beautiful material that can be shaped into essays, poems, stories, or articles. After a communal lunch, you’ll have private time which can be used to
collage, work with a piece of writing from the morning, or play with a number of other writing prompts and methods. You’ll take home new ideas, new drafts, and new possibilities. $97 includes lunch and supplies.
WHERE: South Charlotte area. Details will be provided upon registration.
WHEN: Saturday, October 3rd, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
TO
REGISTER: To pay with a check via mail, email info@wordplaynow.com for instructions. To pay online, please click this secure link. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PROJECT BOOK: GET YOUR BOOK OUT OF YOU AND INTO THE WORLD
(Writing/Publishing Your Book-length Writing Project) A hands-on workshop for any
writer who would like to write and/or publish a book and
1) doesn’t know how
2) doesn’t get around to it
3) feels
a) intimidated
b) confused
c) overwhelmed
d) uninspired
e) all of the above
You’ll gain clarity, confidence, direction, momentum, and working knowledge of the steps you need to take and the procedures and pieces that are necessary (overview,
synopsis, outline, and all that jazz), as well as an introduction to today’s publishing world (major publishers, university presses, small presses, self-publishing, e-publishing, and print-on-demand). We'll talk about marketing, too, whether you're an introvert, extrovert, or ambivert. $418 (plus tax)
includes retreat, lodging, two breakfasts and Saturday lunch.
WHERE: The Sunset Inn, 9 North Shore Dr., Sunset Beach, NC 28468
WHEN: Friday,
November 13 – Sunday, November 15, 2015* TO REGISTER: Contact the Sunset Inn at 888.575.1001 or 910.575.1000 (if you would like to handpick your room, view your choices
here first, then call). Because the Inn is holding rooms for you, our participants, they are blocked off as unavailable online.
Find out more here.
More WordPlay opportunities here. WordPlay Featured Writing
Why
by
Kathrine Leone
Wright
What good are you? What do you do?
~ Dr. Seuss
Because language is all we have. Because today my son is eight years old. Because songs run over, over, over and spiral out on their own axis. Because I cannot sing. Because almost nearly half through last century and however much is
left to me of this one is all the time I’m allotted. Because neurons fire up the ovens. Because my daughter knows: four times four is sixteen is the square root of divided by.
Because intergalactic dust and gas. Because moon rising, rain….
Read the entire essay in Brevity online 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 "because."
PROMPT:
In honor of because, here are three 10-minute writing prompts inspired by this oh-so-useful word. (If none feels right, feel free to create your own. Why? Because you:
- Try a riff like Kathrine Leone Wright's. Find (or
write) an interesting question, and come up with as many "becauses" as you can.
- Write a scene or anecdote, real or fictional, in which one person/character explains why he/she did something inexplicable.
- Write the "because" to share about something you
did in your life that had big implications.
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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