Karinwritesdangerously

We all fantasize about having large blocks of time to court our muses, often this isn’t an option. Finding or making time to write on a regular basis can be challenging, especially as the holidays roll around. With planning, shopping, and family get-togethers, writing time can easily slip away. A few strategies for keeping your creative juices brewing: e

Revisit your schedule: Take a close look at your day. It’s more than likely that you can squeeze a little more writing time here and there. One possibility: cutting down on time spent checking email and social media. This tends to be a black hole. Some writers check on a regular schedule: Once in the morning, once after lunch, and once at the end of the day. This structured approach often frees up valuable time. 

Work in 10-minute sessions: Fitness experts tout the advantages of exercising for 10-minute intervals several times a day. Why not borrow this approach? You can “trick yourself into finding writing time” by just pulling out a pen and letting your thoughts flow for ten minutes at a time. Find three 10-minute slots in a day and you’ll have found half-an-hour of writing time. Over five days in a week, that adds up to 2-1/2 hours; over six, days, you’ll have put in 3 hours. 

Take creativity breaks: When you find your attention lagging on a project unrelated to writing, why not give yourself a short creativity break and focus on your writing for 15 minutes or so, then return to the project at hand? You may find yourself refreshed and energized. 

Use idle time: While waiting for a doctor’s appointment, picking up a prescription, or even watching a sports event, have a paper and pen handy. You can jot down a couple of ideas, make a list of scenes you need to fix or capture colorful bits of conversation you hear. Even quick moments like these can prove fruitful.

Pursue prompts: If your time is limited, you can exercise your writing muscles by writing to a prompt, just as you might in a workshop. This technique can be both fun and revealing. Even if you write only a paragraph or two, it can give your creativity a lift and perhaps even spotlight a great idea that’s been simmering below the surface. 

The more often you write, the more you’ll accomplish and the better you’ll feel about nurturing your creative life. Write on!

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« It is a law of the universe. Assistance must always be given to those who request it. » Oprah Winfrey

Wouldn’t it be wonderful — absolutely fabulous, in fact — if you could somehow magically conjure up vital information for a project you’re working on? Well it may not be as far fetched an idea as it sounds. Not if you invoke the “Magic Folder” principle. Here’s how it works:

First, you simply find an empty Manila folder or if you’re a paper lover like me, a jazzy one with William Morris flowers on it. Then you label it with the title of what you need: “Healing herbs from the Middle Ages” or “Daring Escapes of World War II” or even something highly specific to a novel or story you’re writing, like “Five Possible Subplots.” Then you just carry it around with you everywhere and see what happens.

According to my friend and mentor Dr. Rob Gilbert,* you’ll start accumulating material almost instantly, When he first used this principle to research a paper he was writing, it worked like a charm. The first day, his mother gave him a helpful “Reader’s Digest” article she’d come across; then a friend told him about a TV program related to his subject — and on and on. I’ve had similar experiences, so I’m definitely a fan of this approach. Why does this work?

You’re announcing your intention: There’s nothing more powerful than a clearly stated intention backed up by action. When you write down what you’re looking for and create an empty folder waiting to be filled, you are signaling to yourself, everyone around you, and the universe at large that you are focusing your attention and energy on a goal.

You’re asking for help: As Oprah says so well, when you request help sincerely and in good faith, you invoke a “law of the universe” — “assistance must always be given.” I’m a firm believer in this — asking for help brings it to you.

You’re opening yourself to receive: When you open yourself up to new ideas and fresh approaches, you’re clearing the wave lengths, cosmically speaking, and allowing new avenues of information to open up and flow freely to you — often in unexpected ways. You’ll be amazed at where and when tidbits of information will arrive!

So, it you need a boost, why not use the “Magic Folder” technique? If it works for you, I’d love to hear about it as we all write on!

* This powerful tool comes to us via Rob’s wonderful Success Hotline: 973.743.4690.

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« Be bigger than your fears. »
Dorothy

My mom darling mom Dorothy’s birthday is tomorrow — December 20. She passed away of pancreatic cancer in 2004. Since then, my beautiful sister Stephanie and I often get together to celebrate her birthday by going to a cozy restaurant in Manhattan not far from where my mom lived for lunch. They serve great cheeseburgers there — one of my mom’s all-time favorite meals. And so Steph and I have burgers and fries in her honor. We also hoist a glass — either a gin & tonic or a Bloody Mary, depending on how we feel. My mom was a gin & tonic gal, but she also enjoyed a good Bloody Mary now and then.

As I sit here feeling sad and missing my mom, I’m surrounded by many reminders of her. They’re all over my office. There’s a beautiful picture of her when she was young on my desk and other pictures of her holding my son Alex when he was little. She adored him and he felt the same about her. “Dot, I need you!” he would call out when he wanted help with a button or tying his shoes.

I also have all sorts of knickknacks from my mom’s apartment — a silver wizard standing atop a huge amethyst stone is my favorite. Nestled by it I have a Fortune cookie slip that says: “You should be able to undertake and complete anything.” The two are perfect together, because my mom really believed that about the people she loved. She believed that we could do anything we set our minds to.

Anything! Whenever I was discouraged about my writing, I could call her up and she’d give me a pep talk. She was always in my corner. She had a tough life in many ways, but she was a Sagittarius and like the Archer, she was always outward bound and optimistic, young at heart and adventurous.

« Be bigger than your fears, » she said to me once. Great advice for all of us. So today, in her honor, I’m passing it on. “I need you, Dot!” That’s what Alex used to say when he was little. So now, I’m saying it, too: “I need you, Dot!”

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« Advice from a HORSE” — this headline, emblazoned on a fire-engine red T-shirt, caught my eye and I bought it. Before giving it to a friend, pondered the gems of advice printed below a dashing, prancing stallion — and realized that they apply, not just to life, but to writing as well:

“Take life’s hurdles in stride” — Always a good idea. We’re going to have good days and rough days, good times and hard times. We’re going to face thorny plot points, rejection, rebellious characters, and dry spells. If we take whatever comes our way in stride, we’ll stay in the saddle.

“Loosen the reins” — When we hold the reins too tightly and try too hard, our creative juices often stop flowing. “Efforting” feels just like what it sounds like: effort. When we loosen our grip, we let go of our reliance on results and outcomes.

“Be free spirited” — My favorite Yogi teabag quote: “A relaxed mind is a creative mind.” When we’re free spirited, we’re alive to adventure, to fresh ideas, to new ways of thinking.

“Keep the burrs from under your saddle” — Little annoyances and distractions can irritate us and drain away our energy. So let’s take every opportunity to simplify our days.

“Carry your friends when they need it” — We may write alone, but we all need fellow travelers to help us on our way. Let’s « carry” each other. Let’s support and encourage and embolden and inspirit each other.

“Keep stable” — Let’s meet whatever comes our way with poise and equanimity. Let’s root ourselves into the earth like the trees. When we’re well balanced, even the roughest wind won’t break us.

“Spur yourself onto greatness!” — Let’s spur ourselves and each other on! Let’s do more than expected. Let’s surpass ourselves. Let’s go for greatness — and all write on!

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“The moment we give close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world unto itself.” Henry Miller 

A blade of grass — a magnificent world. Now, that’s a writer paying close attention! Isn’t that one of our biggest gifts as writers — attending to what most people ignore or miss? But isn’t it also one of our biggest challenges? 

Seeing, really seeing, takes time and energy. It takes an open heart and an unfettered mind—one that’s willing to go anywhere. 

It’s so easy to look for what we want or expect to find, isn’t it? But seeing— giving close attention to the world around us and in us — is an art — a craft we can cultivate. And what rewards it offers!

When we give close attention, we concentrate our mind — we aim and focus it, strengthening our ability to screen out distractions.

When we give close attention, we see what others miss. We find our way into the heart of a character we’re creating or connecting with.

When we give close attention, we notice the qualities that make someone or something unique.

When we pay close attention, we begin to appreciate how “mysterious” and “magnificent” what we’re attending to really is.

As writers we conjure up whole worlds or discover them or recover them for our readers. We bring them the gift of seeing something they might have missed or forgotten or even pushed away — and then help them see it as well. And when writer and reader attend closely together, what magnificent worlds are revealed! So let’s pay close attention. Let’s see, really see, as we all write on!

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“There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.” Jane Austen

Today, December 16, is the divine Jane Austen’s birthday. She was born in 1775. Her most famous book, the wonderful Pride and Prejudice, has sold more than 20 million copies since it was first published in 1813. A gathering of her wit and wisdom to inspire us 

“We have all a better guide in ourselves, if we would attend to it, than any other person can be.”

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”

“Men have had every advantage of us in telling their own story. Educations has been theirs in so much higher a degree; the pen has been in their hands. I will not allow books to prove anything.”

“Seldom, very seldom, does complete truth belong to any human disclosure; seldom can it happen that something is not a little disguised, or a little mistaken.”

“They are much to be pitied who have not been given a taste for nature early in life.”

“Oh! Do not attack me with your watch. A watch is always too fast or too slow. I cannot be dictated to by a watch.”

“What wild imaginations one forms when dear self is concerned! How sure to be mistaken!”

“There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.”

“What is right cannot be done too soon.”

“Nobody minds having what is too good for them.”

“An artist cannot do anything slovenly.”

And now, entertained and emboldened, let’s all write on!

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“The universe is made of stories, not atoms.” Muriel Rukeyser

“If you want to motivate people, tell stories. If you want to instruct people, tell stories. Human beings are storytelling machines. As they say in sales, facts tell, stories sell. Why did God create so many people? Because He loves stories.” Dr. Rob Gilbert

You’d have to travel far to find a more devoted storyteller than my friend and mentor, Rob Gilbert. He regales his listeners with tales all the time on his wonderful Success Hotline (973.743.4690) and I love hearing them. They’re always punchy and inspiring.

As Rob says, “A story is something you can tell in the present about something that happened in the past that will be remembered in the future….There’s no great story without a big problem.” Here are some of his tips for powering up our storytelling skills in everyday conversations, which can also apply to stories we tell on the page:

Keep it short: “It’s sort of like a punch. You want the story to be as short as possible. You don’t want extraneous words. You have to edit them. You have to practice them.”

Set it up: Most stories have two parts — narrative and dialogue. When recounting the facts of the story, keep it unemotional, as if you’re reporting the news. Save the emotion for the dialogue — that’s where you become an actor and ham it up.

Listen and learn: Someone once asked the legendary Stephen Sondheim, “How can you be so creative?” His answer? “I listen.” Stories are all around us. The best way to become a better storyteller is to listen to other people’s stories. You’ll learn what works and what doesn’t, and if you listen enough, “you’ll develop a great storytelling accent.” There are tons of stories on the internet. If you watch them over and over, you’ll begin to see how great storytellers use pauses, inflection, and dialogue to make their stories more exciting and memorable. Go to YouTube and check out Earl Nightingale’s “Acres of Diamonds” (the long version) or Jack Canfield’s “Bobsie the Fireman” from Chicken Soup for the Soul.

Listening to well-told stories is a great way to improve our storytelling on the page; so is reading our own writing aloud. As William Zinsser said so well, “People read with their ears.” Bravo, Rob — tell on! Inspired and energized, let’s all write on!

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To be of Use
by Marge Piercy

The people I love the best
jump into work head first
without dallying in the shallows
and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight.
They seem to become natives of that element,
the black sleek heads of seals
bouncing like half-submerged balls.

I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,
who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,
who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward,
who do what has to be done, again and again.

I want to be with people who submerge
in the task, who go into the fields to harvest
and work in a row and pass the bags along,
who are not parlor generals and field deserters
but move in a common rhythm
when the food must come in or the fire be put out.

The work of the world is common as mud.
Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.
But the thing worth doing well done
has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.
Greek amphoras for wine or oil,
Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums
but you know they were made to be used.
The pitcher cries for water to carry
and a person for work that is real.

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”
John Wooden

John Wooden was a legendary basketball player and coach who inspired and counseled many individuals and teams to victory. When I came across eight principles from his book Wooden that he used to guide his many successful players over the years, I knew they offered wisdom we could all apply on our writing journey:

1. Fear no opponent. Respect every opponent.

2. Remember, it’s the perfection of the smallest details that makes big things happen.

3. Keep in mind that hustle makes up for many a mistake.

4. Be more interested in character than reputation.

5. Be quick, but don’t hurry.

6. Understand that the harder you work, the more luck you will have.

7. Know that valid self-analysis is crucial for improvement.

8. Remember that there is no substitute for hard work and careful planning. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.

Here’s an idea: Why not take one of these principles and use it as a weekly touchstone for your writing? You can take them in order or mix them up and pick one each day that really speaks to you. Write on!

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“Don’t let anyone steal your dreams!” Brian Cavanaugh

A story told by Itzhak Perlman, one of the world’s great classical musicians: By the time he was four years old, two things happened to him that shaped his future. First, he was crippled by polio, and second he heard a recording of the famous Jascha Heifitz. Polio had taken away the power of his legs, but the music he heard gave him wings. It gave him a dream to work for that set him on the path to a life of musical training and fulfillment. He dared to dream — and to do what he needed to do to make his dream a reality.

“We grow great by dreams,” President Woodrow Wilson once said. “All great men are dreamers. They see things in the soft haze of a spring day, or in the red fire on a long winter’s evening. Some of us let these great dreams die, but others nourish them through bad days until they bring them to the sunshine and light which come always to those who sincerely hope that their dreams will come true.”

As we move toward a new year, it’s the perfect time to dust off our dreams — to polish them until they shine brightly again. We have more than two weeks before we unwrap the new year and begin to write on its pages.

Sure, the holidays can be hectic. But let’s also take some time to slow down and sit somewhere quietly by ourselves, perhaps over a cup of coffee or hot chocolate — and jot down the biggest dream we can think of for coming year. It might be getting published. It might be finding that dream agent who will love your novel and champion it through the publishing maze. It might be pulling out that compelling story you’ve put aside out of frustration, giving it a fresh look, and submitting it.

Whatever your dream is, write it down in a notebook Give it wings by spelling out exactly what you want to have happen and what you’d feel like if it did. Be specific! Then on another page, write down three small steps you can take to make it happen — and take action on them. After you do those three, write down three more and accomplish those.

Keep doing this day by day, week by week, until your dream looks more and more real, more and more doable. Here’s another idea: Jot down your dream — “I am happily published in 2026”— or whatever it is, on a little index card and keep it in your wallet, then pull it out and look at it throughout the day. Soon more ideas will come to you about how to make it happen. 

Let’s be dreaming doers — and write on!

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