Amy Tan on Creativity
This TED presentation is from 2008, but it covers an interesting aspect of creativity. Acclaimed author Amy Tan talks about the discomfort we often feel in the face of ambiguity. She describes how she’s embraced and has come to expect the serendipity that often influences her writing. Both humorous and engaging, the talk will perhaps leave you with different ways to look at the writing process and help you discover the stories inside you. If you’re new to the TED...
Prompt: What’s the Backstory?
As you walk to the bus stop, you encounter a woman sitting crumpled and sobbing on the sidewalk. What happened? Write the conversation that led to her breakdown. This was a scene that actually unfolded in front of me when I was in college. I was waiting for my bus in Harvard Square, and a woman walked into the street and just crumbled. I don’t think I’ll ever forget those five minutes. If you want to share, you can post...
2010 Reading List
One of my goals for the year is to compile a reading list and get through it. This may not sound like a lofty goal, but for me it adds accountability for the overall goal of reading more. It’s terrible to admit, but although I’ve always been a writer, I haven’t always been an avid reader. To me this is inexcusable since I firmly believe that reading improves your writing. But I’ve either been too busy, too tired, (insert excuse...
Picture Book Resources
I’m in the process of consolidating my personal blog with this site, so I’m bringing over a few relevant posts. Stay tuned for fresh posts coming soon! In the meantime, here are some great resources for picture book writers. 30 Days to a Stronger Picture Book – Darcy Pattison’s site is filled with helpful information. Her 30 Days information is broken up into smaller posts that she adds to frequently. Picture Book of the Day – If you’re looking for...
Poll: Best Advice for Writers
There are a million tips and nuggets of wisdom out there for writers. But I’m interested to hear what advice you’ve received that has been valuable to you. Leave a comment with your best advice (or cautionary story!) below. For me, there are a couple important ideas that keep me plugging forward. When I first began focusing on writing children’s books, I took some courses that had critique components. I’d submit, get comments back, revise based on the comments and...
Visual Prompt: The Table
Use the photo above as a writing prompt. Take 10-20 minutes and write a scene, poem, piece of dialogue or anything that comes to mind. The idea is to write freely without editing. Just let yourself go. If you’re having trouble getting started, ask yourself questions to dig for details. Who is the table reserved for? What is the location like? Are the people meeting going to talk business or pleasure? What do your other senses pick up?
Using Beginner’s Mind for Creativity
By Cheryl Jones-Reardon from The Mindful Path I’m not creative when it comes to painting, drawing or photography. But I am creative when it comes to problem solving. I attribute much of this to my mindfulness practice. Mindfulness is about living in the present
