There are times when the universe whacks you over the head and shouts, “Pay attention!” The universe is speaking to me about my writing practice, and what I need to include.
Tri-Valley Writers started a field trip series to get us out of our writing dens and into the fresh air. The first outing was to Dublin’s Heritage Park. We were given a sheet of writing prompts and turned loose. I chose to begin with the prompt to describe the area. As I finished my notes about a building with a tin roof, I remembered a story about a cabin in West Texas with a tin roof. I jotted down that memory, which brought forth another memory, and so on all morning. I haven’t written in a stream of consciousness style in years. I have so many projects I want to finish that writing without a specific purpose seems a disgraceful waste of time. For one morning, however, I allowed myself to write without worrying about how the piece would fit into any of my projects.
When I returned home, I opened the latest edition of Writer’s Digest and discovered an article about adapting lessons from art school to improve one’s writing. All the advice incorporated a healthy dose of apparently random writing, of putting aside the idea that every session needs to have a purpose. Creative work is its own reward, and practicing writing, like practicing sketching (or practicing scales, or basic ballet positions) gives us more tools when we are doing purposeful writing.
“Self,” I said, “this is exactly what you need, so for heaven’s sake make sure you go to the next outings.”
Two sessions remain in the summer series – July 24 at Lizzie Fountain (Livermore), and August 7 at Veterans Park (Livermore). To RSVP, email newsletter@trivalleywriters.org.