Tag: poem

Creativity in a Stressful Time

This past month, I have found it difficult to concentrate on my creative writing. I have spent hours listening to talk shows and pundits. I finally resorted to watching all the available versions of Matlock with Kathy Bates in one sitting. The writing, acting, and filming of that series are remarkably good. Kathy Bates’ performance is phenomenal. I was entranced by a TV show for the first time in years.

Creative writing requires a mind that is rested and not distracted and, in particular, a train of thought that is not interrupted with “What if?” I managed to eke out one short poem in the last few weeks. However, I have not yet written the pages for my November critique group next week. On November 5, I simply sat at my computer and read various weak and unsatisfactory commentaries by various news outlets.

I keep asking myself: what has gone wrong with education in the USA? Whose voices and whose writing can a wise person follow to understand current affairs? When and where can an everyday citizen be involved in stabilizing our struggling democracy? What can writers do to have an impact? Which kinds of stories can we tell that expand readers’ ability to recognize facts, identify lies, and interpret what they read? How can we help regular readers select reliable sources of information? How can we assure readers that all issues are not divided into “two sides”? How do we prevent division and separation among family members, former friends, and former colleagues? What is the common good that might unite?

At the moment I have no answers—only questions.

My Writing Goals for 2024

Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

In October, I attended the excellent Colorado Poetry Center poetry presentation by Kathryn Winograd at the Boulder Bookstore.

I also participated in a poetry reading with Larry LaVerdure’s group in Lafayette and read one of my recent poems.

I attended Bardic Trails, a program on the Western Slope, on Zoom. This month it featured two readers from the Navajo Nation: Zoey McKenzie of Las Cruces, New Mexico whose work can be viewed at: https://saaniidotcom.blogspot.com, and Milton Bluehouse, Jr., who is the son of a former Navajo leader and Tribal Chair, a hunter, rancher, and poet. He has worked in tribal, federal, and state inter-governmental relations, including facilitating and mediating multiple Indian Country issues. He has also provided relations training for federal and state agencies, private corporations, and non-governmental organizations.

Additionally, I invited Bobby Parrot who has published hundreds of poems to read for the BWA Poetry Circle. Bobby’s work can be viewed in various online journals including: https://www.exactingclam.com/contributors/bobby-parrott/

Finish my first novel and query agents:

I drafted new pages for my critique group.

Continue to work on my second novel:

I talked to another writer about this book.

Continue to work on my third novel:

Even though I really liked the new BWA literary critique group, I decided that I could not manage another meeting, nor could I read more manuscripts at this point. So, with regret, I dropped out.

Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended the BWA Happy Hour in October and Gary Allen McBride’s group this week in which we had an energetic conversation about Stephen King’s Holly.

Denver Woman’s Press Club: Our 100th-year celebration was held in October.

Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter and chatted with folks who had attended the conference.

Women Writing the West: I could not attend the conference because I was sick. It was a big disappointment.

Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2024:

Today is November 7, 2024. I am posting my eleventh blog of 2024. October was unseasonably warm—I continued to harvest beans and corn from my garden until October 18th. My flower garden lasted until Halloween when we had our first freeze. Our first feathery snowfall covered my garden with snow flowers this week.

Writers who were born in November that I particularly enjoy:

Margaret Atwood, Roland Barthes, Fyodor Dostoevsky, André Gide, Nadine Gordimer, Margaret Mitchell, Helen Hooven Santmyer, Mark Twain, Voltaire, and Kurt Vonnegut

Poets that I admire who were born in November:

William Blake, Marianne Moore, and Anne Sexton

Lessons in Writing

Bonnie Garmus, the author of Lessons in Chemistry, and an enthusiastic supporter of libraries was the featured speaker at the local Boulder Public Library Gala in September. With attendance at close to 400 supporters, our Boulder Writers Alliance group was fortunate to have good seats close to the dais. Maeve Conran from KGNU conducted an insightful interview with Bonnie. The interview will be broadcast on October 24, 2024, at 9 AM, on KGNU Community Radio 88.5 FM on Radio Book Club, a collaboration between KGNU and the Boulder Bookstore.

The next morning, I joined a small group from the Library Foundation and their supporters to meet with Bonnie for breakfast at a local venue. Bonnie spoke about how important both the school librarians and the local public librarians in her town were to her as a child. Her interest in reading and writing blossomed under the guidance of attentive librarians who gave her interesting tasks to do. Thus, she has chosen to be an active supporter of libraries as an adult. Throughout her career, Bonnie worked as a copywriter. Honing her skills for editing and accuracy proved invaluable to her work as a novelist. She added that her experience in marketing was beneficial when she began to collaborate with her publisher. She also emphasized that she goes through many drafts before publishing—up to fifty! I am looking forward to her next publication.

My Writing Goals for 2024

Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

This past month, the Jaipur Literary Festival Colorado was held at the local public library. I attended several sessions with visiting and local poets, including Rohan Chhetri, Jovan Mays, Reiland Rabaka, and Anne Waldman.

I also participated in a workshop at Naropa University led by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer who was San Miguel County’s Poet Laureate from 2007-2011 and the Western Slope Poet Laureate from 2015-2017. Moudi Sbeity, a poet who is a writing instructor at Naropa University, joined Rosemerry for the session. The following evening, they both read their work at the Colorado Poetry Center’s reading at the Boulder Bookstore. I found both the workshop and the reading to be exceptionally warm, personal, and instructive.

I also attended Bardic Trails, a program on the Western Slope, on Zoom. This month it featured Eirene Hamilton, a poet who writes in both Diné Bizaad and English. Eirene’s integration of nature, humor, and her people’s culture into her poetry was delightful.

Additionally, I invited David Jilk to present for the Boulder Writers Alliance Poetry Circle in September. He discussed and read from his newest publication. Dave is the author of Epoch: A Poetic Psy-Phi Saga, two collections of lyric poetry, co-author of The Entrepreneur’s Weekly Nietzsche: A Book for Disruptors, and lead or co-author of several academic papers on cognitive neuroscience and on existential concerns related to artificial intelligence.

Finish my first novel and query agents:

I drafted new pages for my critique group.

Continue to work on my second novel:

I did not work on this book this month.

Continue to work on my third novel:

Our new BWA literary critique group met to work together. Three of us were present on Zoom and we all expressed our appreciation for each other’s work. We also made comments and made helpful suggestions.

Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended the BWA Happy Hour in September and our Writers Who Read session led by Gary Allen McBride this week in which we had a lively discussion of Ann Patchett’s Tom Lake.

Denver Woman’s Press Club: I read the newsletter and decided which sessions I could attend this fall.

Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter and followed the RMFW Colorado Gold Conference on Facebook.

Women Writing the West: I am looking forward to the annual conference which takes place this month. I sent in my pages for the critique group being held at the conference.

Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2024:

Today is October 7, 2024. I am posting my tenth blog of 2024. September was beautiful and mostly warm. Because of our exceptionally warm autumn, my flower garden is still in full bloom today, adding color and richness to my days.

Writers who were born in October that I particularly enjoy:

Jill Kerr Conway, e. e. cummings, Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky, Ursula K. Le Guin, Doris Lessing, Katherine Mansfield, François Mauriac, Terry McMillan, Arthur Miller, Ivan Turgenev, and Oscar Wilde

Poets that I admire who were born in October:

John Keats, Sylvia Plath, Arthur Rimbaud, Wallace Stevens, and Dylan Thomas