Writing Like a Bird and Chocolate Raspberry Burritos

WRITING TIP

I came across this poem by Ted Kooser, the Nebraska poet who became Poet Laureate of the United States, in a paperback copy of his book, Delights & Shadows. The title of the poem is "The Necktie."

His hands fluttered like birds,
each with a fancy silk ribbon
to weave into their nest,
as he stood at the mirror
dressing for work, waving hello
to himself with both hands.

Like the hands in Kooser's poem, the little bird in the photograph above was fluttering around under the lily leaves when I spotted him. Later he managed to get some elevation with his wings, but his flight was straight up, then down. Again he tried. Up, then down. Then he managed a few inches of forward momentum before it was down again. Finally, off he went. Across our yard and into the pear tree across the street.

I think writing is like that. We try, try again, and finally get something that takes flight. One of the devices that helps our writing take flight is the use of similie and metaphor. When I was a young writer, I thought beautiful images just poured forth from some writers. I knew I was not one of those writers. Then I attended a meeting of writers where Sue Monk Kidd was speaking. She told about being on vacation and sitting at the beach creating lists of metaphors from the things she saw around her.

"You gotta be kidding," I thought. "Consciously draft images? Don't they just flow from gifted writers like milk and honey?" Somehow I had the idea that working at these things was cheating. Well, hey, this ain't no Scrabble game. I learned it is not only fair and acceptable, it is necessary, to use any and all resources of which we can avail ourselves.

In my library copy of her book, Writing Personal Essays: How to Shape Your Life Experiences for the Page, Sheila Bender writes:

Another exercise for writing good description is to describe one thing as if it were something else usually thought to be unrelated. In bringing the two together, the reader gets an immediate, refreshed experience of your subject. (p. 29)

She goes on to suggest practicing by starting with similies: a window is like. . ., children in a classroom are like.... For example, a window is like a movie screen, children in a classroom are like a flower garden.

The operative word here is practice. Like the little bird in the picture, your comparisons will improve. Some day you may soar like Ted Kooser.

(Note: Some of the books mentioned today are out-of-print. Check your library or used book sales for copies. You might find them online at very high prices. Keep looking. You can find cheaper copies. Or just read a library copy.)

WRITING PROMPT

Practice similies. Let's start with easy ones.
Chocolate is like . . .
Exercising is like . . .
Getting a teenager to clean under her bed is like . . .
Think of it as Brain Training. Keep adding to your list.

CHOCOLATE INKWELL

This recipe is from 101 Things to Do with a Tortilla by Stephanie Ashcraft and Donna Kelly. I purchased this little spiral bound book at the gourmet housewares store on Pearl Street in Boulder, Colorado. An abridged version of this cookbook would say, "Open your fridge or pantry. Take out anything or everything. Roll in a tortilla." That's how I cook so I love the book. (Does that qualify as cooking?)

Chocolate Raspberry Burritos (Three of the most beautiful words in the English language.)

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

8 medium flour tortillas

4 tablespoons butter, melted

4 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Place 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 1/4 cup raspberries in the center of a tortilla. Fold edges in and roll up to form a burrito. Bake seam-side down on a baking sheet 20 minutes at 425 degrees, or until light golden brown. Remove from heat and brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Makes 8 servings.

For more writing tips, writing prompts, resources, fun stuff for writers, and life story writing how-to visit www.angelinyourinkwell.com

All Rights Reserved ©2010 There’s An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Write Toward the Light and Chocolate Can't Leave Them Alone Bars

WRITING TIP


Are there events in your life that you are hiding  in  darkness? Cramming to the back of memory and avoiding writing about? It's okay. Most of us have had times that were sad, frightening, or even embarrassing.


The problem is, it takes mental, emotional, and physical energy to keep stuffing them away. We work harder and harder at not remembering. That energy could better be used for our writing.


Ample research has shown that writing about traumatic events is therapeutic so the best treatment is just to write about it. Bring events into the light.


I can now support the research with my own experience. Recently I gathered my nerve (and my blood pressure medication) and began writing about an unhappy time in my life. Right now the writing is just for myself. When I read The Glass Castle: A Memoir, I cringed at what the author, Jeannette Walls, revealed about her life. My experiences are nowhere near as bad as hers, but I am not ready to share them with the world. That's okay. In this instance, it's the writing that is important.


As I wrote, my heart thumped, my feet got freezing cold, and I hunched closer and closer over the keyboard. When it felt like my head might explode, I got up, walked to the window and looked out at the new young mom on the block pushing her baby boy in his stroller. Her blonde ponytail bounced and his little feet kicked. I smiled. I breathed. I went back to the computer.


After it was all on paper, I felt better. Actually, I was surprised by how much better I felt. It's over.The computer had not gone up in flames, and I had not fallen onto the floor, curled into a fetal position, and sucked my thumb. I printed it, and in a short time, it became a piece of writing that I could look at objectively. Maybe I ate chocolate somewhere in this whole process.


I showed the writing to my gentleman friend and a trusted writing mentor. My gentleman friend hugged me and said, "You are a good writer." My mentor said I had a good start, but she pointed out places I could improve on the piece.


The next morning dawned sunny but foggy. What an odd combination for May. It was perfect for the way I was feeling. Those old events are still in my memory, but the pain is foggy and being burned off by the light.


Don't let old fears and memories hold you back. Write toward the light. It feels good.


WRITING PROMPT


I am not a psychotherapist, nor do I play one on TV, so don't give yourself a crack-up by writing about old wounds. Start small. Write one or two sentences. When you feel strong enough, write again. Or just let it all out on the paper in one smelly heap. Write: I wish things had been different, but . . .


CHOCOLATE INKWELL


Okay, after that writing prompt, you are going to need some serious chocolate. This recipe is from my young advisor's company cookbook, contributed by Jodi, who calls it Can't Let Them Alone Bars. This seemed perfect for today. You know how even though you have a hundred happy memories, your mind keeps returning to the one unhappy memory -- can't let it alone. Let's drown that unhappy memory in good writing and good chocolate.


Can't Leave Them Alone (Chocolate) Bars

1 package white or yellow cake mix (divided)
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter

Combine dry cake mix, eggs, and oil. Press 2/3 cup mixture into greased 9 x 13-inch pan with floured hands. Set aside remaining mixture. In microwavable bowl combine milk, chocolate chips, and ubtter. Microwave 45 seconds or until smooth. Pour over crust. Drop remaining dough by spoonfuls over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes.  (I would probably add nuts because I like to have the Big Three: chocolate, butter, and nuts.)

For more writing tips, writing prompts, answers to questions about life story writing, resources, and fun stuff for writers, go to www.angelinyourinkwell.com.

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Photos by Carol Newman ©2010
All Rights Reserved ©2010 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Intended Meaning and Chocolate Cappuccino Frozen Cake

WRITING TIP

These tulips came wrapped in a protective sleeve with printed instructions on how to care for the flowers. From this angle, the message is hard to read. What about the angle of your writing? Is your writing clear? Sure some of the words can be read, but is the reader getting the message you intended? I had a recent experience where the answer was "no."


In a welcome burst of energy after almost two years of retreat and contemplation, I joined an online personal essay writing class offered by Story Circle Network. I looked forward to a chance to refresh and renew my thinking as well as my writing.


For our first assignment, I submitted an excerpt from a longer piece I had written, a piece I intended as a denouncement of guns. From the facilitator's comments, I could tell the denouncement part worked pretty well; but what I had not expected was, from the questions the facilitator asked,  I seemed to have portrayed my family as a bunch of gun-totin' red necks. "How do you feel about your husband having a gun in the house?" she asked.


A gun in the house? My Gentleman Friend? How could the facilitator have so misread what I intended?


Intended. The word reminded me of the best writing advice I ever received -- advice I have even preached to others. In fact, the advice came from My Gentleman Friend. One time I asked him to read something I was writing. He said, "This is confusing." He pointed to a few sentences. "What does this mean?"


I harumphed a little and said, "I was trying to say . . ." To which he replied, "If you were trying to say that, why didn't you just say it?"


Ah yes. As I have said so many times, the only way the reader knows who you are or what you mean is by the words on the page.


I re-read my gun essay. What I had intended to say was only hinted at on the page. Important parts of the essay were still in my mind. For example, I wrote that an ill family member committed suicide on a "never-to-be-forgotten Christmas." The class instructor/reader interpreted that to mean that guns could be used to relieve suffering. And, as, of course, the event would not be forgotten, it was unnecessary to state that.


What I had meant was that that event damaged the entire family and every Christmas forever. For my mother and her siblings, Christmas became a dreaded time of depression. The event created suffering; it did not relieve suffering. What I meant is quite different from what I wrote. However, as I didn't actually include any of that information about depression, dread, and Christmas, how is the reader to know what I intended?


We know writing is a three-part process, don't we? I will be visiting part three: re-writing. And I look forward to it. Refreshing and renewing my thinking and my writing.


WRITING PROMPT


Write about something you know very well and to which strong emotions are connected. You might write about the birth of a child, a wrong that was done to you, or a social injustice. Write. Put the piece aside for a few days. Look at it again. Have you written what you intended? Can you expand, fill in, flesh out, or clarify? Have you included setting and dialogue? Have you included all the senses? What about your feelings? Are they included?


CHOCOLATE INKWELL


Frozen Chocolate-Covered Cappuccino Crunch Cake


Thank you, Becky, for sending this recipe. It has all my favorites: chocolate, coffee, ice cream, candy, and cake. Becky said she substituted vanilla ice cream and a teaspoon or so of coffee for the more expensive hand-packed coffee ice cream. It calls for a springform pan, but a regular cake pan can be used. The recipe can be doubled. The recipe was created by Beth Royals of Richmond, Va. Don't worry about the length of  the recipe. Mainly, all you have to do is thaw stuff and assemble it. You can do it. Fast.


1 (10 3/4 ounce) frozen pound cake  
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/ 3/4 cup (11.5 oz.package) milk chocolate chips
4 cups (1 quart) coffee ice cream, softened
1 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 3/4 cup coarsely crushed malted milk balls
Frozen whipped topping, thawed (optional)
Coarsely crushed malted milk balls (optional)  (Not optional in my world.)


Slice pound cake into 1/8 to 1/4-inch slices. Place half the slices on the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan, (see note above)  press down firmly. Set remaining slices aside.
Bring cream just to a boil in medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips, let stand 5 minutes. Whisk until well combined and smooth. Pour half the chocolate mixture over pound cake in pan, spreading evenly to 1/4 inch of edge of pan. Cover; freeze for 1 1/2 hours or until chocolate is set.
Combine softened ice cream and whipped topping in large bowl. Fold in 1 3/4 cups crushed malted milk balls. Spread over chocolate layer in pan. Cover; freeze until ice cream is firm, about 2 hours.
Top ice cream with remaining pound cake slices; press down firmly. Spread remaining chocolate mixture over pound cake. Cover; freeze at least 6 hours.
To serve: remove sides of pan. Garnish with additional whipped topping and sprinkle with crushed malted milk balls, if desired. To cut cake evenly, run a knife under hot water and dry with a paper towel before making slices.
Or. if you used a square or rectangular cake pan, slice into squares and serve.


For more Writing Tips, Writing Prompts, and Writing Resources go to the website, http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.


©2010  There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Try Dancing and Easiest Edible Topiary with Chocolate

Remember the dreaming kitty in the previous blog post about the importance of dream time for a writer and how I thought no one listened to my advice? I heard from Rachel Gifford who had this to say:

I can tell you I DO remember when you told me to spend time dreaming, going to a movie, having a latte...because all those things are part of writing. I took your words to heart, and I have given up guilt not only for Lent, but forever!

Did it work for Rachel? Absolutely. In 2007 she self-published her memoir, A Gift in Wolf's Clothing: Life with Diabetes. If you know anyone with diabetes, with diabetes in their family, or among their friends, you will want to give them this book. Rachel is a nationally renowned diabetes educator and speaker. And, she has diabetes. Her book is funny, angry, sad, instructive, a great story and a great read. You can order it from Author House  or from Amazon.

WRITING TIP


How to organize the many elements of a book-length project is always a problem for writers. This weekend at The Writers Place in Kansas City, Missouri, Barbara Bartocci suggested writing chapter titles or individual scenes on Post-It Notes and then sticking the notes to a wall. The organization can be seen at a glance and notes can be rearranged as needed.

Another suggestion was to use half-sheets of notebook paper labeled with chapters or scenes and then stack them into your desired order. It's the old college-term-paper-index-card method but with paper.

Barbara's suggestions are for a plan-first-then-write approach. I think that in some instances a write-first-then-plan approach works. If you are writing your life story or memoir, it is perfectly okay to write a series of stories or chapters first. I then suggest you print them, lay them out around your dining table, and chose and move them into an order your like.

This is part of the fun of being a writer. You can be like these girls dancing in a fountain at Kauffman Gardens in Kansas City. There are many approaches, and the only "Best Way" is the way that works for you.

WRITING PROMPT

Get a deck of cards. Arrange the cards in an interesting way. See how many ways you can arrange the cards. By color, by suit, by number (all the 1s, 2s, 3s, etc.), by even and odd number, ascending, descending, whatever you like. Remember, the goal here is to arrange them in an interesting way.

Now do the same with several chapters, stories or poems you have written. Move them around. If you move a middle or later chapter up to the beginning, does the story become more interesting? Does moving the pieces create new patterns or themes? Do you see your writing with a new eye?

Writing prompt: I see these themes in my writing.


CHOCOLATE INKWELL


Today's recipe is really just a scribbled note on a scrap of paper that surfaced on my desk today. It must be from a television show on the Food Channel, but I don't remember which one.

Edible Topiary with Chocolate

Dip large strawberries in melted chocolate and set aside to harden.
Or purchase chocolate covered strawberries. (I have seen some gorgeous ones that were special ordered from Costco.)
Stick toothpicks, regularly spaced,  into a green foam cone, from craft department, something food safe.
When strawberries have set, stick them on the toothpicks.
I think I remember you work from the bottom up.
Fill in any empty spaces with mint. This gave it the pretty, finished look.
Easy, pretty, yummy, and healthy dessert.
Find more Writing Tips, Writing Prompts, Resources, and Life Story Writing FAQ by going to www.angelinyourinkwell.com or clicking on the link at the top right of this page, Everything Writerly.

Copyright 2010. All Rights Reserved. There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Catnapping Kitty as Writer and Strawberry Brownie Shortcake

WRITING TIP



This catnapping kitty who, I was told, lives in the garden house at the Kauffman Garden where I saw her, must surely be a writer. She is engaged in one of a writer's most important activities -- dreaming.


A writer might dream literally or figuratively. Either way is important. Sometimes writers apologize to me saying, "I haven't been writing."


So far, I don't believe one writer has heard my response: "That's okay. Your brain is still working. Creating. Imagining. Joining old ideas to make new ideas. Gathering disparate information, responses, and emotions to create something unique."


But no -- the writer is not listening. She is still talking, still explaining how busy she has been.


Resist the urge to be busy, to be moving, to be doing. Instead spend time dreaming. Dream time is good. What else do we have but our ideas? Imagination is the writer's stock in trade. Value it. Cherish it. Nourish it.



WRITING PROMPT


Turn off your phone, iPod, and television. Sit quietly. Take a deep breath. Allow yourself to mindlessly stare out the window. Do this for ten minutes. Set your timer so you don't have to keep looking at the clock. Take another deep breath. Relax your shoulders. Stare mindlessly. Let your mind coast.


At the end of ten minutes, write. Maybe you had a memory. Maybe you have a list of dreams of things you want to do. Maybe you just noticed your neighbor's flowers. Write about it.



CHOCOLATE INKWELL


My Young Advisor sent me a link to a website about organic foods and healthy eating. I was especially surprised at the Dirty Dozen Foods to Avoid. Who would have thought about celery being the repository for frightening amounts of pesticides and herbicides? Yikes! I spent quite a bit of time surfing around the site's great information, but then -- oh no -- then, a pop-up ad for Duncan Hines brownie mix appeared. Of course, I clicked on that -- and here we have today's recipe: Strawberry Brownie Shortcake.


Strawberry Brownie Shortcake


1 pkg Duncan Hines Double Fudge Brownie Mix
1 (3.5 oz) pkg vanilla (or chocolate) instant pudding and pie filling
1 1/2 cups milk
2 cups frozen non-dairy whipped topping
1 quart fresh strawberries



Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom and sides of two 9-inch round cake pans.
Prepare brownie mix according to package directions for cake-like brownies; pour into prepared pans.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until top springs back when touched. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely.
Meanwhile, stir pudding mix and milk in medium bowl; mix well. Chill 5 minutes. Fold in whipped topping. Chill.
To serve, place one 9-inch brownie layer on plate. Top with half each of pudding mixture and strawberries. Repeat.
Garnish as desired. (A photo shows strawberries on top and also suggests chocolate curls.)



For Writing Resources, more Writing Tips and Prompts and Life Story Writing Lessons, go to http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/. Watch the Calendar page for fall life story writing classes.


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All Rights Reserved ©2010 There’s An Angel In Your Inkwell®