Make It Happen On Paper



It's all in his head.     Photo by Carol Newman

 We might -- or might not -- be able to guess what this seagull is thinking. My guess is he is thinking he will swoop down and grab my apple as he did the day before when I turned away to take a picture of the swimmers at La Jolla Cove. Or, he might be thinking about what fun it was to make the young woman at the next table scream when he flashed by and grabbed her packet of oatmeal.


But, it still would be a guess. Guessing is fine for observing seagull behavior on a lazy oceanside morning but not so good for a writer. Last week I was like this seagull. I read a story to our advanced life story writing group. I had worked on it off and on for several weeks. Polished, added, subtracted. It began as a fun little Christmas incident, but as I wrote, the story took a darker turn. I wasn't happy about that, but there it was.


I gathered my nerve and read it to the group. Stella asked a question about the ending. I explained as well as I could, but even then, I knew that if I had to explain, something was missing from the writing. The first problem was that I had been like this bird. The story ending was still in my head; I had not put it on the paper. I expected the reader to guess what I was thinking.


I had two problems. First, I thought the story would be more dramatic if I didn't totally spell out everything. However, a story can't be dramatic if the reader is scratching her head and saying, "Huh?" My second, and more important problem, was that I wasn't sure myself what I was thinking. My feelings weren't easy to examine. I wanted the writing and the story to be over. What exactly was I avoiding? I ruminated for a couple of days. Then I re-wrote a couple of sentences, added a couple more sentences, and I think it is better; but I there may be a bit more work to be done.

Be a better writer than the bird in the photo. Read your story word by word. Record it and listen to it. Ask someone to read it aloud to you. Check to see if the conclusion lives up to the buildup. Are the scenes and the feelings on the page?

Maybe the bird in the photo is thinking about his next story. If so, I hope he spends some time getting it on paper instead of just swooping in for a quick swipe.

WRITING PROMPT


In what way are you like a bird? Or maybe, in what way are you unlike a bird? Pick your own bird. Rooster? Eagle? Canary? Hate birds? Make yourself write about it anyway. You will want the writing and the story to be over. Do the hard work. That's where the good writing is.


CHOCOLATE INKWELL   

Mini Microwave Triple Chocolate Cake   Remember the cake in a mug recipe we had one time? This recipe, from http://www.hungrygirl.com/, is another single serving cake. HungryGirl says, "Yes, this is as good as it sounds." 

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. Pillsbury Moist Supreme Reduced Sugar Cake Mix, Devil's Food
2 tbsp. Cool Whip Free, thawed
1 tbsp. fat-free vanilla yogurt
1 tbsp. Hershey's Lite chocolate syrup, divided

Directions:

Stir together the whipped topping and half of the syrup, and then place mixture in the freezer to firm up while you prep the rest of your dessert. Next, in a very small microwave-safe dish (like a ramekin), combine cake mix and yogurt. (Don't worry if it seems like a small amount. Your cake will puff up -- we promise!) Stir until smooth and blended. Microwave for 1 minute, and then allow to cool for 5 minutes. Once cake has cooled, remove chocolate topping from freezer, and spoon it over your cake. Finally, drizzle the remaining chocolate syrup on top.

Find more writing tips, writing prompts, life story writing information, and resources at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.

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All rights reserved 2011, There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®  

A Novel Approach to Telling Your Story



Pretend-You're-In-Hawaii Palms - photo by Carol Newman



NOTES FROM WRITER-READERS


Paul noticed that the book Three Cups of Tea had been removed from the Favorite Books list and wrote to ask me about it. "Needed the space," I told him. "Removed all older listings."


That book is still a favorite, a well-written inspirational story, so it seemed a shame to remove it , and others, from the Favorite Books list. But there was that space problem. So, a new blog is in the making. I won't tell you the name yet, because it isn't up yet, but it is all books; and you are invited to tell us about your favorite books, too. Meanwhile, Three Cups of Tea has been returned to the list and a couple of new books added.


Another reader note: last week's Writing Prompt was Write your life story in six paragraphs. Debbie wrote that this prompt especially helped her, and Niki wrote that she plans to use it to fulfill an obligation to write about her life for a high school reunion. She said she now knows what she will write: six paragraphs and "keep it decent."


Some time back Linda wrote that she shares the blog with her writing group where they use the writing prompts. If your writing group is writing life story/memoir, your members might want to use Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook.


Thank you Paul, Debbie, Niki, and Linda for letting me and your fellow writers know how you are using the Angel Blog.


WRITING TIP

I just read Honolulu, by Alan Brennert. I liked this book for so many reasons iI couldn't decide whether to write about it here or save it for the new book blog. As my Young Advisor often asks, "Why don't you argue with yourself?" I did just that and decided to include it both places. A win-win for both of me.


The book jacket says "Honolulu is a rich, unforgettable story of a young 'picture bride' who journeys to Hawai'i in 1914 in search of a better life." Born in Korea in the Year of the Rooster, the main character is named Regret by her father. The book covers the years from her birth in 1897 to her sixtieth birthday in 1957. It's a straightforward story, told chronologically, as Regret, who renames herself Jin, recounts her daily routine and experiences in a historically significant time and place. When I began reading, I expected to be transported to balmy sunwashed beaches. Forget that. I was totally caught up in the story we follow Jin to her first homes in a rural area of pineapple plantations -- with every ugly slave image the word plantation brings to mind and later to an area of the city set aside for prostitution, and on to a business section.  


How can this book be useful to you in writing your life story? Look at the way author Brennert incorporates details of daily family and social life into the story. Look at the way historical characters and events are incorporated into the story. Even the simplest details of how we were named, how we cook, dress, go to school (or not), work, respond to the daily news, and obtain our food and money can provide great depth and insight for our readers. If you are uncomfortable writing about yourself and your life, do what the author did with Jin. She is a vehicle to move us through historical events of the time. You can do the same with your story.


WRITING PROMPT


What were the various areas or sections of the town where you grew up? What did you think about the people and places in those specific areas. What was your town known for? For example, I grew up in the 40s and 50s in Lawton, Oklahoma, home of Ft. Sill, a large artillery post. Back then, the businesses on both sides of one block of our downtown were bars. The city block west gave way to pawn shops. The first of every month, payday, music and partying young soldiers spilled out of the bars onto the sidewalks and streets. By the end of the month, things were quieter in that block, but business had picked up in the block of pawn shops as the soldiers pawned cameras, radios, luggage, and jewelry as they tried to make it to the next pay day. Good or bad -- what were the things that set your hometown in a special time and place?


CHOCOLATE INKWELL
I have never been crazy about the taste of any brand of biscuit-type baking mix; but I admit, this recipe for coffee cake with coconut, nuts, and chocolate chips might win me over. Besides that, I like the name of the recipe. Puts me in mind of the tu-tu skirts popular now. Put on your tu-tu, swirl around the kitchen, and enjoy this coffee cake.  (Recently I was shocked to learn that some people dislike coconut (Hi Judy). If you are one such person, I would just omit the coconut and enjoy the swirl.)  This recipe is from Nancy's Kitchen




Swirled Chocolate Coffee Cake


1/3 c. flaked coconut
1/4 c. chopped nuts
1/4 c. sugar
3 tbsp. margarine or butter, divided
2 c. Bisquick baking mix
1/4 c. sugar
1 egg
2/3 c.milk
1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips,melted
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease an 8 x 8 inch pan. Mix together coconut, nuts, 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon of the butter or margarine; reserved. In another bowl mix the baking mix, 1/4 cup sugar, the remaining butter or margarine, the egg and milk; beat vigorously 30 seconds. Spread into prepared pan. Spoon melted chocolate over batter; lightly swirl batter several times for marbled effect. Sprinkle with reserved coconut mixture. Bake until light brown, about 20 to 25 minutes.


Find more writing tips, prompts, resources, and life story writing information at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.
 
Start (or finish) writing your life story now with the help of Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook.


All rights reserved. Copyright 2011. There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

To Bare All -- or Not

La Jolla Cove, California - photo by Carol Newman

WRITING TIP

My first writing teacher said that a writer had to be willing to bare all on paper. My young self was shocked. After all, I was still writing in my head, afraid even to put words on paper. Later, I asked Hilary Masters, writer in residence for a year at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, how he could reveal so much about himself and his family in his writing. He gave me a look that said, get over it; and then he essentially said, get over it. By then I was actually putting words on paper, but, as Sarah White wrote in her guest blog here last week, the thought of my mother reading what I might write gave me instant writer's brick wall (that's writer's block magnified). 

Although I think Sarah already knows the answer, she posed the question of how to write about living people. It's a question in every life story writing class. Maybe the answer is in the photo above. At first glance, the swimmers appear bare; but they aren't. It's just the arrangement of elements that makes them appear so. When we get past the double-take, do we even want to see suitless swimmers -- of all ages, all degrees of fitness or un-fitness? Probably not.

Same with our writing. We want the reader to take a good look, and look again, closer. That's what the reader wants too -- something attention grabbing. But the reader doesn't want so much grimy detail that she is forced to look away. Even Joyce Carol Oates' new memoir, A Widow's Story, has received some criticism for having too much detail. Friends and I groaned about Paula Deen's memoir, Paula Deen: It Ain't All About the Cookin' in which she revealed that at a particularly low point in her life, her home had contained bird filth. While we sympathized with her depression, it was TMI -- too much information.

Susan Sanders, author of Quicksand, A Love Story, her self-published memoir, told me she was immobilized as she thought about how to shape her life events chronicled in dozens of journals into one book. She said that the advice in Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook got her unstuck. The workbook advises to Imagine yourself having a conversation with an long-time acquaintance who asks over coffee, "How did you become the person you are today?" This acquaintance is not an intimate, not a family member or mate. Begin with how you would answer that question and add or subtract from that explanation.

In deciding how "bare" to get as you write, clarify your purpose. Are you writing for personal growth, posterity (family), or publication. If you're writing for yourself for personal growth and no one else will see it, spill your guts. If you're writing for posterity, don't avoid topics or fabricate, but couch events in tactful summary. If you're writing for publication, then you will have to take Hilary Masters' implied advice: get over it as Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown did in his memoir, Against All Odds: My Life of Hardship, Fast Breaks, and Second Chances. In a Feb. 21, 2011 front-page story in USA Today, he says he had no intention of revealing as much as he did, but that he found he couldn't keep it hidden. Family and friends have been supportive he says, and family members he wrote about are still on good terms with him.

I haven't had a chance to read the book, but I definitely plan to. I'll be interested to see how he handles potentially uncomfortable details. Maybe reading his book will help you decide how much detail to include.

So just tell what the story needs. A little shock is a good thing, but we don't want to know about the bird poop under your bed.

And last, remember that writing is a three-step process. When you sit down to write the first draft, don't be afraid to strip everything bare. In the re-writing you can always "re-dress" the issues.

WRITING PROMPT

Write your life story in six paragraphs. Just average-length paragraphs. We're not talking six-paragraph book here.(Yes, I got this idea from the popular six-word life stories.) So -- in six paragraphs, what would you include? Yes, you can do it. Think of your purpose. Think of the three-step writing process. Think of a chat over coffee with an acquaintance. There you have it.

CHOCOLATE INKWELL

Who doesn't love waffles? Who doesn't love chocolate? You see where this is headed, right? Chocolate Waffles,  courtesy of the Hershey website.

Ingredients


1/2 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, melted 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup buttermilk or sour milk* 1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)


 Directions


1 Stir cocoa and butter in bowl until smooth; stir in sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; add alternately with buttermilk to cocoa mixture. Stir in nuts, if desired.
2 Bake in waffle iron according to manufacturer's directions. Carefully remove waffle from iron. Serve warm with HOT FUDGE SAUCE. About ten 4-inch waffles.


* To sour milk: Use 1-1/2 teaspoons white vinegar plus milk to equal 1/2 cup.


NOTE: Leftover waffles can be frozen; thaw in toaster on low heat.


See more writing tips, writing prompts, resources, and life story writing information at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.


Order your own copy of   Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook.

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All rights reserved 2011. There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Wrestling with Writing about Living People



Photo: Google Images

SPECIAL TREAT: Today's blog post is written by Sarah E. White,  fellow life story blogger, teacher, and author of Write Your Travel Memoirs: 5 steps to transform your travel experiences into compelling essays.  Whether you are an experienced or novice writer, whether you plan to write a travel memoir or not, Sarah's book is full of concise, clear, concrete how-to. She is also a member of Association of Personal Historians a wonderful resource for life story writers. Find her blog at http://www.truestorieswelltold.wordpress.com/.

Below Sarah's post I have put up a Writing Prompt for you and, of course, the CHOCOLATE INKWELL.

Sarah and I are exchanging blog posts this week so you can find my words, It's Okay to Point, on her blog. 
 
 Wrestling with Writing about Living People


- Sarah White


I started a blog to give myself a way to stay engaged with memoir during the times when I don’t have a class in session. There’s something missing in my life—I feel it like the absence of a loved one—when I’m not engaged in teaching and learning about life writing. So January 1, 2011, I launched my blog, “True Stories Well Told.”  http://www.truestorieswelltold.wordpress.com/

It’s a place for people who read and write about real life. I’ve been publishing writing by some of my memoir students, writing prompts, book reviews, workshop tips, and of course some of my own memoir essays. The blog is fulfilling its purpose—it’s satisfying that feeling of absence in my life when I’m not teaching. Choosing stories from my own memoir to post is giving me new enthusiasm for writing about my life. In many ways, blogging is addictive.


But a problem has surfaced.


I’ve found I can’t post anything I wouldn’t want my mother to read! I haven’t even told her about the blog, but already I feel her looking over my shoulder, reading what I write. And it’s inhibiting me.


So far, I’ve stayed with posting my modest little childhood memories, to avoid dealing with whether I’m ready to go public with the stories that get darker as I get older. But soon I’ll have to decide. Hide parts of myself or accept the consequences of revealing them?


Carol, what’s your advice?
Sarah, I have advice -- did you ever doubt it? I'll post it next week.




WRITING PROMPT

I wouldn't want my mother to . . .  We're all adults here, right? Still, we have ideas of what our mothers "should" do. In a recent response to an e-mail joke I had sent, my Young Advisor replied, "I'm surprised a nice little lady like you knows what that means."  Had a moment there when I didn't know whether to feel ashamed of myself or amused at her. Settled on both. So -- what restrictions do you mentally impose on your particular mother -- or mothers in general? What is a mother to do? Who is a mother to be?

CHOCOLATE INKWELL


There is still time to whip up a healthful, low-fat chocolate Valentine's Day treat if you use this recipe from http://www.hungry-girl.com/. Three ingredients. Go for four ingredients and slap some Dove heart-shaped chocolates or cinnamon candies on top. No frosting necessary. Recipe notes say this produces a velvety brownie-cake hybrid.


One 18.25 oz. box moist-style devil's food (or other) cake mix (such as Betty Crocker super moist)
1 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt
1 cup water.


Preheat oven. Combine cake mix and yogurt in large bowl and add 1 cup water. Whisk thoroughly and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake until knife inserted into center comes out clean. (Refer to cake mix box for pan size and appropriate bake time.)

Find more Writing Tips, Writing Prompts, Resources, and Life Story Writing helps at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.


Ordering information for the workbook I wrote especially for you can be found at Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook.


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All rights reserved, 2011. Carol Newman, There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Writing With Certainty - or Uncertainty




Pier Near San Diego, California

  WRITING TIP


In a recent Facebook response to a question about short story endings, Nancy Pickard, author of The Scent of Rain and Lightning, said she likes open endings, likes the shock and surprise.


On the other hand, a recent book discussion group found the endings of stories in Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri to be unpleasantly abrupt.


Of course, there is no one answer to what a story ending "should" be. Much depends on the reader as well as the writer. It's like this pier near San Diego. Although I loved the way the water sparkled all around it, I had no desire to walk out on the long pier to the sheer drop and be enveloped in the sparkle. Too much like walking toward "the light." You know, the one seen near death. I would feel much better about it if the tide were in and a boat was approaching.


You can guess which way I lean on the open-ended position. I don't mind finishing the story in my mind, but I want a little something to look toward. Doesn't mean I'm right. Just means I am one reader, one writer.


Which way do you lean on this question? As a reader? As a writer? Think about it as you read. Think about it as you write. Let it inform your writing.


WRITING PROMPT


Would you walk out onto the pier pictured? What have you done in your life that has been a walk into something uncertain? Now write two endings. Spell out how the uncertain event was resolved. In another ending, leave part of the story for the reader to resolve.

CHOCOLATE INKWELL

Found this recipe on the Food Network when I clicked on Valentine's Day. The recipe is from Ellie Krieger of Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger. The recipe has only three ingredients, all favorites of mine; but even if you don't like one of the ingredients (we know you like chocolate so it would be either the almonds or cherries), it is a perfect Valentine's Day treat, is easy and makes only 12 candy clusters so they'll be all gone by February 15.




Cherry Almond Chocolate Clusters


 
Ingredients


1 cup toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup dried cherries, coarsely chopped
6 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped


Directions


In a medium bowl, toss together the almonds and the cherries. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.


Melt half the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over slightly simmering water, over the lowest possible heat, stirring frequently. Make sure the water is not touching the top pan. Remove the double boiler from the heat and stir in the rest of the chocolate. Remove the top pan with the chocolate in it, gently wipe the bottom of it and set it aside for a moment. Replace the simmering water in the bottom pan with warm tap water. Put the pan of melted chocolate on top of the warm water. This will keep the chocolate at the right temperature while you make the clusters.


Stir the fruit-nut mixture into the chocolate. Spoon out heaping tablespoon-sized clusters of the chocolate mixture onto the baking sheet about 1-inch apart. Put them in the refrigerator to set for 15 minutes. Store and serve at room temperature.


Look for more writing tips, writing prompts, resources, and life story writing how-to at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/


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All rights reserved 2011 Carol Newman