Faerie Knitting Has Arrived!

October 19, 2018 Musings

The imaginative, collaborative book, Faery Knitting 14 Tales of Love and Magic   by Alice Hoffman and Lisa Hoffman has finally arrived. Look how lovely it is!

Here, in steamy Savannah, leaves are falling from dogwoods, mornings are crisp, autumn tea is brewing, and the primal urge to bake something with cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg is reawakening. It’s the perfect time to travel into author Alice Hoffman’s inspired faerie tales.  It may be wise to steep some of her Courage Tea, because faery tales are not for the faint of heart. Deep, dark, snow-covered, forests await. But don’t be discouraged; clever, persistent, female heroines lead the way. When you’re ready, turn the page, and her cousin Lisa Hoffman’s beautiful knitting creations tempt us to dream.

To be a writer or a knitter, one has to be willing to take things apart and put them back together again.

— Alice Hoffman, Faerie Knitting

Here’s my post from the summer of 2017 about traveling to New York to attend a writing workshop with Alice and knit wear designer/teacher, Lisa Hoffman. Alice spoke about taking one’s writing and knitting apart and her insight on the process continues to sustain me as a writer. If something I’ve written doesn’t please me, I can cut and paste, re-work, even delete.  Faerie Knitting arrived as I completed the first draft of my forthcoming novel and cast off the final stitches of a cardigan. Soon I’ll pick up my novel and begin revising.

Since meeting the Hoffman’s, I knit every day. I’ve taught my daughter to knit, there are always three projects on needles around my house, and although yarn baskets seem to reproduce in the middle of the night, they’re not keeping up with my ever-burgeoning stash. But, tearing out rows of knitting frustrates me. So, the following words written by Lisa Hoffman encourage me:

There is sometimes a decrease leaning the wrong way in a lace pattern that I did not notice or an extra row in one glove so it’s just a smidge longer than the other. It is a little imbalanced, but I still appreciate what I have achieved.

— Lisa Hoffman, Faerie Knitting

Settle back, get cozy, and enjoy this enchanting book — they’ve spun straw into gold for us.

 

Editor’s Update: Beverly Willett

October 8, 2018 Musings

And you were kvetching that the news is never good. Au contraire. (Yes, I just mixed Yiddish with French. Sue me). The following passage was lifted directly from Beverly Willett’s  Facebook Page:

Beverly Willett
September 27 at 8:44 AM ·
OFFICIALLY PINCHING MYSELF. MY BOOK DEAL ANNOUNCED IN THE TRADES TODAY:
“Beverly Willett’s DISASSEMBLY REQUIRED: A MEMOIR OF MID-LIFE RESURRECTION, the story of a small-town Southern girl who achieves the American Dream, watches it crumble at mid-life, and finds the courage to begin again, resurrecting the strong, brave woman her young daughter glimpsed during her mother’s darkest times, to Anthony Ziccardi at Post Hill Press, for publication in July 2019 (world).”
135 Comments
365You, Ann Hood, Jeff Garrison and 362 others
Love
Comment

While I pop open the champagne (What’s that? You think it’s too early? This is Savannah, y’all. It’s never too early here.) and we await Beverly’s July 2019 publication, visit my April 10, 2018 blog post for the interview I conducted with her. Cheers!

Writing Strategies: Write Like Your Livelihood Depends On It

August 3, 2018 Musings

“I have to force myself to sit in the chair, as if writing is my last priority,” although we stood in one of Savannah’s historic Squares under picturesque live oaks, there was a definite whine in my voice.

“I do everything else first, and by the time I get to writing, I’m tired.”

This wasn’t writer’s block. It was the inability to take charge of my writing life. Although I’d moved to Savannah to write full-time, I found myself grieving. Back when life was brimming over with a husband, adolescent, and full-time job, I’d found it easier to carve out time to write.  Now that I was alone and writing was my expressed raison d’etre it was barely happening.

The artist I stood with narrowed her eyes with the bored expression of someone who’s heard it all before,

“Do you write for the rent money? Is it something you have to do to live? To put food on your table?”

Her point hit its mark. I used to develop a strategic plan each year with aggressive financial goals and deadlines. After drafting the plan I studied it like a treasure map. Yet, when it came to writing my novel, I had nothing but a sketchy outline that couldn’t help me develop anything past page thirty. Where was the conflict? What did the character want, or need? Yes, I could answer those basic questions — in a rambling sort of way — but I was waiting for some kind of magic inspiration, or pixie dust, to flesh out the story.

Think strategically. Since that conversation, I’ve begun applying the same strategies I used as a Chief Development Officer to raise millions of philanthropic dollars each year. I’m back on track and closing in on completing the first draft of my next novel. We all develop our own processes, but these are the ones I’ve used to infuse my writing life with energy. If you’re struggling, perhaps something here might resonate with you:

Develop your outline. Put your entire book on the page in outline format. It becomes your strategic plan. There will be changes, characters will do unexpected things, the story might  take a surprising turn….but have enough of a comprehensive outline to get started writing each and every day. I’ve captured the plot, the subplots, the characters, the conflict, in outline format.

No point in sugarcoating it; I hated writing that outline. But its value is apparent to me and I’ve discovered that I look at it less, and less, because its become a part of me. I know how the story ends, and without fail, I’m working to get there.

Enter daily goals onto your calendar.  Mine are short and straight forward: finish chapter nine, add character development to first paragraph in chapter ten, reach page 250 today, add research on page 213, what does page 83 smell like?, reach 63,000 word count today.

Goals are varied and they are constantly changing but I always have them.

Schedule a time to write and stick with it. After feeding the dogs and cat, I pour that legendary first cup of coffee in the morning, and open the document to where I left off yesterday. I do this first thing every morning and I don’t stop until I need a break.

Do I write at other times, like late at night? Sure, when the ideas keep coming, I love writing at night. But assessing my current lifestyle, and productivity, I need to make it my priority to start each day with writing. As if my livelihood depends on it. Everything after morning writing is gravy.

Get feedback. For the first time, I have a beta reader and belong to a writing group. This means that I’m getting critique information as the novel develops. I think of it as quality control; if the reader is confused by something I’ve written, I’m getting that information early. My fantasy is that because of this step my revision won’t be as ugly as past revisions. Stay tuned and I’ll let you know if that turns out to be true.

Set deadlines. Just as I used to know I needed to raise $32 million by December 31, I’ve set the deadline for when my first draft will be complete. With that date in mind, I’ve set the deadline for completing my first revision. I’ve told my agent when I plan to share the manuscript with her. Just as I did in business, I’ve made the deadlines achievable, but aggressive, and I’ve shared the information, so now it’s a commitment.

Write everyday. The photograph for this post was taken outside a cabin I recently stayed at in Maine. It was a great writer’s retreat with plenty of solitude and I purposely scheduled my time that way. But since I began incorporating strategic thinking into my writing life, I now have confidence that I would write everyday even in the midst of a hectic day. After all, I used to do it; when I was a wife and mother, and worked full-time with a hard commute. I knew how to adjust each day’s goals accordingly, making them achievable, and depending on the day, perhaps not as aggressive. I wrote my first novels that way. Writing everyday keeps the flow alive; it feels vibrant and progress happens.

I had forgotten these basic work strategies, and writing was a struggle. Thankfully, the pure joy of writing, the need to sit down and fill the blank page, has returned.

If you have go-to strategies for writing, please share them!

 

 

Welcome Author Beverly Willett!

April 10, 2018 Musings

The first time I met Beverly Willett was at Peacock Writer’s Salon in the parlor of Flannery O’Connor’s childhood home. It’s the writer’s group we both attend and I’d just received feedback on a chapter I’d read. Then Beverly read.

Her talent was immediately apparent, and I settled back and enjoyed her piece, finding it difficult to critique such solid writing. Beverly writes nonfiction, and although I didn’t know it at the time, she’s frequently published in major national newspapers and magazines.

Besides the writer’s group, we began running into each other at parties, gallery openings and literary events around Savannah’s historic district. We got together for a glass of wine and discussed writing and publishing but never touched on what we were working on. So, when she later announced she’d written an article about root doctors and hoodoo I was surprised. Why? Because my fictional work-in-progress has a protagonist who’s a root doctor.

Yet another example of the mysteries of synergy among women friends. Curious, I decided to dig deeper. Here’s my interview with Beverly:

What compelled you to pitch the idea of Root Doctors for South Magazine?

Actually, South came to me with the idea and then we fleshed it out together. I’d written a few articles for them before so they knew my work. I was thrilled to get the assignment. I’d heard of hoodoo before, but had no idea it was still alive and well in the Low Country, albeit today mostly in the shadows. It’s out there; you just have to know where and how to look.

Exactly. It’s that, in the shadows, aspect that draws me to the topic. Were there any surprises during your research on hoodoo practitioners?

I was pleasantly surprised when people began to open up to me. That seemed to happen after I’d earned their trust and assured them I wasn’t after sensationalism, but respected their beliefs. Someone who knows a lot about root work drove me to Minerva’s unmarked grave one starlit evening. We made sure to leave her some coins before we left. True root doctors and those who believe in them believe in the healing power of root practice down to their core; it’s not a game to them.

Were you met with resistance as you explored the hoodoo culture?

One individual in particular ignored my initial overtures. He began to open up after we built a rapport, and I assured him I wasn’t after click-bait, but had a genuine interest in this West African spiritual tradition of the Gullah people.

You recently completed your memoir! As a member of the same writing group, I was fortunate to hear parts of it during the writing. What are the themes that run through it?

There are many themes that run through my memoir, including divorce, family, and motherhood, but at its heart, it’s a story of loss, reinvention, and transformation after the American dream falls apart. In essence, I was able to begin again and start a new life after letting go of all the things I’d been holding onto so tightly. Attachment is the root of our pain; letting go frees us to find joy again.

When you began writing your memoir, did you know those would be the themes, or did they surface as you wrote?

I wrote the memoir after I left Brooklyn and moved to Savannah so, yes, I knew what the themes would be. But you still learn more about yourself the more you write and the deeper you go.

What are you currently reading?

It’s a long list – I’m usually in the midst of half a dozen titles at the same time at least. Finishing up Daren Wang’s The Hidden Light of Northern Fires, in the midst of  Perfectly Yourself, which I’m reading in conjunction with Matthew Kelly’s Lenten program, and about to start The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas.

What was your favorite childhood book?

That’s a tough one. Not sure I had a favorite. But I was mad about anything Agatha Christie wrote, and loved Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys mysteries.

You’re quite successful at pitching articles to major publications. What attracts you to this form and how did you begin?

It’s all relative I suppose. You should see my rejection pile! I suppose writing short is always a lot less painful than writing an entire book, but I have just finished a memoir and am on the hunt for a new agent. After I stopped practicing law, I took a night class at NYU years ago with the fabulous Sue Shapiro about writing for newspapers and magazines and got invaluable tips on pitching. I actually pitched a profile to one of the speakers she had come in and talk to her class from The New York Times. He hated my pitch, but later gave me an assignment to write a book review for The New York Times. I never sweated over a piece so much in my whole life. But this time, he liked it! In all seriousness, since I write non-fiction, I felt like getting clips was part of paying my dues and a good way to learn my craft on a smaller scale before tackling an entire book. In the process, I’ve also gotten to work with some wonderful editors. It’s a good way of learning to let go and trust the collaborative process.

For those of us who write fiction, walk us through how you pitch an idea for an article.

It’s different pitching a personal essay vs. any other non-fiction pieces. For personal essays, you generally have to write the entire piece force, which is a lot more work, and pitch it on spec. For other non-fiction pieces, you need to do some of the background research only. Before pitching, I make sure I’ve studied the publication I’m pitching to, their demographics, style, etc. because you’ve got to match your idea with their target audience. Then find out who the appropriate editor is – harder than you might think to find that email sometimes. Editors are swamped and if you’re trying to get the attention of someone who doesn’t know you from Adam, you’ve got to find a way to make them click on your email out of hundreds or maybe thousands! So use that subject line in a smart way with a short, to the point teaser, and then when they open that email, make every word count.

Great advice. Thank you, Beverly!

It’s worth your time to read more of Beverly. Visit her website here.

God Bless Us, Every One!

December 23, 2017 Musings

If you’re in the mood for a literary yuletide experience, listen to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol read by favorite author Neil Gaiman.

I’ve had the pleasure of being in the audience when Neil Gaiman reads his own work. Hearing him read Dickens is an unexpected delight.

Listening to this New York Public Library podcast late at night by candlelight is a tradition around my house. Pour yourself some mulled wine and join me.