A Written Life

month

May 2013

1 post

March 2013

1 post

“I was by myself for a pretty long time. I needed to do that. I think everyone...”

– Justin Vernon (via awelltraveledwoman)

February 2013

1 post

January 2013

1 post

December 2012

1 post

November 2012

1 post

October 2012

8 posts

“Grammar is a piano I play by ear, since I seem to have been out of school the...”

– ~ Joan Didion, from her essay Why I Write

“We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us...”

– ee cummings (via likeafieldmouse)

September 2012

9 posts

Four Questions for Maria Semple, Author of... →

thegalleyist: “I was strongly drawn to writing about Bee’s spiritual conversion—or her momentary flirtation with one—because, even though I’m an atheist, I often feel a similarly overwhelming connection to God. And I don’t quite know what to make of this.” ~ Maria Semple

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you...”

– Eleanor Roosevelt (via youngmanandoldsoul)

August 2012

4 posts

Writers are savages →

Cheryl Strayed describes this as “the harshest” Dear Sugar column she’s written and she’s also included her newest book Tiny Beautiful Things. It’s an honest and, yes, harsh response to a writer who confesses deep, unchecked jealousy of her fellow writers. This Dear Sugar letter isn’t like the “nemesis” confession of Abby Mims I posted last week....

July 2012

12 posts

Joshua Ferris is my nemesis - Salon.com →

Such a great personal piece on writer envy - and it goes beyond simply being jealous of another writer. It speaks to all that goes unspoken and, often unnoticed by instructors or professors, in writing workshops.

from one blog to another

If you’ve found A Written Life from jesakalong.com (a.k.a writer) and want to replace your rss feed, here’s the link: feed://jesakalong.tumblr.com/rss Thanks for joining me!

This audio of a dad interviewing his two little girls about “the worst haircut ever” is hilarious. It reminds me of my two nieces (ages 5 and 6); the oldest went through a long phase (almost two years) of cutting her own hair as well as repeatedly giving her little sister bangs. My sister-in-law is a hairstylist, so we think my niece may follow in her mother’s footsteps.

June 2012

9 posts

Take this suggestion: read You Take It from Here

When literary agents say they are looking for “voice-driven” writing (of any genre), I imagine they are looking for someone like Pamela Ribbon. Because I’ve been so immersed in the world of creative nonfiction and memoir for the last few years, my fiction reading is rather anemic. However, I wanted to read something different while recovering from oral surgery and I enjoy reading Ribbon’s blog at...

A defense lawyer asks for a murder trial... →

“Stock your mind, stock your mind. It is your house of treasure and no one in the...”

– ~ Frank McCourt

“The worst part of writing for me is the hour before I start to write, when I...”

– ~ Elizabeth McCracken

May 2012

23 posts