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Category Archives: From Our Contributors

On the Creation of Green River Saga by Michael W. Shurgot and Rick O’Shea

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 2, 2023 by Michael W. ShurgotFebruary 2, 2023

On the Creation of Green River Saga, a Novel by Michael W. Shurgot and Rick O’Shea Sunstone Press, Santa Fe, April 2020 When I retired as Professor of Humanities from South Puget Sound Community College in Olympia in 2006, I … Continue reading →

Posted in 2023, From Our Contributors | Tagged on publishing, Writing Fiction | 1 Reply

Three Writing It Real Members Publish the Story of Their 24-Year Writer’s Group

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 4, 2023 by Sheila BenderJanuary 6, 2023

I am asking for Writing It Real members to write articles about their book creation and publishing experience. We kick off the series this first month of 2023 with an article about the story behind the publication of Telling Tales … Continue reading →

Posted in 2023, From Our Contributors | Tagged Informational Writing, Publishing, reading for writing | 5 Replies

The Great Latke Debate

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 29, 2022 by Marlene B. SamuelsDecember 29, 2022

Each year, exactly two weeks before Hanukkah and beginning the year our family immigrated to the U.S.A., Aunt Esther and Mom began their debates. We had moved to a suburb only a fifteen-minute drive from Esther, my mother’s sister. The … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged memoir, personal essay | 2 Replies

On the Third Night of Chanukah 2022

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 22, 2022 by Carol J BlatterDecember 22, 2022

I write this on Tuesday, the 20th of December 2022, the third of eight days, along with other Jews, that I will celebrate the holiday of Chanukah, the Festival of Lights. Each night at sundown we light the candles on … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essays | Leave a reply

Hugs and Handshakes Can Be Wonderful Gifts

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 22, 2022 by David D. HorowitzDecember 22, 2022

Each holiday season I buy about six to eight gift cards, redeemable at a coffee shop or bookstore. I tape one gift card to a greeting card and mail it to a particular friend. The greeting cards are not holiday … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay | Leave a reply

Interview with Alison Townsend, Author of The Green Hour: A Natural History of Home

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 1, 2022 by Alison TownsendDecember 1, 2022

I am excited to introduce you again to author and poet Alison Townsend. I have been reading her beautiful lyric prose and poetry for years. I admire her sense of place and nature in what she writes. With the publication … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Interviews | Tagged memoir, personal essay, Publishing, women's voices, writing inspiration, writing life | 1 Reply

My First Thanksgiving When Mom Was My GUEST!

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 17, 2022 by Barbara SimmonsNovember 17, 2022

It was the year I moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, leaving the boarding school where I’d been teaching in western Massachusetts. I was living in an apartment – actually, the 2nd floor of an old home that had been carved into … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | Tagged memoir, personal essay, women's voices | 6 Replies

Turkey Musings by Writing It Real Member Mona Anderson

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 10, 2022 by Mona AndersonNovember 10, 2022

In autumn turkeys grace the field in front of our house almost daily.  Lately, these visitors, often up to twenty-five, have come closer to the house, maybe to forage fallen apples from the tree in the front yard.  Or maybe … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | Tagged memoir, narration, personal essay | 4 Replies

Thanksgiving at Our House by Writing It Real Member Suzy Beal

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 10, 2022 by Suzy BealNovember 10, 2022

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, hey, you guys, Mom made seven pies this time, two cherry, two apple and three pumpkin!  She made cinnamon rolls and bread, too.”  We had to wait to eat until Uncle Mac, Aunt Mim and the cousins arrived. The whole house was warm and damp with odors wafting … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, narration, personal essay

It Wasn’t the Tryptophan by Writing It Real Member Patricia LaPointe

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 10, 2022 by Patricia LaPointeNovember 10, 2022

In mid-October 1969, my twin daughters were born a month early. After a few days in the hospital, we brought them home. What followed were days and nights filled with them drinking only an ounce or two of formula before … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | Tagged memoir, narration, personal essay | 2 Replies

Merle R. Saferstein Shares Her Knowledge of Legacy Writing and Why To Do It

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 3, 2022 by Merle R. SafersteinNovember 3, 2022

This month, I am pleased to introduce you to Florida author Merle R. Saferstein and her goal of helping others create legacy writing. She was director of educational outreach at the Holocaust Documentation and Education Center in Miami, FL and … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, The Working Writer | Tagged journaling, memoir, personal essay | 1 Reply

Halloween by Sue Pace

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 20, 2022 by Sue PaceOctober 20, 2022

My husband was a schoolteacher and we lived in a very small town. He didn’t want our children trick-or-treating and I said we had to do something special for Halloween. So, we compromised. We seldom ate dinner at a restaurant … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 3 Replies

Marcia Breece of Publishing Partners in Conversation with Sheila Bender

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 13, 2022 by Sheila BenderOctober 13, 2022

40 minutes with Marcia Breece of Publishing Partners in Conversation with Sheila Bender offers writers a complete understanding of what a book designer and publishing partner can do for anyone interested in self-publishing. The information is also useful for small … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Leave a reply

Marlene Samuels Remembers a Terrifying Begger’s Night (Canada’s Halloween)

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 6, 2022 by Marlene B. SamuelsOctober 6, 2022

Things that Go Grrrr in the Night by Marlene Samuels One particular year, Beggar’s Night fell on a Saturday. As luck would have it, it also was the Saturday evening our parents had, uncharacteristically, left us home alone longer than … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | 4 Replies

Writing It Real Member Julie Trout’s “Happier Halloweens”

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 30, 2022 by JulieHayward-TroutSeptember 30, 2022

Happier Halloweens by Julie Trout Jake was happy with any holiday, but Kirsten had a favorite. Halloween. We dressed up, carved pumpkins, baked goodies, ate candy, and decorated the house with spiderwebs and green glitter. I loved watching my kids … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | 4 Replies

Pat LaPointe Remembers A Very Green Halloween

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 29, 2022 by Patricia LaPointeSeptember 30, 2022

It Wasn’t Easy Being Green by Pat LaPointe Many people might call Mom “creative.” As a witness and often the “victim” of her creativity, I would define it as “wacko.” One would need no more proof of this distinction than … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | 3 Replies

Back-to-School Memory by Julia Blocksma

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 8, 2022 by Julia BlocksmaSeptember 8, 2022

Memoir:  First Grade by Julia Blocksma My enthusiasm knew no bounds: I was going to start first grade, in a school in America! After years in Lahore, Pakistan, where my father, a surgeon, had helped start a hospital just after World … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery | Tagged personal essay | 5 Replies

Kathy Harmon-Luber on Writing Her Book Suffering to Thriving: Your Tool Kit for Navigating Your Healing Journey

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 1, 2022 by Kathy LuberSeptember 1, 2022

I am pleased to publish my interview with author Kathy Harmon-Luber, a colleague, poet, and non-fiction writer whose book will touch many. Hearing from her on how she approached writing her book, organized her effort to write it, and then … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Member Publications | 1 Reply

Summer Memories by Mona Anderson and Linda Caplan

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 25, 2022 by Sheila BenderAugust 25, 2022

For our last week’s August posting two more Writing It Real members have sent in short essays about summer memories. I know you will relate and remember your own summer games and family time as you read. It is so … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 4 Replies

Suzy Beal and Michael Shurgot Write of Summer Memories

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 18, 2022 by Michael W. ShurgotAugust 20, 2022

My Parents’ House by Suzy Beal This twelve-hour drive begins in the dark hours of the early morning. Little girls strapped in their sleeping bags in the VW van, puppy at their feet in her box. Did I remember their … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 12 Replies

Summer Memories Essay by Writing It Real member Judy Kvinsland

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 11, 2022 by Judy KvinslandAugust 11, 2022

Outcomes By Judy Kvinsland The summer that I turned six years old, my parents bought our family home, a fifty-year-old shingled craftsman perched on a hillside in tiny Harper, WA on the Kitsap peninsula mainland, about seven miles from the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 1 Reply

Summer Memory Essays by Sandra Hurtes, Lynne G. Tenbusch and Carol J. Wechsler Blatter

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 4, 2022 by Sheila BenderAugust 5, 2022

Last week I begged for more essays and here are three generously shared by Writing It Real members for our post this week. Thank you three! Love Anyway by Sandra Hurtes It was a hot night in August 1969. My … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay | 2 Replies

Nancy Levinson’s Poem and Sue Pace’s Essay Triggered by Summer Memories

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 29, 2022 by NancyLevinsonJuly 29, 2022

Meeting My Sister in the Big Easy                             For Maurine By Nancy Levinson It’s a sauna not inside outside it’s June in New Orleans after all yet my younger sister and I are weathering the stifling air laughing at vanilla … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 5 Replies

SUMMER MEANS BASEBALL! by David D. Horowitz

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 14, 2022 by David D. HorowitzJuly 14, 2022

Writing It Real member David D. Horowitz offers his memories of playing softball and baseball as a child. We learn and remember that even our best memories can be tinged by the experience of difficult situations. Whether your own memories … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Leave a reply

I Am Grieving Today 6/23/22

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 30, 2022 by Pam Hale TrachtaJune 30, 2022

I am grieving today. This week has brought a firestorm of events that are devastating for an elder with daughters and grandchildren. The January 6 hearings have been riveting, dignified, terrifying and clarifying.  If we don’t clear out all the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors, Writing Makes a Difference | 1 Reply

“Friends of Patience” Writing It Real Member Response to June Article

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 9, 2022 by David D. HorowitzJune 9, 2022

When times become threatening, dangerous, and oppressive, we must write to show our humanity and influence others to do the same. Writing It Real member David D. Horowitz shares his thoughts. I hope that encourages others to take to the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, Community Discussion, From Our Contributors | Leave a reply

What We Think of When We Think of May, Writings by Mona Anderson and David D. Horowitz

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 19, 2022 by Sheila BenderMay 19, 2022

I was delighted to receive submissions over this past week from Mona Anderson and David D. Horowitz, and I very much hope for more Writing It Real member writing to post next week as we close out May. It has … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay, reading for writing, Writing Poetry | 1 Reply

Michael Buschmohle on an Ellen Bass Poem and Barbara Simmons on an Amy Lowell Poem

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 26, 2022 by Sheila BenderApril 26, 2022

And we wind up National Poetry Month with two more short essays on impactful poems chosen by Writing It Real members. It has been a month of learning about poems new to us and poems to revisit. Thank you to … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged women's voices, Writing Poetry | Leave a reply

Judy Kvinsland Writes of Finding Mary Oliver’s Poem Just When She Needed It

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 14, 2022 by Sheila BenderApril 14, 2022

Thank you, Judy Kvinsland, for reminding us of just how important poetry is when we are grieving. The healing it offers deep into our experience is incomparable. And in times of need, it is miraculous that poetry reaches out to … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 3 Replies

My Mouth Hung Open by Sue Pace

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 7, 2022 by Sheila BenderApril 7, 2022

One of my Favorite Poems is “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes. It is too long to include in this letter but may be found at https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43187/the-highwayman. Hearing it read was the first time that I understood the power of poetry. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Leave a reply

Writing It Real Member Richard Elam’s Letter About His Writing Life

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 31, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 31, 2022

We wrap up our epistolary writing for March with a joyful letter from Richard Elam about his writing life at age 93. Richard Elam Writes to My Husband and Me About His Writing Since He Moved from the Northwest to … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 4 Replies

Letters About Learned Experience From Writing Books

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 24, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 24, 2022

Whether we want to explain ourselves to readers and editors and thereby to ourselves or use what we lament about our publishing process to help others along the path in publishing, writing about it helps us as writers and builds … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay, women's voices, writing advice | 1 Reply

Letters About Writing Their Books by Desiree Woodland and Sheila Murphy

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 17, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 17, 2022

This week we post two letters by Writing It Real members about why they have or are writing their books, one by member Desiree Woodland to the people she hopes will read her book because of their contact with young … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay | 5 Replies

Two Epistolary Essays by Writing It Real Authors to Their Readers

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 10, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

March epistolary essays have begun arriving. This week enjoy two Writing It Real members’ letters to their books’ audiences. Whether you are writing to explain yourself to your audience (and thus to yourself) when it comes to the book you have written, are writing or would write, or trying to give those who might read … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | Tagged personal essay, writing exercises

Three More Epistolary Essays: to Memory, to Wisdom, to a Former Professor

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 24, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

Here are three more epistolary works to round out our February posts. I hope you will leave the author comments at the article’s end and go to the other postings from February to read even more from Writing It Real members. Be sure to check out the challenge for March (any writing I receive by … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Two More Epistolary Apology/Regret Essays

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 17, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

Our February epistolary writing posts continue this week.! I am grateful to Marlene Samuels and Kurt VanderSluis (co-founder of Writing it Real) for their pieces, Marlene’s to her mother, and Kurt’s to his father. Each piece is poignant and addresses loss. Marlene’s loss is of her mother’s presence and wisdom as Marlene herself becomes a … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Epistolary Apologies -Writing by David Horowitz and by Sheila Bender

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 10, 2022 by David D. HorowitzMarch 10, 2022

We are off to a good start for our February epistolary writing! I am grateful to David Horowitz for writing a piece for us to post this week. I also tried my hand at writing in this form and am posting my letter as well. I hope to hear from more of you. Here again … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Pat LaPointe and Marie Hartung Write Open Letters to Those Who Tried to Discourage Them From Writing

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 27, 2022 by Sheila BenderJanuary 27, 2022

This week we finish off our January postings with two more open letters to those who tried to discourage our writing. I think you will enjoy these two and hope you catch up on reading the others posted all month. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors | 4 Replies

Another Two New Letters to Those Who Discouraged Us About Our Writing

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 20, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

I am so happy to be posting two more letters to those who discouraged you as writers. I know we all resonate with these situations. And again, I hope to see more of these letters in my inbox by 1/25 for posting in next week’s Writing It Real. Here are the two for this week: … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Two More Letters to Those Who Attempted to Discourage Us as Writers

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 13, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

This week’s writings come to us via members Howard Tanzman and Julie Hayward-Trout. You will relate and you will chuckle after you’ve read them both, and who doesn’t need to feel affirmed and amused to balance the ship of authorship? Thank you both for submitting work. I hope additional members will be inspired to keep … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Three Letters to People or Entities Trying to Dampen Their Enthusiasm for Writing

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 6, 2022 by Sheila BenderMarch 10, 2022

This month we have three examples so far of letters to persons or entities who have tried to dampen enthusiasm for writing with criticism, by limiting opportunities or by nurturing self-doubt. Thank you Writing It Real members David D. Horowitz, Harriet Cannon and Pat Detmer. I know WIR members will enjoy your words as have … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in 2022, From Our Contributors

Three More Dear Santa Contributions from Writing It Real Members to End December 2021

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 23, 2021 by Sheila BenderDecember 24, 2021

This week’s writings come from Cyndi Lloyd, Amy Muscoplat, and Lizbeth Hartz. I hope you enjoy these three and have enjoyed all of those from the past three weeks. Merry Christmas! Dear Mrs. Claus by Cyndi Lloyd 12 Dec. 2021 Dear Mrs. Claus, I understand Santa is super busy at this time of the year, … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2021 | Tagged Dear Santa 2021

And the Next Four “Dear Santa” Writings 2021

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 16, 2021 by Sheila BenderDecember 16, 2021

This week’s Dear Santa writings come from Nancy Levinson, Christy Schwan, Barbara Simmons, and Mona Anderson.  I hope you enjoy reading them. Nancy Levinson, Dear Santa Dear Santa (s) I am scrambling through photo albums and shoeboxes of collected letters, pictures, magazine and newspaper clippings, searching for a note I left for you on our … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2021 | Tagged Dear Santa 2021

Four More Dear Santa Letters by Writing It Real Members

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 9, 2021 by Sheila BenderDecember 10, 2021

December 2021 brings to Writing It Real adult letters to Santa from members who contributed their thoughts, memories, and requests to the icon of Christmas for children and the parents who helped them believe in a beneficent universal spirit. It is my pleasure to continue the month of these letters with work from Pat Detmer, … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2021 | Tagged Letters to Santa

Telephone: essays in two voices by Brenda Miller and Julie Marie Wade

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 4, 2021 by Brenda MillerNovember 5, 2021

Authors Brenda Miller and Julie Marie Wade have published a book of collaborative essays rich in imagery and music. Published by Cleveland State University Poetry Center, Telephone: essays in two voices is, according to award-winning poet and essayist, Hanif Abdurraqib, “a stellar example of what can be achieved in collaborative work where two voices figure … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2021 | Tagged memoir, on writing, personal essay

Author Tarn Wilson on Writing Her Memoir In Praise of Inadequate Gifts And a Generous Excerpt

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 2, 2021 by Tarn WilsonSeptember 3, 2021

I was very fortunate to receive my copy of Tarn Wilson’s new book, In Praise of Inadequate Gifts, a Memoir in Essays the day before I left for 11 days of wandering beaches along the Oregon Coast. On the road with my husband driving to the next beach town, I thought about the chapter of … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Reading for Writing, WIR2021, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged memoir, on writing, personal essay, women's voices

Excerpt and Words from Brenda Miller About Her New Book A Braided Heart: Essays on Writing and Form

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 1, 2021 by Brenda MillerJuly 6, 2021

I am so pleased to share news of Brenda Miller’s new book, A Braided Heart: Essays on Writing and Form, available now for pre-order ahead of the July 13 release date. She has answered questions I posed to her and shared an excerpt from the book. A contributor to Writing It Real over many years, … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2021 | Tagged memoir, on writing, personal essay, trust your writing, writing life

Sharon Oard Warner on Writing the Novella, a Q&A with Book Excerpt

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 6, 2021 by Sheila BenderMay 7, 2021

Earlier this spring, I received a review copy of Writing the Novella by Sharon Oard Warner, and I continue to pore over it. I have loved many novellas in my time, often without even realizing they are novellas. Warner’s method of instruction (and identifying works as novellas) has encouraged me, and, I am sure, all … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2021 | Tagged writing advice, Writing Craft Tools, Writing Fiction, writing memoir

Joanne Clarkson Shares Her Practice of Poetry and Several of Her Poems

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 8, 2021 by Sheila BenderMay 7, 2021

In March, my husband and I ran into Joanne while we were out walking and she was returning home from a walk. Over the CDC prescribed distance, we remembered the radio interview she had done with me for KPTZ, and I asked if she would be interested in a Zoom interview for the pandemic National … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2021 | Tagged women's voices, Writing Poetry

Meet Author James Sulzer, Novelist of Emily Dickinson and John Keats

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 1, 2021 by Sheila BenderMay 7, 2021

Today is the first day of National Poetry Month 2021. I am posting an interview with James Sulzer, a remarkable writer, who spoke with me about writing two novels that not only celebrate two of history’s favorite and most influential poets but provide original ways of helping us understand their lives and hear in the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2021 | Tagged reading for writing, Writing Fiction

About Creating and Performing “Is Story of Poor Sea Village Girl,” a Play by Writing It Real Member Mara Lathrop

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 4, 2021 by Sheila BenderApril 8, 2021

Writing It Real member Mara Lathrop created a project during the pandemic that offers us a chance to experience her play Is Story of Poor Sea Village Girl directed by Cynthia Stokes and performed by SAG actors, Mark Lewis and Abby Dylan. This month’s article includes a recorded “backstage” interview with the playwright and the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2021 | Tagged women's voices, Writing Scenes

Writing in Vignettes Can Generate a Book Length Memoir

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 4, 2021 by Marilea C. RabasaFebruary 4, 2021

In 2018 and 19, I worked with Writing It Real member Marilea C. Rabasa consulting on a second memoir she was compelled to write and wanted very much to get right. She wasn’t happy with the way it was unwinding and together we began the journey of finding a structure for the work that could … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Member Publications, WIR2021 | Tagged women's voices, writing memoir

“Mother,” an essay from Helen Goehring’s Collection Transformed by Grief

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 5, 2020 by EllenDecember 17, 2020

I am pleased to share an essay by Writing It Real member Helen Donnelly Goehring from her recently published collection, Transformed by Grief: A Personal History. Helen’s essay “Taking Notes: Assisted Living” was a winner in Writing It Real’s 2012 essay writing contest. Eight years later, she has a whole collection out! Many of us … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Member Publications, WIR2020 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, women's voices

Interview with Jennifer Jamieson Woods About Writing Her Autobiographical Novel No Guarantees

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 8, 2020 by Jennifer Jamieson WoodsOctober 8, 2020

Last week, we posted Chapter 40 of Jennifer Jamieson Woods’ autobiographical novel No Guarantees.  This week’s post is an interview with the author about writing the novel she needed to write. Sheila Jennifer, thank you for sharing the story of writing No Guarantees as well as Chapter 40 from the book for Writing It Real … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, The Working Writer, WIR2020 | Tagged trust your writing, women's voices

No Guarantees by Jennifer Jamieson Woods — Chapter 40

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 1, 2020 by Jennifer Jamieson WoodsOctober 2, 2020

Chapter 40 of No Guarantees Josie went to work as usual on Monday morning. Although she was a person who found comfort in the predictable rhythm of life, today she felt irritated and bored with her life. She felt stuck at Casey’s without any alternative. She was going to have to divorce Rod. She didn’t … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2020 | Tagged women's voices

A Reading and a Print Interview with What Love Feels Like Authors Dave Cunningham and C.K.Tyler

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 3, 2020 by Sheila BenderSeptember 4, 2020

I am delighted to introduce authors Dave Cunningham and C.K. Tyler who have collaborated on a newly published novel entitled What Loves Feels Like: The Dawn of Human 2.0. In the video below and the Q&A following, the two speak to their experience of writing the book in collaboration and its short journey to publication. … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2020, Writers Building a Community of Readers, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged Writing Fiction

Marketing Conversation with Marcella Smith, Publishing Coach and Career Book Buyer

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 2, 2020 by Marcella SmithAugust 13, 2020

This month’s article is a video of a discussion many of us have been waiting for! I am talking with Marcella Smith, publishing consultant and Barnes and Noble career book buyer. In our conversation, Marcella fills in gaps for us in our understanding of how book representation works. With this knowledge, we are equipped to … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2020 | Tagged On Marketing, on publishing

Prologue to Reclaiming Venus: The Many Lives of Alvenia Bridges

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 8, 2020 by Maya SmithAugust 13, 2020

  You may have already read Maya Smith’s description of how she is approaching the writing of her book about the life of Alvenia Bridges, a woman of many lives. She answered questions about obstacles and joys of writing the book as well as how she used her academic research training to approach her interviews … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2020 | Tagged memoir

Maya Smith’s Description of How She is Writing Reclaiming Venus: The Many Lives of Alvenia Bridges

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 7, 2020 by Maya SmithAugust 13, 2020

Maya Angela Smith is an associate professor of Francophone studies at the University of Washington, Seattle with a PhD in Romance Languages and Linguistics from UC Berkeley. Her scholarship broadly focuses on the intersection of race, language, and mobility among marginalized groups in the African diaspora, particularly in the postcolonial francophone world, seen most notably in her academic monograph Senegal … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2020 | Tagged memoir, women's voices

How and Why We Write

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 5, 2020 by Sheila BenderAugust 13, 2020

The Writing It Real March 2020 article is a compilation of writings by Writing It Real members on a topic dear to our hearts–how and why we write. EBook Formats We have 3 different formats. Which ones you choose depends on how you intend to read the anthology. Print on Paper If you want to … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2020 | Tagged on writing, women's voices, writing life

Writing A Novel in Linked Short Stories: Interview with author Kathryn Trueblood

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 6, 2020 by Kathryn TruebloodFebruary 6, 2020

When I received a review copy of Take Daily As Needed, Kathryn Trueblood’s “novel in stories” from University of New Mexico press, I dove right into reading it. A novel in stories sounded a lot like how I often advocate memoirists I work with approach their work—discrete personal essays that when collected move toward an … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2020 | Tagged on writing, reading for writing, Writing Fiction

Tell It Slant: Author Brenda Miller on Writing Creative Nonfiction and a Generous Excerpt from the Book

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 5, 2019 by Brenda MillerDecember 13, 2019

Introduction to an Excerpt from Tell it Slant (Available from Powell’s and Amazon as well as your favorite bookseller). By Brenda Miller In 2001, when Suzanne Paola and I began talking about writing a textbook for creative nonfiction, no such book existed. We had been cobbling together our own instructional materials for years, and together … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, WIR2014, WIR2019 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, Trusting Images, Writing Craft Tools, writing exercises

Excerpt From Molly Tinsley’s Novel Things Too Big to Name, Followed by a Q&A wth the Author

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 5, 2019 by Molly B. TinsleySeptember 5, 2019

This spring, thrilled to be reading a new novel by Molly Best Tinsley, both a teaching colleague and Writing It Real contributor, I was even more thrilled to have found a novel that I could not put down from the moment I began reading to the moment I read the very last word on the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2014, WIR2019

Writing the Emotionally Important Scenes

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 1, 2019 by Sheila BenderSeptember 1, 2019

A Princeton professor I once read while for some reason I had no pen or device to record his name and the name of the article wrote that when we read a novel we are speeding up time as one book can contain may days, months, and years. But when we write, he said, we … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2019

Keeping the Political Personal: “To Give or to Deny” by Journalist Amy Hewes

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 13, 2019 by Amy HewesJune 13, 2019

As I wrote last week, I feel lucky to have recently had journalist Amy Hewes on my KPTZ FM radio program, “In Conversation: Discussions on Writing and the Writing Life.”  Here’s the link to listen to our conversation.  In it, Amy explains how she goes about writing her opinion pieces, and her explanation will help those … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, WIR2019 | Tagged Informational Writing, personal essay, reading for writing

The Opinion Piece: The Great Connector by Amy Hewes

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 6, 2019 by Amy HewesJune 12, 2019

I was lucky enough to have recently had journalist Amy Hewes on my KPTZ FM radio program, “In Conversation: Discussions on Writing and the Writing Life.”  Here’s the link to listen to our conversation.  In it, Amy explains how she goes about writing her opinion pieces, and her explanation will help those of us interested in … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Podcasts, Reading for Writing, WIR2019 | Tagged Informational Writing, personal essay, reading for writing

“Sanctuary,” Contest Winning Essay by Nancy Lamb

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 28, 2019 by Nancy LambMarch 29, 2019

Our guest judge Holly Hughes, wrote this about Nancy Lamb’s essay: In this essay, the narrator recalls her first visit to Martin’s Ranch in the red rock canyons high above Santa Fe and her first experience with the landscape as sanctuary that’s still part of her today. In fresh descriptive language, the writer brings us … Continue reading →

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Posted in Contest Winner, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2019

Tender is the Harvest, A Winning Essay by Laurie McConnachie

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 21, 2019 by Laurie McConnachieMarch 23, 2019

Our contest judge Holly Hughes  wrote these words in choosing Laurie McConnachie’s essay as one of our three winners: This is a deeply moving account of a daughter who lost her mother to a brain tumor when she was in her late 20s—and how she learns to move through grief and open her heart to … Continue reading →

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Posted in Contest Winner, From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2019 | Tagged contest winning essay, memoir, personal essay, women's voices

Beginning Again with Tree Spirits by Katlaina Rayne

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 14, 2019 by Katlaina RayneMarch 14, 2019

I am pleased to share another essay by a Writing It Real member. “Beginning Again with Tree Spirits” illustrates the diverse topics our members write about. Reading Katlaina’s essay will definitely change your relationship to the trees and forests in your towns and counties as well as inspire courage to write about topics you fear … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2019 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, women's voices

Creative Writing: Carpe diem, quam minimum, credula postera

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 7, 2019 by Gary LangfordMarch 7, 2019

I met poet, novelist, and playwright Gary Langford through a long time friend of mine who met Gary years ago in Australia when they were both young men. In the years since, Gary has written in many genres, run a University Creative Writing Program, taught theater, and much, much more. Here he breaks down writing … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2019 | Tagged on writing, writing advice, writing inspiration

“In Honor of Mr. Alfred Scott,” by Jean Peelen

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 28, 2019 by Jean PeelenFebruary 28, 2019

As Black History Month ends and we have learned more about black religious leaders, scientists, politicians, professors, film directors, sports figures, journalists, poets and authors, among many other professions, those of other ethnicities have had an opportunity to reflect on how learning of the strife of an oppressed group changed the trajectory of their own … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2019, Writers Building a Community of Readers, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged personal essay

Tornado Watch by Carol Smallwood

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 21, 2019 by Carol SmallwoodFebruary 22, 2019

Writing It Real contributor Carol Smallwood is a poet with several volumes to her name, a retired career librarian who has produced books of value to those who direct and run libraries and educational programs, and she is the editor of writing books for new and experienced writers and teachers of writing. In 2018 she … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, WIR2019 | Tagged personal essay, reading for writing, women's voices

Hey, Writing-in-Progress — Will You Be My Valentine?

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 14, 2019 by Molly B. TinsleyFebruary 14, 2019

The relationship began three winters ago. Driving a country road in the early dusk, I hit a deer–or as a knowledgeable friend suggested afterward, a deer hit me. A buck with branching antlers leaped from the trees on one side of the road, attacked the hood of my car with an ear-splitting crunch, then disappeared … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2019 | Tagged on writing, writing advice

Using Private Writing to Locate Your True Subjects

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 24, 2019 by Rebecca McClanahanJanuary 24, 2019

This week’s article is a second excerpt from Rebecca McClanahan’s instructional book Write Your Heart Out: Exploring & Expressing What Matters To You, published by Walking Stick Press. It originaly appeared in 2003. One of the problems with being a student who is “good with words” is that you may learn early on how to … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2019 | Tagged journaling, overcoming writer's block, writing exercises

Writing Our Personal Stories for Others: Susan Smith’s “My Heart Attack Saved My Life”

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 6, 2018 by Susan SmithDecember 6, 2018

I haven’t posted in the Writing It Real category of “Writing Makes a Difference” in a while now as I’ve concentrated on writing exercises to keep you inspired. This week, though, I am returning to that category to share Susan Smith’s account of having a heart attack. She wrote this piece because little is discussed … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2018, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged Informational Writing, personal essay, women's voices

Enabling Voice by Molly Tinsley

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 15, 2018 by Molly B. TinsleyOctober 19, 2022

We praise writing for its voice, but run into problems when we try to describe exactly what it is we’re responding to. Just as we each have an identifiable voice when we speak, there is something we call a writer’s voice that distinguishes his or her work. Faulkner’s fiction sounds different from Hemingway’s. A Mary … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, The Working Writer, WIR2018 | Tagged on writing, writing advice, Writing Craft Tools

From The Writer’s Portable Mentor: What About Self-Publishing?

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 11, 2018 by Priscilla LongOctober 11, 2018

Essayist, nonfiction author and poet Priscilla Long has given me permission to share an excerpt from her recently released new edition of her already classic book for writers, The Writer’s Portable Mentor. All of Priscilla’s advice is clear and sound. I am grateful for the opportunity to share some of her thinking with Writing It … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2018 | Tagged Publishing

Nahid Rachlin on Her Writing With Generous Excerpts from Her Memoir

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 9, 2018 by Nahid RachlinAugust 9, 2018

This past weekend, I was in conversation with fiction writer and memoirist Nahid Rachlin about her books and writing career. for my radio show on KPTZ ?In Conversation: Discussions on Writing and the Writing Life.? It had been over a decade since she and I had last held an interview, printed in The Writer?s Chronicle … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Reading for Writing, WIR2018 | Tagged memoir, on writing, women's voices, writing memoir

Crafting Stories for Children (and Adults)

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 1, 2018 by Nancy LambMarch 8, 2018

This week’s article by Nancy Lamb is a repost from 2008. It includes information on easy readers as well as on shaping other stories for children (or for any reader, really).  Nancy Lamb, author of The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children, has edited many books by those hoping to enter the young adult … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2018 | Tagged Writing Craft Tools, Writing Fiction

Writing for Young Children: What’s an Easy Reader?

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 22, 2018 by Beth BaconFebruary 28, 2018

Author Beth Bacon is teaching her popular online workshop “Writing for Young Readers ? Words of Honesty, Hope, and Wonder” for Writing It Real members March 15 – April 12, 2018. When I called Beth recently and asked her how things were going, she was very enthusiastic about a new batch of easy readers she … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2018 | Tagged Writing for Children

Existential Threat, an Article by Dahr Jamail

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 19, 2017 by Dahr JamailOctober 19, 2017

Writers write. Writers write to seek and tell truths, whether that is in poems, essays, memoir, fiction or articles. As writers, we must raise our voices in dark times, even when we think few are listening. I recently interviewed journalist Dahr Jamail for my KPTZ FM radio program (the podcast will be entered into the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2017 | Tagged Informational Writing

One More Waltz, An Essay by Nancy Lamb

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 17, 2017 by Nancy LambSeptember 17, 2017

There are times in a person’s life when everything is tinted gray and the future looks too dark to step into. Then in one single shift of the universe, something happens—we turn left, instead of right; we answer the phone, smile at a stranger, or meet an old lover. Something moves. And the light reappears. … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2017 | Tagged personal essay, women's voices

“Sanctuary,” an Essay by Nancy Lamb

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 17, 2017 by Nancy LambSeptember 17, 2017

All of us benefit from the memory of a place held dear. Such a memory keeps us breathing; such a memory calms our nerves; such a memory refreshes when life’s difficult times enervate us. Read Nancy Lamb’s well-drawn description of Cow Creek Canyon, a place she experienced as a child, and then try your hand … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2017

Game Stories: A Prompt that Works

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 14, 2017 by Sheila BenderSeptember 14, 2017

Two weeks ago, I posted an article with writing ideas for getting started on new material and asked those who wanted to do so to send me accounts of the games they have played and enjoyed, especially in childhood. My thanks to Nancy Levinson, author of Moments of Dawn: A Poetic Memoir of Love & … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2017 | Tagged writing exercises, writing inspiration

Find the Motto Writer Within: Outcomes from the Writing Exercise

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 29, 2017 by Sheila BenderJune 30, 2017

A couple of weeks ago, I posted an exercise I call ?Find the Motto Writer Within.? Here are three writers’ outcomes from that exercise: The first is by Barbara Furniss, one of the writers I gathered to try out the exercises for?A Year in the Life: Journaling for Self-Discovery. The second is by Dorothy Ross, … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2017

“Grave Matters”: Mary Ann Payne’s Writing Exercise Result

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 8, 2017 by Mary Ann PayneJune 8, 2017

I am pleased to share long-time Writing It Real member Mary Ann Payne?s writing in response to the writing exercise I shared last week. Grave Matters by Mary Ann Payne It?s time to bury the piano. Chop it up in tiny pieces and put it in a deep hole in the backyard next to the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2017 | Tagged reading for writing, trust your writing, writing exercises

Writing It Real Fall/Winter Contest Winner Dorothy Ross’ “A Night at the Plaza”

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 11, 2017 by Dorothy RossMay 18, 2017

[I will be posting the work of our recent three winners this week and then for the next two weeks. I hope you enjoy their comments about the writing of their work, our contest judge Sharon Byran’s comments, and, of course, the writing. – Ed.] Here is Dorothy Ross on why she is writing the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2017 | Tagged contest winner, Writing Fiction

Why I Want to Write

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 8, 2016 by Katherine ClarkeDecember 9, 2016

[Editor’s note: Sometimes I teach a class for Women on Writing that I call “Writing is a Friend with Extraordinary Benefits.” The following essay by Katherine Clarke is reprinted with permission of the author, is an example of what happens in this class — one writer’s words offering extraordinary benefits for each of us who write.] Like many people … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2016 | Tagged trust your writing, women's voices, writing inspiration

Writing Our Own Stories Helps Others Write Theirs: Essay by and Interview with Joan Leof

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 20, 2016 by Joan LeofOctober 20, 2016

Joan Leof’s collection of essays Matryoshka: Uncovering Your Many Selves Through Writing Personal Essays and Questions for Reflection is intended to share her personal experience essays in a way that encourages others to write from their experiences. After reading her … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016, From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing | Tagged personal essay, reading for writing, women's voices, writing inspiration | 12 Replies

In Conversation with Meg Files and Jack Heffron

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 8, 2016 by EllenNovember 2, 2016

We have two new podcasts ready for you to listen to. They are conversations with Meg Files and with Jack Heffron. It was fun and informative having two of my favorite writing and teaching colleagues as guests this summer on … Continue reading →

Posted in From Our Contributors | Tagged on writing, writing advice, writing career, writing life | Leave a reply

Making Books from Lists Part II: Adam Diament’s Kosher Patents

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 11, 2016 by Sheila BenderAugust 11, 2016

Adam L. Diament, the author of Kosher Patents: 101 Ingenious Inventions to Help Jews be Jewish, is a practicing patent attorney in Beverly Hills, California. He earned a B.A. in Religious Studies with an Emphasis in Judaism from the University of California, Berkeley in 1997 and a law degree from the University of San Diego … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2014, WIR2016 | Tagged Informational Writing

Rants and Raves — A Great Writing Strategy from Karen Lorene

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 28, 2016 by Karen LoreneJuly 28, 2016

“If I’d only known what was in this book forty years ago, how much more money would I have made and how fewer problems would I have encountered?” Karen wonders. Isn’t that true for all of us in our lives—if we knew what we know now we could have done better at what mattered to … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Reading for Writing, WIR2015, WIR2016 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, writing exercises

When Digital Isn’t Real: Fact Finding Offline for Serious Writers

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 7, 2016 by Sheila BenderJuly 7, 2016

When Marlene Samuels found a publisher for her deceased mother’s World War II memoir, The Seamstress: A Memoir of Survival, her editor at Penguin-Berkeley had two conditions. She would have to ensure the accuracy of all the book’s facts (the names of every town and city in Eastern Europe during the early 1900’s up to … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015, WIR2016 | Tagged Informational Writing, reading for writing

Excerpt from Richard-Gabriel Rummonds Fantasies & Hard Knocks, My Life as a Printer

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 30, 2016 by Gabriel RummondsJune 30, 2016

This book is a big one?in every way. In its 813 beautifully designed pages and over 450 gorgeous photos and images, a story unfolds not only of fine handpress printing but the man who printed works by many great 20th Century writers as well as prepared food for them and others in his own kitchens … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2015, WIR2016 | Tagged memoir, writing inspiration, writing life

Finding Form

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 3, 2016 by Sheila BenderMarch 3, 2016

Tarn Wilson delivered this paper for a panel on “Hydra-Headed Memoirs & Well-Connected Essays” at the 2015 Nonfiction Now conference. I am delighted to have her permission to post her words for Writing It Real readers. Tarn’s lovely memoir is The Slow Farm. She uses her experience writing it to inform other writers about her … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, WIR2015, WIR2016 | Tagged memoir, revising writing, writing advice, writing memoir

Excerpt from Route 66, a Nonfiction/Fiction Book Project by Jack Heffron

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 25, 2016 by Sheila BenderFebruary 25, 2016

In this excerpt from Jack Heffron’s book project?that combines fiction and nonfiction, you’ll notice the strength of Jack’s?scenes and dialog, exactly the craft skills?he?will be teaching this year at the June 9-12 Writing It Real conference. In the book, Jack told me, the protagonist, Jack Finney, is a retired advertising executive who recently has been … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2015, WIR2016 | Tagged dialog, fiction, scene building

If You Want to Write…

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 3, 2015 by Judy ReevesJune 3, 2015

This week, Judy Reeves, author of the new book, Wild Women, Wild Voices, shares her thoughts on writing practice. Here article serves as a good review for all of us who are busy concentrating on revising and publishing and may have begun to overlook the idea of what a writing practice is and offers. She … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, WIR2015 | Tagged on writing, overcoming writer's block, trust your writing, women's voices, writing inspiration

A Love Story: Interview with Phyllis M. Washburn on her book Good Morning Sam

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 21, 2015 by Phyllis M. WashburnMay 21, 2015

Phyllis Washburn sent me a copy of the book she’d written, Good Morning Sam, which includes many of her husband Ralph’s photos. In photos and words, theirs is the story of the mute swan Sam, whom they named when he accepted them as part of his natural world. Over the years, the couple saved Sam … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015, Writers Building a Community of Readers | Tagged Informational Writing, Publishing

Carol Smallwood, Poet, and Anthology Creator Extraordinaire, Tells Us How She Does It

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 22, 2015 by Carol SmallwoodMay 6, 2015

As both an accomplished writer and a career librarian, Carol Smallwood knows a lot about what women ask when they wish to learn about the writing and publishing process. Over the years, I’ve received email invitations from Carol asking for contributions to anthologies whose subjects have rung true as extremely useful for women writers. I … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015 | Tagged Informational Writing, Publishing, writing inspiration

How We Write the Heroine’s Story: Interview with Author Jody Gentian Bower

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 15, 2015 by Jody Gentian BowerApril 15, 2015

Jody Gentian Bower’s new book, Jane Eyre’s Sisters: How Women Live and Write the Heroine’s Story, is sure to change some minds about the path of women’s literature. I am pleased to post the following interview with Jody. I know readers will find both her thinking and her commitment to the process of creating her … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2015 | Tagged reading for writing, women's voices

Haiku Poets Focus on What Matters Most: An Interview with Robert Epstein

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 1, 2015 by Robert EpsteinApril 2, 2015

Robert Epstein has invested years in conceiving and writing books, among them a series of impressive haiku anthologies. This National Poetry Month, I am delighted to post an interview with him that gets to the heart of how haiku connects us to the sacred and demonstrates what we come to poetry for — to understand and to share … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, WIR2015 | Tagged Trusting Images, writing inspiration, Writing Poetry

Sand Spirit Cards — A Tool for Writers

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 25, 2015 by Pam Hale TrachtaMarch 25, 2015

Before embarking on a third revision of A New Theology: Turning to Poetry in a Time of Grief, an intense book-length personal narrative, I worked with writer, photographer and shamanic practitioner Pam Hale Trachta for guidance in knowing what I wanted to do in developing my manuscript. Because it is about my son’s death in … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015 | Tagged overcoming writer's block, Trusting Images, writing inspiration, writing memoir

On Making Audio Memoirs

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 25, 2015 by Dorothy RossFebruary 28, 2015

Not long ago, Writing It Real member Dorothy Ross wrote to me about her newest project — recording the narratives she’s written about her life for her family to have in the form of audio files. I listened to a few of them and was so pleased to hear her physical voice. I immediately wanted … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015, Writers Building a Community of Readers | Tagged personal essay, women's voices, writing memoir

Poet, Author and Writing Community Builder Esther Altshul Helfgott on Two New Books and Her Writing Life

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 21, 2015 by Esther HelfgottFebruary 22, 2015

Esther Helfgott’s life-long writing habit helped her weather her husband Abe’s diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and the grief of slowly losing their thirty-year partnership. Using writing as a tool to handle this profound life change, she created the moving memoir, Dear Alzheimer’s: A Caregiver’s Diary & Poems. When her husband Abe died, she began writing the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015

Excerpt from Susan Bono’s Collection What Have We Here

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 14, 2015 by Susan BonoJanuary 14, 2015

The following essay by Susan Bono is the title essay from her new collection What Have We Here: Essays about Keeping House and Finding Home. We reprint it this week with her permission. To learn more about Susan’s writing and the place of the personal essay in her writing life, please see last week’s interview. What Have We … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2015 | Tagged personal essay, women's voices

What Have We Here: A Conversation with Susan Bono About Her New Collection of Essays

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 7, 2015 by Susan BonoJanuary 21, 2015

For writer and small press publisher (Tiny Lights) Susan Bono, the last thirty years have mostly been about trying to stay ahead of a husband, growing kids, aging parents, and an eccentric old house, in spite of detours, deadlines, unexpected changes, and inevitable losses. But through it all, she’s been taking notes. In her collection of … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2015, Writers Building a Community of Readers | Tagged personal essay, women's voices, writing advice, writing life

My Marital Status

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 17, 2014 by James KullanderJuly 17, 2014

After reading that I’d mentioned an interview he did with Marion Woodman in a Writing It Real article, James Kullander contacted me. After reading the whole article, he offered permission to share another essay originally published in the December 2007 issue of The Sun magazine. “My Marital Status” takes a moving look at love and commitment, at what … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2014 | Tagged personal essay

The Interview: A Way to Write More Complex Characters in Your Memoir

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 6, 2014 by Andrea ClausenJuly 9, 2014

Often when I try to write about my mother the same details surface. In my childhood memories she is always busy either working or participating on different committees; when she is home she is tired and does not like to cook. Now that I am an adult, my mother and I talk on the telephone … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, The Working Writer, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, writing advice, Writing Craft Tools

Interview with Memoirist Tarn Wilson, Part III: Writing About Others and The Journey to Publication

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 25, 2014 by Andrea ClausenJune 25, 2014

Last week we posted Part II of my interview with Tarn Wilson about her memoir The Slow Farm. We talked about different ways of bringing back memories and how to write from a child’s viewpoint as an adult. This week, she shares the way she approaches writing about family members consciously and compassionately way, provides … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, Publishing, reading for writing, writing advice, writing memoir

Interview With Memoirist Tarn Wilson, Part II: The Art of Remembering

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 18, 2014 by Andrea ClausenJune 18, 2014

Last week we posted the first part of my interview with Tarn Wilson about her memoir The Slow Farm. Tarn and I talked about how she used artifacts to reconstruct the past and how she structured her book. This week Tarn and I discuss the art of remembering. Tarn tells us about how she finds … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, writing advice, writing memoir

Interview with Memoirist Tarn Wilson, Part I: Reconstructing the Past

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 11, 2014 by Andrea ClausenJune 11, 2014

I am a person who saves things, from the obviously important letter my father wrote me right before he passed away to the “might need it someday” notes from middle school. I have shoeboxes of unorganized photographs, rocks and shells from past trips sit on my bookshelves, and, rolled in a back closet corner, sit … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, Publishing, women's voices, writing career, writing life, writing memoir

Interview with Bonnie Rough on Her Book Carrier: Untangling the Danger in My DNA

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 4, 2014 by Andrea ClausenJune 4, 2014

Bonnie Rough’s memoir, Carrier, which won the 2011 Minnesota Book Award, includes extensive research via family stories, interviews, pictures, legal records, letters, and more, but it is her compassionate portrayal of her grandfather, Earl, who passed away soon after her birth, that keeps readers turning pages. He lived with hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (HED), a genetic … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2014 | Tagged family, illness, memoir, researching, women's voices

Writing Your Way in the Back Door: The Painting as Entry

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 28, 2014 by Christine HempMay 28, 2014

Christine Hemp offers us her thinking about how we may find our prose and poetry’s true subjects followed by a writing exercise for practice and two sample poems. [This article and exercise were originally published in Now Write! Nonfiction: Memoir, Journalism and Creative Nonfiction Exercises from Today’s Best Writers and Teachers, from Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, edited by Sherry … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, WIR2014 | Tagged Trusting Images, writing advice, writing exercises, Writing Poetry

Interview with Memoirist Sue William Silverman

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 21, 2014 by Sue William SilvermanMay 23, 2014

I am pleased to publish this interview with award winning memoirist Sue William Silverman about the writing of her newest memoir and her advice to those of us who write from personal experience. The Pat Boone Fan Club: My Life as a White Anglo-Saxon Jew, follows two earlier memoirs, Because I Remember Terror, Father, I … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2014 | Tagged memoir, Publishing, trust your writing, Trusting Images, women's voices, writing advice, writing memoir

Celebrating and Learning from Poets — Final Four!

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 29, 2014 by Sheila BenderMay 1, 2014

As April and National Poetry Month come to an end, we finish our series of poets on their poems. Stan Rubin, Michael Spence, Nicole Persun and Nancy Levinson have each offered us a poem along with their thoughts about writing it. I follow their work with writing prompts based on their contributions. Stan Sanvel Rubin … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Reading for Writing, WIR2014

Celebrating and Learning from Poets — Another Batch of Three

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 23, 2014 by Sheila BenderApril 29, 2014

This week I am posting poems by three more poets whose work I have been following. Each has offered words about the creation of the particular poem included. And, as before, you’ll find writing ideas from me based on each of the poems. Let these poems live inside of you for a bit after reading … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Reading for Writing, WIR2014 | Tagged reading for writing, writing advice, Writing Poetry

Celebrating and Learning from Three More Wonderful Poets

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 16, 2014 by Sheila BenderApril 16, 2014

We present three poets, offering one of their poems along with words about its creation. My writing ideas are each based on one of the poems and are useful whether you are writing poetry or prose.

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Reading for Writing, WIR2014 | Tagged trust your images, writing inspiration, Writing Poetry

Celebrating and Learning from Three Wonderful Poets

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 9, 2014 by Sheila BenderApril 9, 2014

It’s National Poetry Month and I am celebrating poets I know whose work I have been following both in their books and by attending readings in my town and surrounding areas. Each of the next weeks, I will publish a poem by each of three of these poets along with their own words about their … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, Reading for Writing, WIR2014

The Strangest of Theatres: A Poet Writes Across Borders

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 5, 2014 by Susan RichMarch 18, 2014

Three accomplished writers have as editors acquired a collection of essays in The Strangest of Theatres: Poets Writing Across Borders in which poets explore the way their journeys to foreign lands helped them add to literature’s great conversation. Susan Rich, one editor of the three, whose newest poetry collection Cloud Pharmacy is just out from … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2014, Writers Building a Community of Readers, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged personal essay, reading for writing, Writing Poetry

First Place Winning Essay – “Why I Write” by Mary Kurtz

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 5, 2014 by Mary KurtzFebruary 6, 2014

Our fall/winter writing contest judge, Molly Tinsley, chose “Why I Write,” a personal essay by Mary Kurtz, as our first-place winner. Molly said in her notes about this essay: “Emotional control of the narrative makes Mary’s experience all the more riveting and poignant. I was swept up by the vivid flow of habitual action interrupted … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2013 | Tagged contest winner, contest winning essay, memoir, personal essay, women's voices

On Writing From Life

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 29, 2014 by Molly B. TinsleyJanuary 29, 2014

Our writing contest guest judge, Molly Tinsley, is now reading and making her selections of three contest winners in the recent Writing It Real contest. While we are waiting for the results, we are reprinting her article about writing memoir. It appeared orignally in the November 2013 issue of Author magazine.  Molly’s words on writing from … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, writing advice, writing memoir

People Who Write — Sandra Hurtes’ Story of Blog to Book

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 15, 2014 by Sandra HurtesSeptember 27, 2022

Sandra Hurtes created a blog, felt she had a book there, and engaged in the process of selecting and shaping the entries and adding to the material to create a book-length account of herself as writer.  The result is the very recently published The Ambivalent Memoirist: Obesessions, Digressions, Epiphanies, which has already garnered praise and … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Reading for Writing, WIR2013 | Tagged personal essay, Publishing, trust your writing, writing life, writing memoir

That Crazy Little Thing, a Novel that Tackles What’s Big for a Writer and Her Characters

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 4, 2013 by Kate M. BracyDecember 4, 2013

That Crazy Little Thing a debut novel by Kate Bracy has garnered wonderful reviews from readers and critics because of the author’s writing, the way she has developed her characters and how they explore issues of love — between friends, parents and their children, and adults looking for partners who understand them. Following Kate’s answers … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged writing advice, Writing Fiction, writing inspiration

A Coming-of-Age Vignette, Sage Advice, and the Writing Exercise They Inspired

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 20, 2013 by Rhonda Wiley-JonesNovember 20, 2013

When you read the following excerpts from Rhonda Wiley-Jones’ memoir, At Home in the World: Travel Stories of Growing Up and Growing Away, you’ll likely remember incidents from your own youth when you learned important things about yourself, perceptions that allowed you to see yourself in new ways. I’ve included a writing exercise to use … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Reading for Writing, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, personal essay, reading for writing, women's voices, writing exercises, writing memoir

Writer Tells All – A Narrative About Self-publishing

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 13, 2013 by Rhonda Wiley-JonesNovember 13, 2013

Are you thinking of self-publishing and wondering what the process is like? It never hurts to hear from one who has successfully navigated the process. With humor and self-awareness, Rhonda Wiley-Jones takes us on her journey as writer turned self-publisher. Reading her narrative is like sitting in the chair next to her. When she’s done … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, Publishing, women's voices, writing memoir

From Idea to Publication: Rhonda Wiley-Jones on Her Memoir Project

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 5, 2013 by Rhonda Wiley-JonesNovember 5, 2013

When Writing It Real member Rhonda Wiley-Jones published her travel/coming-of-age memoir, parts of which she had worked on through Writing It Real contests and editorial help, I was eager to hear what she’d learned in her process of moving from the initial essays to a book-length manuscript. What follows are her interesting and thoughtful replies … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, Publishing, writing life, writing memoir

Using Anaphora — A Model for a Speech

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 16, 2013 by Emily M. BenderOctober 16, 2013

When my daughter Emily Bender was writing a Valedictorian speech to be delivered at her UC Berkeley graduation, she was nervous about having something worth saying. With all of the demands of her life as a graduating senior, she had mulled the speech over but not found a way of tying things together. The she … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, Reading for Writing, WIR2013 | Tagged how to write a speech, personal essays, Valedictorian speech, Writing Craft Tools

On Writing the Eulogy

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 2, 2013 by David ReichOctober 2, 2013

As writers, we are frequently the ones asked to write eulogies for friends and family members. Even if we are not asked, we may feel moved to write eulogies to honor those we loved and then to share our writing with a literary audience. Reading author David Reich’s eulogy for his father and considering the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged personal essay, reading for writing, writing advice, Writing Craft Tools

Everyday Book Marketing for Authors

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 11, 2013 by Midge RaymondSeptember 11, 2013

On September 29, 2013, Midge Raymond is participating in the launch of Adventure by the Book’s Author Academy in San Diego. Adventures by the Book, founded by Susan McBeth, offers worldwide opportunities for readers to connect with authors’ travel and events. The Author Academy, an ongoing series of monthly events for authors, is a new … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged Informational Writing, Publishing, writing advice, writing career

Tips for Creating a Great Author Photo and Bio

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on September 4, 2013 by Midge RaymondSeptember 5, 2013

If you are preparing a manuscript for publication or creating a blog to build a platform for your work, you will find tips by fiction writer and publisher Midge Raymond extremely useful. This article is excerpted from her recent book in Everyday Book Marketing: Promotion Ideas to Fit Your Regularly Scheduled Life. The Author Photo … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013 | Tagged on writing, writing career

Judith Kitchen on Reading as a Writer Reads Part 2

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 17, 2013 by Judith KitchenJuly 17, 2013

Applying her method of reading as a writer reads to Pam Houston’s Contents May Have Shifted, Judith Kitchen asks, “So is this memoir, masked as novel? Or novel, masked as memoir? That’s one of the first questions that a reader of this book asks. “What does it matter?” you might venture.   Here is our guest author’s explanation. Reading … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, reading for writing, Writing Fiction, writing memoir

Judith Kitchen on Reading as a Writer Reads Part 1

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 10, 2013 by Judith KitchenJuly 17, 2013

For our community read this past March 2013, the librarians in Port Townsend, where I live, chose Pam Houston’s novel Contents May Have Shifted, a story, they felt to be about love and freedom in middle age, something dear to the hearts of many in this community. At the top of the month the library … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged on writing, reading for writing, women's voices, Writing Fiction, writing memoir

The Practice of Productivity

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on July 3, 2013 by Priscilla LongJuly 3, 2013

This week, I am pleased to re-post an excerpt from writer Priscilla Long’s excellent text The Writer’s Portable Mentor: A Guide to Art, Craft, and the Writing Life. I heartily agree with the many readers who find the book one of the most accessible, thorough and useful writing guides they’ve read. We can all benefit … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged writing advice, writing inspiration, writing life

Interview with Memoirist Barbara McNally on The Writing of Unbridled: A Memoir

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 19, 2013 by Barbara McNallyJune 28, 2014

When otherwise good girl Barbara McNally is caught having an affair (for the second time), her marriage ends within weeks and with it, so does the image she created for her two teenaged girls and the man she married right out of college. In her book Unbridled: A Memoir, Barbara (whose website is here) begins … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013, Writers Building a Community of Readers | Tagged memoir, on writing, Publishing, writing advice, writing life, writing memoir

TIL – A Strategy for Travel Writing

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 29, 2013 by Emily M. BenderMay 30, 2013

My daughter Emily took a trip with her husband, children, and parents-in-law to India, where her husband has many relatives. During the three-week trip, I was very happy to be able to follow her travels through photos and writing she shared on Facebook. Her Facebook posts took a form that made me think of William … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, WIR2013 | Tagged travel writing, Trusting Images, writing exercises

What I Learned When My Husband Died

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 21, 2013 by Nina AbneeMay 22, 2013

One way to help oneself heal from grief is to offer others honest lessons from experience. In this essay, included in the anthology On Our Own: Widowhood for Smarties, Nina Abnee has done so with generosity. “What I Learned When My Husband Died” is about Nina’s life and marriage, the end of her  husband’s life and how during those … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013, Writers Building a Community of Readers

Writing the Situations Life Throws Your Way – An Interview with Thelma Zirkelbach

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 1, 2013 by Sheila BenderMay 2, 2013

Former romance writer Thelma Zirkelback has two books out now (and a blog) on the subject of widowhood, one an anthology she co-edited of writings by women who have coped with their new life situation (On Our Own: Widowhood for Smarties) and the other a memoir about her interfaith marriage and and the loss of … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013, Writers Building a Community of Readers | Tagged Informational Writing, memoir, personal essay, reading for writing, women's voices, writing advice, writing life

On Writing and Publishing Poetic Memoir, An Interview

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 17, 2013 by Nancy Smiler LevinsonApril 17, 2013

Nancy Smiler Levinson set herself the goal of writing about what she was living through during her husband’s diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. The result was a powerful, filled with love, and ultimately affirming memoir, all in free verse, Moments of Dawn: a poetic memoir of love & family, affliction & admiration.  A professional writer for decades, Nancy … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged memoir, Publishing, writing life, Writing Poetry

He’s Over Sixty and He’s a Rapper! Interview with Robert Komishane

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on April 3, 2013 by Robert KomishaneApril 4, 2013

Robert Komishane is a Port Townsend, WA poet who turned in middle age to rap and hiphop for inspiration when he wanted to switch from writing free verse to writing in form. Four and a half year’s later, he’s still having fun and gaining attention for his efforts. I interviewed Robert via email to learn … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged writing inspiration, Writing Poetry, writing rap

On Writing Memoir: Obsessions Digressions and Epiphanies

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 27, 2013 by Sandra HurtesMarch 27, 2013

Sandra Hurtes is the author of the essay collection, On My Way To Someplace Else and the chapbook RESCUE. Her essays and articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and Poets & Writers, among other publications. You can find links to her work and a link to her new blog, Chasing the Present Moment. … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013 | Tagged memoir, on writing, personal essay, Trusting Images, writing advice, writing life

An Interview with Playwright Mara Lathrop

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 20, 2013 by Mara LathropFebruary 1, 2015

Have you thought about writing for the stage or about reading plays as a way to understand the role of dialog in moving a story forward and keeping your writing “in scene”? If either is true for you, you will find playwright Mara Lathrop’s experience and the resources she shares invaluable. If you haven’t yet … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013 | Tagged playwrighting, playwriting, theater writing, writing advice, writing plays

Taking Chances

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on March 5, 2013 by Jack HeffronMarch 6, 2013

After years of writing, editing, publishing authors and teaching, Jack Heffron knows why we get stuck and how to work around that and back into our material. He’ll be teaching with Meg Files and Sheila Bender at our Writing It Real in Nashville April 25-28 conference. Join us for a chance to work with Jack as … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013 | Tagged Informational Writing, on writing, trust your writing, writing advice, Writing Craft Tools, Writing Fiction, writing memoir

A Children’s Book From the Heart: Interview with Penny Holland

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 6, 2013 by Penny HollandFebruary 6, 2013

Creating stories to delight children and help them understand sophisticated social concepts is a primary objective of children’s book authors. But it is often hard to cut to the essence of situations in language children understand. Penny Claire Holland had the story for a children’s picture book many years ago, but let her manuscript sit … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2013, Writing Makes a Difference | Tagged children's book writing, trust your writing, writing advice, writing career, Writing Fiction

Excerpt from Meg Files Novel The Third Law of Motion

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 30, 2013 by Meg FilesJanuary 30, 2013

This excerpt is from Chapter 15 of The Third Law of Motion by Meg Files, published by Anaphora Literary Press, 2011, reprinted here by permission of the author. Lonnie had already started work as an inventory clerk in a new discount store just outside town, and we’d used the Christmas money from Dad for rent and … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2013 | Tagged fantasy fiction, women's voices, Writing Craft Tools, Writing Fiction, Writing Scenes

The Third Law of Motion – An Interview with Meg Files

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 23, 2013 by Meg FilesMarch 6, 2013

This week’s interview is with my colleague Meg Files about her process for writing The Third Law of Motion, her newest novel and the book’s impact on its audience. You can study with Meg at our April Writing It Real conference in Nashville or our June Centrum Creative weekend intensive in Port Townsend, WA. Sheila Your … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013 | Tagged trust your writing, Writing Fiction, writing life, Writing Scenes

Talking Recklessly

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 16, 2013 by KimStaffordJanuary 16, 2013

 “Talking Recklessly” is excerpted by permission of the author, Kim Stafford, from his memoir 100 Tricks Any Boy Can Do: How My Brother Disappeared published 2012 by Trinity University Press, San Antonio, TX. When we were young, our father had a habit of abruptly increasing the voltage by announcing, “Let’s talk recklessly!” This meant any … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2013 | Tagged Kim Stafford, memoir, personal essay

Interview with Poet and Memoirist Kim Stafford

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on January 9, 2013 by KimStaffordJanuary 15, 2013

Memoirs are high on my reading list. Memoirs that tell authors’ stories of grieving and healing are at the top. This week, I am posting an in-depth interview with writer Kim Stafford, whose brother committed suicide. As a writer, Kim sets out in his book 100 Tricks Every Boy Can Do, A Memoir to explore … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2013 | Tagged Kim Stafford, memoir, on writing, writing advice, writing inspiration, writing life

Authornomics Interview with Sheila Bender

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 12, 2012 by Sheila BenderDecember 16, 2012

Authornomics is an author interview series created by Andrea Hurst and Associates agency. The August 16, 2012 interview I did for the series was chosen as one of their year’s best. The many good questions the agents there asked gave me the opportunity to discuss writing and the writing life in ways meaningful to me. … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2012 | Tagged agent, Publishing, writing career, writing life

Making a Book from Lists: An Interview with Adam Diament

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 14, 2012 by Adam DiamentDecember 17, 2012

On a recent teaching trip to Southern, CA, I visited with my college friend Cynthia. Among the many things we talked about was her oldest son’s new self-published book, The Top 10 Jewish… . She handed me a copy and from the first words of the introduction, I knew I wanted to learn more about … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012 | Tagged Informational Writing, on writing, reading for writing

Lasting Impressions – Excerpt from The Art and Craft of Storytelling

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 31, 2012 by Nancy LambDecember 17, 2012

Author Nancy Lamb has published two books on writing fiction with Writer’s Digest Books, The Art and Craft of Storytelling: A Comprehenisve Guide to Classic Writing Techniques, from which we present an excerpt this week, as well as The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children. She is a master at explaining the elements of … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2012 | Tagged writing advice, Writing Craft Tools, Writing Fiction

More Than Your English Teacher Ever Told You

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 4, 2012 by Emily M. BenderOctober 5, 2012

When an irate reader wrote the editors of Writer’s Digest Magazine because of “incorrect” grammar I used in a poem, I was concerned.  I had written “my sister and I” after a verb:  “the ones my father gave my sister and I.”  The reader, a retired English teacher, said the magazine had certainly scraped the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012

Interview with Suzan Huney on Her Book Women of Strength and Writing Oral History

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 22, 2012 by Suzan HuneyAugust 22, 2012

On August 27, 2010, Suzan Huney began an oral history project with her Aunt Betty Jane Cooper Johnson, her mother’s sister.  For many years, the tight knit clan of Cooper family women had celebrated during yearly reunions, but interviewing Aunt Betty meant learning a lot more about the family as well as more about her … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012

An Interview with Award Winning Young Adult Author Pete Hautman

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 14, 2012 by Sheila BenderAugust 14, 2012

 This spring, I lead my town’s 8th graders in discussions about Pete Hautman’s young adult novel Blank Confession, a story based on the novel Shane, which is about a mysterious cowboy who changes the lives of a family while working on their ranch for only a short while. In Pete’s story, a boy arrives in … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012

For Those Who Want to Experience a Writing Retreat

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 27, 2012 by Susan RichJune 27, 2012

Susan Rich is a veteran of many writing retreats and served on the selection committee for Hedgebrook Writers’ Retreat. If you are interested in finding a writer’s retreat to spend some time away from home in an environment conducive to writing and sharing your work with other artists in residence, you’ll be interested in poet … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2012 | Tagged Writing Retreats

Writing Memoir and Poetry, Studying with Mentors and Peers: Interview with Anne McDuffie, Recent MFA Low Residency Program Graduate

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 20, 2012 by Anne McDuffieJune 20, 2012

Have you wondered about the value of MFA programs or wanted to learn what the MFA candidates learn? Here’s an opportunity to receive enrichment from a recent MFA candidate’s experience–Anne has offered loads of links to journals and writers you will want to know about. Sheila I am pleased by the opportunity to talk with … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2012 | Tagged literary journals, MFA Programs, on writing

In Conversation with Midge Raymond, Author of How to be an Everyday Writer: Tips and Prompts

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on June 13, 2012 by Sheila BenderJune 13, 2012

This week author and publisher Midge Raymond, whose newest book is How to be an Everyday Writer: Tips and Prompts, offers us some of her quickie prompts and answers questions about her career and writing. Sheila Midge, you have succeeded in publishing collections of short stories and novels and you have wonderful nonfiction essays out there. You’re … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, WIR2012

Interview with Memoirist Shanti Elke Bannwart

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on May 30, 2012 by Shanti BannwartMarch 24, 2013

None of us know the full impact of our stories, only that we are compelled to write them. Shanti Elke Bannwart, author of Dancing On One Foot: Growing Up In Nazi Germany, says, “Creating art is dangerous. It strips you naked and stirs the deep waters of self-doubt; it pokes your nose into the gap … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012

How to Write (a book) — a wee rant

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on February 1, 2012 by Patti DighFebruary 27, 2012

Sometimes we need to be reminded that being a writer is about writing, first and foremost. As writers, we have to sit down and get our words on the page whether or not anyone has asked us to do so–and most often, not having been asked is the case.  We write to find out more … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2012 | Tagged overcoming writer's block, writing advice

Interview with Essayist Joni Cole

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 15, 2011 by Sheila BenderDecember 15, 2011

Joni Cole, author of Another Bad-Dog Book: Tales of Life, Love, and Neurotic Human Behavior, offers valuable information for writers in her recent interview for Writing It Real members. If you haven’t yet, you will want to read an excerpt from her book. Sheila How did you go about writing and collecting these essays? Joni … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2011

The Adventures of Super Joni! (And Her Amazing Dog E-Pie-Pie)

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on December 1, 2011 by Joni ColeDecember 5, 2011

When Writing It Real contributor Joni Cole sent me a review copy of her new collection of essays Another Bad-Dog Book: Tales of Life, Love, and Neurotic Human Behavior, I was excited to get started reading. The book proved both funny, sometimes sidesplitting so, and poignant, especially when she writes about her elderly father. This week … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Literary Gallery, WIR2011

Turning Interests into Books

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 10, 2011 by Sheila BenderDecember 5, 2011

I enjoy exchanging information with those I meet, especially about books and writing. A summer day at the beach with my youngest grandson Rafe led to discovering an interesting writer and later to learning her writing and publishing story. My five-year-old grandson Rafe wanted to connect with two little girls he’d met at camp who … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, The Working Writer, WIR2011

Writing with Feeling, Grounded By Place

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on November 3, 2011 by Margaret D. McGeeNovember 28, 2011

Our connections to the important places of our lives are deeply personal, based on unique experiences and relationships. At the same time, the feelings that bind us to those places can be shared and understood by most everyone because they are tied to universal human experiences and longings — to the comfort of home, the … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, Instructional Exercises, WIR2011

An Interview with Personal Essayist Sandra Hurtes

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 27, 2011 by Sheila BenderNovember 28, 2011

Learning what keeps other writers on task with particular pieces that are difficult to finish affirms for me that as a writer, I must obey the call of the initial inspiration, even if obeying that call means sitting down again and again through draft after draft to find what I was meant to discover. It … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2011

Why I Write: Essayist Sandra Hurtes’ Thoughts

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on October 20, 2011 by Sandra HurtesNovember 28, 2011

Inspired by the “Why I Write” column in Poets and Writer’s magazine, essayist Sandra Hurtes examined her answer to that question, which is in the title of the following essay that appeared on October 9, 2011 in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Those of us who write, especially those of us who came late to allowing writing … Continue reading →

To access this post, you must purchase Online Personal Essay Writing Workshop + Membership, Development and Line Editing, Yesim Cimcoz Where Story Begins + Membership, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 11:00AM, Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor – How Editing Helps You Find Your Way + Membership 2:00PM, Poetry Writing Workshop + Membership, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 2:00PM, In-Class Writing and Responses – Your Writing Will Surprise You! + Membership 11:00 AM, Summer Reading Summer Writing Plus Membership, Write More Healthy Starts Plus Membership, You: Writing in the 2nd Person Online Workshop Plus Membership, Keep Goin’ On Your Writing over the Holidays Plus Membership, Writing for Young Readers Plus Membership, Introduction to Scrivener — Plus Membership, Writing Healthy Starts + Membership, Eight Half-Hour Consults + Membership, Befriending the Giant + Membership or Write! Write! Write! Writing Exercises for Writing Prose from Personal Experience + Membership.

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2011

How a Community Newspaper Works

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 25, 2011 by Sheila BenderNovember 28, 2011

Many of us who write from personal experience have ideas for columns and features appropriate, we think, for our local newspapers, but we may never have talked with a newspaper editor to find out what things look like from their side of the desk. I became acquainted with Kasia Pierzga, the Whidbey Examiner’s owner, publisher … Continue reading →

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Posted in From Our Contributors, WIR2011

From the Editors of Ashland, Oregon’s Ashland Creek Press

Sheila Bender's Writing It Real Posted on August 11, 2011 by Sheila BenderNovember 28, 2011

I belong to a book promotion group with fiction writer Midge Raymond, author of the short story collection Forgetting English. When she shared the link to a promotional video she and her husband, novelist John Yunker (The Tourist Trail), created, I clicked right over to their YouTube video called “Love in the Time of Amazon.” … Continue reading →

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