Last Sunday morning I woke up and decided to go fishing at the local pond. It was a beautiful sunny day with a nice breeze. After I arrived, I headed down to my favorite spot to fish. It was right under a big tree that provided some shade for the trout to hide under. After I cast my first line, some more fishermen started to surround the pond.
As we settled into our fishing holes some introductions were being made. Sitting to my right was Maria Popova “The Daily Writing Routines of Great Writers”. Maria pointed to a woman sitting beside her and introduced her as Anne Lamott “Bird by Bird” Some Instructions on Writing and Life”. On my left, positioned by the waterfall was Ray Bradbury “Zen in the Art of Writing”. They seemed like a friendly group of fishermen to me.
After our introductions were completed, we started to talk about why we liked fishing at this particular pond . I explained how I come to this pond to relax and let my mind wonder. I also told them about a paper that I have to write by Thursday. The conversation really picked up after that.
Me - I haven’t written a paper in years. I just don’t know where to start.
Anne – So I’d start writing without reining myself in. It was almost just typing, just making my fingers move and the writing would be terrible.
Ray – The faster you write the more honest you are
Maria – Well Susan Santog resolves in her diary, I write in spurts. I write when I have to because the pressure builds up and I feel enough confidence that something has matured in my head and I can write it down.
Me – I’m worried my writing isn’t up to par with everyone else in my class.
Anne – Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts.
Ray – You stumble into writing, mostly, you don’t know what you’re doing, and suddenly, it’s done.
Maria – Ernest Hemingway once said, “You write until you come to a place where you still have your juice and know what will happen next and you stop and try to let live through until the next day when you hit it again”
Me – This is some amazing advice that you all have given me. It’s making me feel much more confident with myself. I’ve been doubting my capabilities on writing a great paper.
Anne – What I’ve learned to do when I sit down to work on a shitty first draft is to quiet the voices in my head.
Ray – I began to put down brief notes and descriptions of loves and hates.
Maria – E.B. White said it best when he said, “ A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper”.
Me – Who knew my fellow fishermen held such great knowledge about writing? I can’t thank you enough for your advice. I may not have had any bites on my line today but now I have many lines for my paper stored in my head.
Nobody caught a trout that Sunday morning. We did however walk away from that pond feeling like we did reel in some new friends.
As we settled into our fishing holes some introductions were being made. Sitting to my right was Maria Popova “The Daily Writing Routines of Great Writers”. Maria pointed to a woman sitting beside her and introduced her as Anne Lamott “Bird by Bird” Some Instructions on Writing and Life”. On my left, positioned by the waterfall was Ray Bradbury “Zen in the Art of Writing”. They seemed like a friendly group of fishermen to me.
After our introductions were completed, we started to talk about why we liked fishing at this particular pond . I explained how I come to this pond to relax and let my mind wonder. I also told them about a paper that I have to write by Thursday. The conversation really picked up after that.
Me - I haven’t written a paper in years. I just don’t know where to start.
Anne – So I’d start writing without reining myself in. It was almost just typing, just making my fingers move and the writing would be terrible.
Ray – The faster you write the more honest you are
Maria – Well Susan Santog resolves in her diary, I write in spurts. I write when I have to because the pressure builds up and I feel enough confidence that something has matured in my head and I can write it down.
Me – I’m worried my writing isn’t up to par with everyone else in my class.
Anne – Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts.
Ray – You stumble into writing, mostly, you don’t know what you’re doing, and suddenly, it’s done.
Maria – Ernest Hemingway once said, “You write until you come to a place where you still have your juice and know what will happen next and you stop and try to let live through until the next day when you hit it again”
Me – This is some amazing advice that you all have given me. It’s making me feel much more confident with myself. I’ve been doubting my capabilities on writing a great paper.
Anne – What I’ve learned to do when I sit down to work on a shitty first draft is to quiet the voices in my head.
Ray – I began to put down brief notes and descriptions of loves and hates.
Maria – E.B. White said it best when he said, “ A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper”.
Me – Who knew my fellow fishermen held such great knowledge about writing? I can’t thank you enough for your advice. I may not have had any bites on my line today but now I have many lines for my paper stored in my head.
Nobody caught a trout that Sunday morning. We did however walk away from that pond feeling like we did reel in some new friends.