All You Need to Know about Writing
I am convinced that good writing is writing that tells the truth. That's it. That's all there is to it.
Good writing isn’t pretty writing. It’s honest writing.
Good writing doesn’t go on and on. It isn't verbiage. It isn't fluff.
Good writing comes from the heart. That’s what makes it powerful.
Good writing does not explain itself.
It is admirable for writing to be correct, but correct writing may or may not be good writing.
Incorrect writing may also be good writing. Good writing can be imperfect writing. I have seen writing from people who are learning English. It is broken English, and it is powerful and strong. Such writers have to get to the heart of the matter. They can’t fool around with the words and dress them up, and what they write comes directly from their hearts.
Good writing cares about itself. It wants to say the writer’s truth simply.
Good writing, I believe, reminds us of Oneness. It makes us feel:
“Yes, this is true. This is how it is. I would have said this the same way. This writer has spoken for me, perhaps expressed something I already know but didn’t know how to say. He has woken me up to what I already knew, may have forgotten, may have just realized.
Comments
Although I've never developed a strong relationship with words and language, I do have a romantic interest in them. There's this practise that I've tried on a few friends, that I find so enjoyable. Its also very simple. Its call slow talk. During the excercise, we start t.o t.a.l.k v.e.r.y s.l.o.w.l.y and clearly. With focus placed on p.r.o.n.o.u.n.c.i.a.t.i.o.n
I observed that the words were expressed with so much power. Speaking became relaxed and just speaking in this manner formed a kind of a meditation. The vibrations of the sound created by forming the words would travel through the body in a delightful way. With this practice, simple English becomes an exotic, powerful mean of expression.
One may practise this by reading out aloud something inspirational (Heavenletters work very well!) so a partner is not really required, but a more fun and profound experience. When communicating with someone in this way, we get to observe how the vibrations of our words effect the person listening.
Speech becomes simple and expressive and Truth naturally takes the path of least resistance.
One may write using this method as well. It has to do with slowing down.
I would love to read some writing from 7th graders Senora. Good idea for a blog post!
Canim Gloria,
I've loved that GOOD-writing idea. I will try to translate this text for my father who lives to write (refer to MARQUEZ).
Besides I crave to write, good-write but somehow something stops me, I am very afraid of beginning. WHAT A DILEMMA?????
looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooove
you
Engin
Canim Engin, tell us more of what your father writes.
I can see you as a writer very well. I see you writing humor!
To overcome the beginning jitters, just start writing fast. That's all you have to do. You do not have to do good writing. Just write. Get past the beginning. Later you can cross out all you want, but for now you just write and get it down on paper. Don't cross out before you write. It is fatal!
Querido One, what you suggest is very very interesting. I love to read Heavenletters out loud, and slowly! The first CD, because of an editing program that cut out er's and mistakes, the mastered tape had me speaking way too fast. It shattered my nerves. I would never have sent it to anyone. It had the opposite of a soothing effect.
Then Roland came to the rescue. We spent hours and hours going over every word, and Roland slowed it all down by adding silent space. And that's the CD we have now.
I really relate to your idea, and thank you for it.
As for seventh graders' writing, I don't have any any more. It really was wonderful. Bare-boned honest. They weren't trying to hide anything.
I do remember a very short composition a boy did. It was only three sentendes, but it had perfect structure -- beginning, middle, and end. I gave him an A+ on it. It went something like this, only better:
"I stayed at the beach with my mother and father for a week.
"I met a girl by the water named Susan, and I loved her, and I kissed her.
"We left the beach, and I never saw Susan again."
Wasn't that a classic summer romance?
Gloriacigim, canim, thank you for these vital advices you gave me. I know that, I feel that I should begin. I should organize my day and stop creating excuses. I should write.
My father is working on a novel at the moment. But he is mostly interested in humanrights, he is so interested in humanrights that he had to leave his own country. Nevermind it is a loooooong story..
I have loved the composition of that little boy. How beautiful and innocent children are!!!
Dear only ONE, I am able to neither speak nor read slowly. But this excercise sounds helpful.
loooooooooooooooooooooooooooove
you all
Do you prefer to write with pen and paper or to type? I find it almost impossible to write with pen and paper--and you have seen how I can go on and on and on when I type a response.
I wonder why that is? (Engin--I love your sloooowwwwww typing of looooooooooooooooove!!! ... That's what One is talking about, isn't it??? Letting your tongue or mind and fingers FEEL the resonation of the words ... (Maybe that's why I like typing best--I like the feel of the keys under all my fingers, and I don't much like the scratchiness of pencil on paper.)
Dear Pam,
I prefer to type. Actually writing with paper and pen is such a romance that reminds me of all those great writers who wrote thousands and thousands of pages with
feathers. Can you imagine Tolstoy, writing his Anna Karenina. Its Turkish version has 850 pages!!! What a great energy and creativity Tolstoy had!!! And he did not have electricity either...
Yes, you are right I have just realized that I am able to write "love" slowly aswell. By writing this way, I mean "loooooooooooooooooooooooove", I am trying to express how big and great it is :)
loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooove
Engin
Hello all. I am interested in the topic of writing, because I actually teach writing, at a community college. And I am always grappling with the issue of how to elicit the best writing from my students. The problem is the model, I think. I so agree with you, Gloria, that the best writing is writing that's true. Just about anything else, especially when people are writing for a grade...gets pretty dicey. And for so many years I got all this dicey writing from people, just dripping with the idea of "this is what I'm supposed to write, so let me try to give the teacher what she wants, however I can, and let it be in the most words possible so I can fill up the required five paragraphs". But it was almost never true, and it was almost always full of all kinds of errors and weird sentences that people would NEVER actually say! So kind of in self defense, I started asking people to write stories from their experience, which usually worked out much better, and were MUCH more interesting for me to read! That's what I mean by "self-defense."
Unfortunately, there's a slight glitch, namely that the college thinks that personal stories are too elementary. And what they seem to want is that other thing! So at the moment I'm trying to figure out how to reconcile these two approaches. Perhaps God can help! (LOL)
When and where is your next workshop on Godwriting, and what is its cost? Do you give teleconference call Godwriting workshops? Do you have a published book or CDs on how to do Godwriting? I would really love to learn how to write Godwriting. Thank you so much for your wonderful Heaven Letters. They truly resonate with me. -- With deep and profound blessings of Love, Light, Joy and Peace. Namaste and love always and all ways, Kriss
Dear Kriss,
Thank you for your wonderful questions!
It is so inspiring to know how much you appreciate Heavenletters, dear one.
Where in Colorado do you live?
Sometime this spring, four of us are going on a road tour, and I will be giving Godwriting workshops along the way. Exact dates and locations are yet to be determined.
One of the things we plan to do while traveling is to work on an online Godwriting workshop.
You will find quite a bit of material in this blog about Godwriting. Also on the website -- I think it's on the top banner toward the right -- you will find more about Godwriting workshops.
Since you are desiring to Godwrite, it is certain that you will!
Keep posting!
With love, Gloria