Interpretive Writing Intensive
Workshops, Ideas, & News for Interpreters Who Write

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Creating Stories that Make a Difference:

Advice & Guidance for Interpretive Writing and Writers

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Invitation to Begin


What was I thinking about when I had that flash of idea while fixing breakfast?
draft
I know it had to do with how hard it is to begin, how challenging it is to find the right opening, and how important that opening is. Something about how hard it is to re-start after being on hiatus the last several months--not intentionally, but this summer has been like that, the things I thought I'd begin haven't begun, and the things I thought would be done aren't, though some are finally getting close. I think.

That's one of the things about creativity, about the kind of work we do. I can't predict exactly how long it will take to do anything. I think because some things are almost always fast for me--or at least they feel fast, or maybe they just feel easy, or more fun than other tasks--maybe because of that, a part of me thinks I should be able to do every phase of a project quickly and easily. But these phases aren't apples-to-apples. Each aspect of a creative project has its own challenges.

Just because I'm usually quick on the draw with concepts and strategy doesn't mean that today, at this moment, I'll be able to generate a basketful of ideas to pour onto the page, nor that the slosh of them on the paper will instantly transform into beautiful, complete works. Even the most elegant idea takes time to shape into a compelling story.

As Old Lodge Skins in Little Big Man says, "Well, sometimes the magic works. Sometimes it doesn't."

How do we begin?

As I think about this problem, the challenge of beginning, my brain spins out: there's beginning, as in getting myself settled enough to pay attention to the day's writing task. There's beginning, as in coming back to my desk after an extended absence, wondering if I've forgotten how to write, as if my skill and creativity were a property of the desk and have leached away in the hot Colorado sun. What if my skills have atrophied like an unused muscle, or worse, that I've been gone so long that I've forgotten how to form letters on the page, and when I pick up this odd implement,
red pen end
I won't know what it is--but then some ancient part of my brain whispers, "pen." The recognition feels a little like a beginning, and I breathe a little easier.
red pen
There's the beginning of the piece itself, and all the advice about beginnings. A story must have a beginning--everyone from Aristotle to my neighbor's three-year-old knows that. Every how-to-write book insists that the beginning must hook, captivate, capture, entice, seduce the reader--as if it is only by trickery that our readers will continue on to the second sentence, the next paragraph, the middle, the end.

I know Resistance--that inner gremlin who wants to keep me safe from the risks of creativity--would prefer it if I didn't begin at all. If I don't begin, I'll be safe. I won't make mistakes (because I won't make anything at all), I won't look like a fool (because they won't see my work--because I won't have done any work--and therefore, they won't see me, either); I won't be vulnerable (because there won't be anything for anyone to criticize).

I have lots of techniques to get around Resistance, lots of ways to slide into the place where I can begin. I'm practicing one of them now--writing about what I'm not doing. I'm not beginning, not really; I'm just thinking out loud on crumpled trash the page, which lets me sneak up on the actual task--and before Resistance realizes what I'm up to, I'm already writing, which confuses Resistance--how did I begin without her noticing?--but since the writing doesn't seem to be life-threatening, she goes back to her knitting.

I think about what I know about beginnings, and what I can control.

I can't control the quality of my first draft. First drafts are playgrounds. They're where I figure out what I want to say and how I want to say it. More often than not, the beginning of my story (whether it's an interpretive display panel, an essay, or a short story) shows up a page or two in. When I find the beginning in that tangle of ink and scribbles, I feel elated, even triumphant, despite knowing that I'm still a long way from the middle and farther still from the end.
draft

I can't control how long this process will take; the time I budget in my schedule for writing and editing is based on averages, but that's all they are, averages. Some days, entire stories fall from the sky and land in near perfect form on the page, and The End arrives before sunset. Those are rare gifts.

Other days, the universe is busy elsewhere, and the project I thought would take a dozen hours takes a dozen days (or more) instead. The average time it takes to write anything is not the time it takes to write this specific thing.

I don't control what readers take away from my story, not really. Chances are good, if I do my job well enough, they'll take away the point I hoped I was making, but people take from the story what they need, including important things I never knew were there.

So what do I control? What can I control?

Only the invitation:

To explore. To join in. To solve a mystery, to discover Long's Peak from Stanley Hotel something new, to escape the ordinary everyday and return to it later, after The End, changed.

Because, after all, that's what the beginning really is:

An invitation to myself, to settle in to write. An invitation to my reader, to read.

You're welcome here. Won't you come in?

'Til next time--
Judy

Comments? Questions?
970/416-6353
email Judy

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Only chance in 2014 for an interp writing workshop with Judy!

I'll be teaching a 2-day preconference workshop on interpretive writing as part of the 2014 NAI conference in Denver.

Creating Stories that Make a Difference: Interpretive Writing Workshop will meet Monday and Tuesday, November 17-18, at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel (site of the conference, too). The $195 fee includes a workbook and a copy of my new book, Creating Stories that Make a Difference: Advice and Guidance for Interpretive Writing and Writers (you'll receive an excerpt during the workshop and the finished book as soon as it's available).

You can create writing that moves readers, changes hearts and minds, and communicates effectively. Join me in Denver and discover how to weave what you know into writing that inspires, intrigues, delights, and educates.

As of this writing, 20 of the 30 spaces are already filled, so if you've been thinking about coming, don't wait--register now.

Click here for more NAI preconference information and registration.



almost blooming
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Also at 2014 NAI

Better than Broadway: How to use theatre to create and present amazing interpretive programs

Saturday, Nov. 22, 9:45-2:00 (with a 1-hour lunch break)

presented by four interpreters with extensive experience in museum theatre, living history, storytelling, play and interpretive writing, and performing arts:
 Judy Fort Brenneman, John Luzader,
Simone Mortan, and Bill Weldon

Drama changes lives--not just on stage, but in museums, galleries, and historical sites, in amphitheatres (indoors and out), around the campfire, in the classroom, through community outreach, and in happenstance meetings.

Life-changing performances begin long before the actor--or interpreter--appears. In this 3-hour intensive, you'll experience and experiment with theatrical techniques, from finding stories and developing characters to improv, performance techniques, and program assessment. It will be challenging, exhilarating, and creative. It will move you out of your comfort zone without letting you fall into the abyss. By the end of the session, you'll have practice with practical approaches that will improve your interpretive skills, broaden your audience, and help you create memorable experiences.

Open to all conference registrants.


Click here for more NAI conference information and registration.


Mystery, Surprise, and the Promise of a Good Story

Saturday, Nov. 22, 2:15-3:45
presented by Judy Fort Brenneman

What draws visitors in? How do we capture--and keep--their attention? In this highly interactive session, we'll explore and experiment with writing and story techniques to create powerful, memorable interpretive stories.

Open to all conference registrants.

Click here for more NAI conference information and registration.

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It's not to soon to register for the
Anza Borrego
Nature Writing Retreat!
February 8-13, 2015
Borrego Springs, California

Anza-Borrego Nature Writing Retreat

Join me for a week-long writers' retreat in Borrego Springs, California, February 8-13, 2015. You'll have time to write and reflect in the vast and inspiring landscapes of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. Enjoy daily focused sessions, individual feedback, one-on-one guidance, and explorations in the Park, including 2 guided field trips.

Are you a nature writer? How do you know? What exactly is nature writing, anyway?

I follow an expansive definition of "nature writing"--for me, it applies whether you're writing about pristine wilderness, urban inner city landscapes, or anything in between. It encompasses all forms--prose, poetry, short-short pieces, book-length works--and practically every genre, including fiction, nonfiction, creative nonfiction, and (of course) interpretive writing.

This workshop is not focused specifically on interpretive writing, but much of what we'll work on is applicable to interpretive writing.

So don't let the name, "Nature Writing" scare you off.
Beginner or old hand, novelist, essayist, poet, or something else, this will be a relaxing, fun, safe space for writing, sharing stories, and exploring.

Lodging is cheap and comfortable--only $35 a night through UC Irvine's Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center, with dorm-style rooms with shared bathroom and full kitchen facilities. There are camping (tent and RV) and hotel/motel options, too. See http://theabf.org/retreat for more lodging details.


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So when's the book coming out?
book cover
I'd like to say that I spent my summer putting the finishing touches on Creating Stories That Make a Difference: Advice and Guidance for Interpretive Writers and Writing, but alas, such was not the case. We are making steady progress, just not as fast as I'd hoped. It may still be released by the end of this year, but more likely, it will be early 2015. Thanks for your patience!
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Anza-Borrego image courtesy ABF. All other content and photographs copyright � Judy Fort Brenneman. Request reprint permission through Greenfire Creative, LLC.