ClarityWorks Inc

Newsletter for Writers - January 2014  

UpcomingEventsBLOG: A Woman's Way with Words

 

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A Woman's Way with Words


Writing Lake Logan

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From the Book


Pennebaker believes the
translation of emotions into
language creates the
health benefit.

Through language, we
organize our experiences
into coherent stories, giving
them form and making
them easier to deal with.

Writing makes the
incomprehensible meaningful,
moves us toward understanding
and resolution, and in
the process releases
stored emotions and
promotes healing in
the bodymind.





Peggy Tabor Millin's
Women, Writing, and Soul-Making: Creativity and the Sacred Feminine


RemindersFromPeggyPeggy's Monthly Reminder


Practice Makes Possible

Writing Fearless
Practice. Practice. Practice.

Process before product.

Writing requires silence, solitude, space, and the courage and awareness to search our shadow side.

Write from the belly, not the brain; write from the heart, not the head.

The body with its intuition and our willingness to listen to what the body says are our greatest assets as writers.

Writing and publishing are not the same thing. If we write, we are writers. If we publish what we write, we are published writers. A published writer is not a better writer. A published writer is simply a writer who is published.


-Peggy Tabor Millin
excerpts from

Women, Writing, and Soul-Making

WWS-M Kindle Edition

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Upcoming Events

For the latest updates
and events, visit
Peggy's Calendar of Events.

Dates for 2014
retreats updated regularly.

Stay tuned for registration
information and updates.

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ClarityWorks participant blogs & retreat anthologies
Cheryl Dietrich

Ginger Graziano

Karen Lauritzen

Martha McMullen

Follow this link to
read anthologies of retreat
participants on the
Clarityworks website.
 

Wordly Wise from Peggy Tabor Millin
Postcard Poetry
 
Betsy Fletcher, a retreat participant, first suggested Peggy Tabor Millin postcard poetry to me. She had learned the exercise at a workshop with Sarah Zale, a poet on the Olympic Peninsula. Betsy and her friend, Kathy Sievert, had exchanged postcard poems over miles and months and felt both challenged and excited by the process.

I invited everyone at last November's seven-day retreat to bring picture postcards from home. We paired up so each of us had a writing partner. Our task was to write a poem on the message portion of the postcard and give it to our partner, one a day during the retreat.

Moans of "I can't write poetry" arose from some until I suggested they think of a poem as an observation, something they experienced with the senses. It could be from a memory or something in the moment outside the window: The neighbor's black cat sleeps in a circle of sun. Only his tail twitches when a squirrel runs by. Nothing fancy, just an image. That's enough. A moment is noted and captured concisely. By the end of the week, everyone enjoyed the exchange of poems.

A month or so after the retreat, I decided I wanted a poetry book by Ted Kooser (US Poet Laureate, 2004-2006; Pulitzer Prize 2005 for Delights and Shadows). In making my choice I discovered his book entitled Winter Morning Walks: 100 Postcards to Jim Harrison. In the preface, Kooser explains that after completing treatment for cancer:"...I began taking a two-mile walk each morning. I'd been told by my radiation oncologist to stay out of the sun for a year because of skin sensitivity, so I exercised before dawn.... I'd all but given up on reading and writing. Then as autumn began to fade and winter came on, my health began to improve. One morning in November, following my walk, I surprised myself by trying my hand at a poem. Soon I was writing every day." Kooser began pasting his morning poems on postcards and sending them to his friend, Jim Harrison, with whom he'd earlier corresponded in haiku.

The idea that there could be an entire book of postcard poems delighted me. I bought the book and suggest you might want to do the same. Here's a sample from Kooser:

March 8: Thirty degrees and heavy snow

The only sound against this stillness:
A crow flaps through our Norway pines,
its wingtips brushing snowflakes from the needles.

You don't need to match Kooser to do this exercise (remember, he has had years of practice!). You needn't buy postcards or exchange poems with a friend, though doing so might keep you writing. I think I will send mine to you via Facebook. You can return the favor, if you like!

Keep writing!

Peggy
Submissions Invited from Lake Logan and Seabrook Alumni
Alumni from Lake Logan and Seabrook retreats are invited to submit wisdom, humor, and "slice of life" writings created in the retreat circles since 2001. This is your chance to share with the world the magic that happens in the Centered Writing Practice process and the words we craft to express our internal truths and feelings. These may be in the form of poems; short, short stories; flash fiction; or personal memories that leapt from your pen on to the pages.

For further information, contact Kathleen Boswell at [email protected] or Vickie Manz at [email protected].   Please put "Sunburst First Book Committee" in the subject line of your email.
 Books to Explore
Island Healing by Virginia McCullough,
 first in the St. Anne's Island series

Island Healing is an enjoyable relaxed read. Great for the beach, a plane ride, or a wintry eve on the sofa. The characters are well drawn and their family relationships realistically problematic. I always look for a strong sense of place, and this book meets my guidelines with the backdrop of a Georgia sea island (think St. Simon's).  The author's knowledge of sailboats and sailing adds interest  to the plot. The second book in this series, Island Secrets, is coming out soon, so pick this up now.

Virginia McCullough is a friend, fellow writer, writing teacher, and editor. She was one of the six-member wriring critique group that I belonged to in Asheville. Born in Chicago and raised by parents who revered both facts and fiction, it's no accident that Virginia has enjoyed a long career as an independent writer, first of nonfiction, and now as a novelist. As a ghostwriter/coauthor she has written over 100 books and edited many more. She and her clients have worked with major publishers, from Simon Schuster to Warner Books to McGraw Hill. Learn more about Virginia and her writing at www.virginiamccullough.com.

NCnewsCalls for Submision

Calls for Submission
Glimmer Train's Very Short Fiction Award closes January 31st, 2014. First place wins $1500 and publication in Glimmer Train. Read more and submission guidelines at Glimmer Train's website.

A Room Of Her Own Foundation is accepting submission for the Orlando Prizes. Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Los Angeles Review are given twice yearly for a poem, a short story, a short short story, and an essay by women writers. Submit a poem of no more than 36 lines, a short story of up to 1,500 words, a short short story of up to 500 words, or an essay of up to 1,500 words with a $15 entry fee by January 31. Visit www.aroho.org for complete guidelines.

NCnewsNC News for Writers

Pen-Journal
The Great Smokies Writing Program has released its schedule of Spring 2014 courses. Courses are available for writers of all levels and in a variety of genres. Classes will be held in Asheville, Hendersonville, and Burnsville. Click here to see a complete course list and for registration information.

North Carolina Writer's Network is accepting submissions for the 2014 Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize. A prize  of $1,000 is given annually for a short story. The winning story is considered for publication in Thomas Wolfe Review. Submit two copies of a story of up to 12 pages with a $25 entry fee ($15 for NCWN members) by January 30. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

The Doris Betts Fiction Prize is open for submissions. The deadline for submission is February 15th. Entrants should submit unpublished short stories up to 6,000 words. The first-prize winner is awarded $250 and publication in the North Carolina Literary Review. For submission guidelines click here.
 
ClarityWorks Participant Spotlight: Vickie Meyer-Manz
ClarityWorks Prompt May 24, 2012
"Wiggle Worm"  30 minutes.

Brittany had tried every possible escape route; there were no more choices.  For the moment she was safe.  Biting her upper lip she closed her eyes and willed herself not to move.

Tight against her chest lay Freckles her large tabby cat and constant companion.  He was restless in this dark cramped space beneath the stairs.  She whispered, "Stop being such a wiggle worm." He only grew more restless.

Suddenly there was the sound of someone running across the polished wooden floors outside her tiny space of safety.  Then the voice, she knew it well, its icy tone so threatening as it called out  "Brittany, Brittany, where are you?  I'm not going to hurt you. Everything is okay. Where are you?" She could hear the emptiness of the words, their meaning so different from the truth that lay hidden behind them.  

Freckles pushed harder against her chest letting out a loud meow. Brittany froze.  The calling of her name ceased, the running abruptly stopped everything seemed suspended. Then the voice called out, "Here Freckles, here Freckles. Come and get your dinner."

Her nostrils picked up the sudden smell of fish.  There was nothing she could do, Freckles began to scratch and claw his way to freedom as he let out with a loud squeal more pronounced as it echoed off the small enclosure.  

Slowly so slowly the door began to open.  She raised her hands to block out the blinding light releasing Freckles as she did; he was gone in a flash.  She sucked in her breath gasping; a rush of fresh air surged through her tiny sore body. The light disappeared as he filled the door.  Too large to enter but easily able to access its contents - her!

The familiar rough hand with the broken fingernails, dirty as if never washed, reached into the space beneath the stairs and found its mark.  It tightened upon its target; surprisingly it didn't seem to be in a hurry.  It touched her hair moving down to her face heading for...

Instinctively Brittany caught this weapon in her mouth and bit down with all her might, tasting blood as she felt the powerful slap as the hand tore loose from her mouth.   The hand now encircled her tiny neck and she knew it was over, all over at last.  There was a moment just before she lost consciousness when she thought she heard her name called once again. This voice was soft and loving but too far away.
___________________   

After a successful career in real estate development, Vickie is now pursuing her passion for writing.  She is currently at work on her first children's novel.  She divides her time between Bonita Springs, Florida and Waynesville, NC.  She and her husband have two sons and two granddaughters.
Send it in!

We would love to feature something you have written to a prompt. Send it in and enjoy seeing your words published in the newsletter! Just email: [email protected]

 

And the Kudos Go To... 

...Maggie Wynne, whose book Homeward is now available in paperback and ebook. Maggie WynneHomeward is based upon the life of Maggie's grandmother, Esther, who as the daughter of American missionaries, lived in Brazil until age 12. She then left her family to pursue her education in Virginia. Maggie wrote much of her book in ClarityWorks classes and retreats. Publishing Homeward was a collaborative process, with  Ginger Graziano contributing to the design and layout of the book and Peggy serving as editor. Homeward can be purchased at Amazon.

 Maggie, her husband, and two dogs divide their time among Raleigh, Wrightsville Beach, and Montreat, North Carolina.








...Alice Owens Johnson
whose poem "Canebrake" has been selected as a finalist for the Alice Owens Johnson 2013 Rash Awards in Fiction and Poetry. See the complete list of finalists here. Alice's poem "Clothesline" is currently featured in the new issue of Kakalak.

Alice lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina and has participated in Clarityworks classes and retreats.


...Deb Cantrell whose story "My Last Beauty Pageant" will air on the January 14 episode of Tales from the South. Learn more about Tales from the South and program schedules here.

Deb lives in Brentwood, Tennessee and has attended ClarityWorks retreats at Lake Logan.  






ClarityWorks enjoys celebrating the accomplishments of writers who have attended our classes, retreats and workshops. We want to share your writing success with our ClarityWorks' community! Send Peggy a "kudos" note at [email protected].


Thank you for sharing!
 

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Peggy Tabor Millin, MA

ClarityWorks, Inc. - PO Box 9803 - Asheville, NC 28815 - (828) 298-3863 www.clarityworksonline.com - [email protected]  

  

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