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Newsletter for Writers - March 2014
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 Upcoming Retreat |
Registration opens
April 1, 2014
August 1-3, 2014
Zen Mind, Writer's Mind
Great Tree Zen Temple
Alexander, North Carolina
More information here. |
| BLOG: A Woman's Way with Words |
Read the latest from Peggy
at her blog
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Keep the pen moving!
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Have you joined our prompt writing community yet? Sign up is quick, easy and free!
Peggy's Practice Makes Possible™ Writing prompts can be delivered automatically to your inbox five days a week, and always with an inspiring quote for the day. Since you're already a newsletter subscriber, just send an email to
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Peggy's Monthly Reminder
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Practice Makes Possible  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 Millinexcerpts from Women, Writing, and Soul-Making |
| Likeable Links | 
The North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame celebrates and promotes the state's rich literary heritage by commemorating its leading authors and encouraging the continued flourishing of great literature. It is more than a museum housing photographs and archives. Working closely with libraries and schools, the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame honors North Carolina writers through programs, services, and opportunities for children and adults.
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| Picture Prompt |
Ready. Set. Write!
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Upcoming Events
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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.
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| Wordly Wise from Peggy Tabor Millin | When Women Gather in a Circle...
...for a common purpose the circle is sacred.
And so it was when eight women gathered at Lake Logan retreat center in Canton, NC, On March 10, to bring alive their vision of an anthology of women's words. The vision was born by seven of those present (excluding me) at the fall, 2013 Lake Logan retreat. They asked what I thought of publishing a collection of writing done by alumni of ten or more years worth of seven-day retreats at Lake Logan  and Seabrook. They were inspired by the quality of the writing they heard each time they entered a writing circle, whether at a retreat, class, or workshop. They wanted others to know and understand the process of Centered Writing Practice by reading the products.
I thought this a great idea but knew I could not take on the responsibility. I needn't have worried. They announced that they would see the project through from start to finish and intended to donate any profit to ClarityWorks.
In early 2014 I received an invitation to a planning retreat to be held at Lake Logan to accommodate me following my recent surgery. I was well taken care of!
Before the planning retreat began, Alicia Porterfield agreed to facilitate and sent out an agenda for approval. By the time we gathered by the fireplace in Sunburst Cabin, we were ready to work. And work we did. Alicia suggested two groups of four, one to discuss the process for selecting pieces from those submitted and one to discuss what was known about publishing. We then met as a large group to share and discuss our information. I don't think I have ever worked with a committee, especially not for two full and consecutive days, that worked so smoothly and well, keeping the vision in view.
Once it was determined that the anthology would be a companion book for Women, Writing and Soul-Making, the name for the volume arose from a quick brain-storming: Writing in Circles: The Process of Soul-Making--hopefully Volume I of several.
 The Sunburst #1 Book Committee is all volunteer and contributors to the book are asked to give $50 toward publication. Still the project needs further financial support to print and promote the book. The committee members are aware that not everyone received the letters requesting submissions and that there was some confusion over what could be submitted and when. Still, they had roughly a 125 entries from nearly forty contributors for this first book. A second volume is already being planned.
But first we ask that you Join the Vision by contributing to Volume I of Writing in Circles: The Process of Soul-Making.
Besides contributing to the funding of the project, you may have expertise to volunteer such as in marketing and promotion, especially online. The circle sustains us, whether we submitted a piece or not. Once Writing in Circles is published, all of us will have the opportunity to promote to friends and family and by creating "buzz" on blogs, newsletters, forums, and networking sites.
Let's see what a circle of committed writing women can achieve.
Keep writing!
Peggy
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Books to Explore
| | The Star of Istanbul by Robert Olen Butler
-- a superbly written adventure by a literary master. The  language and descriptions absolutely soar. The story takes place during World War I before US involvement.
Protagonist Christopher Marlowe Cobb is a war correspondent and American spy who boards the Lusitania on its final, fatal journey to Europe. A truly great read.
Robert Olen Butler is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of fourteen novels, six story collections, and a book on the creative process, From Where You Dream. The Star of Istanbul is his second novel featuring Christopher Marlowe Cobb. He teaches creative writing at Florida State University
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Calls for Submision
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Narrative Magazine is now accepting submissions for its Winter 2014 Story Contest. Narrative is looking for for short shorts, short stories, essays, memoirs, photo essays, graphic stories, all forms of literary nonfiction, and excerpts from longer works of both fiction and nonfiction. Entries must be previously unpublished, no longer than 15,000 words, and must not have been previously chosen as a winner, finalist, or honorable mention in another contest. Deadline for submission is March 31, 2014. Read complete submission guidelines here. Glimmer Train is now accepting submission for its Family Matters contest. We are looking for stories about families of all configurations. It's fine to draw heavily on real life experiences, but the work must read like fiction and all stories accepted for publication will be presented as fiction. Maximum word count: 12,000. Any shorter lengths are welcome. First place wins $1500 and publication in Glimmer Train Short Stories. More information at Glimmer Train's website.Writer's Relief is an author's submission service that helps creative writers get published by targeting their poems, essays, short stories, and books to the best-suited literary agents or editors of literary journals. Learn more about Writer's Relief and the services offered at their website.
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NC News for Writers
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The North Carolina Writer's Network Spring Conference 2014 is taking place Saturday, April 12, 2014 at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. The North Carolina Writers' Network and the Creative Writing Program at UNC Greensboro bring you a full day of workshops, panels, conversations, and more. This year's Spring Conference again will be in UNCG's MHRA Building, on the corner of Spring Garden and Forest Streets, offering classes and panel discussions on the craft and business of writing and publishing. Learn more at the NC Writer's website.Tracey Schmidt is teaching Poetry and Photography as  Witness, a five-day course, at the John C. Campbell Folk School April 27--May 2. Information and registration here.Tracey is also participating in a very special program with Paulus Berensohn. March 30 from 3--5 pm Paulus Berensohn recites the work of his friends Mary Oliver and M.C. Richards and Tracey Schmidt recites Rumi, Hafiz, Kabir, Yeats, and her own work. Set to wonderful local music by Chris Rosser of Free Planet Radio. This program is hosted by the Black Mountain College Museum. Tickets available at www.blackmountaincollege.orgThe Smoky Blue Review (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute of UNCA) is accepting fiction, art, photography, and non-fiction. Visit www.smokybluereview.com for complete submission guidelines. The contact person is Steve Wechselblatt at 828-484-9705 or wechsel4@aol.com. The Smoky Blue Review is edited by John Himmelheber. The Flatiron Writers present "From Page to Podium: Reading Your Work Aloud" with Mel Ryane. Writers are often daunted by the idea of reading their work aloud, whether in a classroom situation or public presentation. This workshop will teach writers to prepare and present confident, clear public readings using the same tools employed by professional actors. This workshop is held Saturday, April 5 from 10:30--3:30 at the Pack Place Boardroom, 2 S. Pack Square, Asheville, NC 28801. For more information and registration, please visit www.flatironwriters.com
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ClarityWorks' Participant Spotlight: Kathy Sievert
| | Why I Write
Human beings have an innate need to create. Perhaps that's why we reproduce. We want to leave our mark on the world. Whether it's the child who carries our DNA or the recipe we shared with a friend or the letter we wrote to the editor, we leave evidence of our presence here on earth. Maybe that's one reason I am compelled to write. It's my graffiti, my way to let the world know I was here.
Writing is something I can do; more than that, it's something I like to do. I've always been good at it. Ever since I can remember, what I wrote--school essays, college papers, stories, poems and articles--brought me "A's", praise, and pay. Why wouldn't I love to write?
Writing is a way for me to bring clarity to the muddle of my mind. I've never been the kind of person who can say, "Hmmm...I need to think about that.", and then go about her business while considering. If I am deliberating, imagining, planning or meditating, I can't do anything else but pay attention to my thoughts. My thinking cap trumps any other activity. I have to write down my thoughts and follow the trail of my words. Writing helps me make sense of my mind's meanderings and remember what it was that seemed like such a good idea.
From a simple to-do list, to my morning pages, to an epiphany, to an interesting fragment of overheard conversation, I write everything down. It's like dusting inside my head. If I don't collect my thoughts and clear them out, pretty soon my mind is fuzzy, hazy with an accumulation of unacknowledged insights. Writing is my way to clean my mental house.
Sometimes I surprise myself and love what I have written. I feel so good when the poem or story or essay is finally out of head and heart and on the paper. It's like giving birth. Gestation takes forever and is uncomfortable and exciting, and then the labor hurts like hell, but, wow, is the outcome worth the time and effort.
I probably shouldn't fall in love with my writing. It's never as perfect as I wish it were or occasionally think it is. An editor might delete those pretty phrases or question the validity of that image or, worse, not understand what I wrote. A writing group might murmur half-hearted praise or respond to a reading with glazed expressions of boredom.
A friend might discard the poem I wrote especially for her and not treasure it forever.
Wait a second. That's not why I write. Sure, ego is part of it. I love to know that what I write may move or help, amuse or inform. That's only a part of it. I don't write to impress an audience. I write because I believed Sister Eugenia, my tenth grade English teacher, who told us: "You're all human beings. Of course, you have a story to tell. While it's a part of the universal human story, your piece is unique because it's your experience. You have a responsibility to tell your truth."
When she said that, I knew my words had purpose whether anybody read them or not. I know that I feel better when I am writing. Sometimes I feel bloated with ideas. I have to write then. If I'm lucky, I find the right words, but even when they aren't exactly right, boy, am I glad to get it all out. I can revise later.
I save what I write. There's a big plastic bin in the garage marked "Kathy's Writing" packed with neat stacks of all my published articles, my journals, and binders of stories and poetry.
I wonder what will happen when I die. Will my kids and grandchildren open the container and read each story and poem, all the scribbled journal entries, the articles about massage therapists and worm farmers, Olympic Peninsula attractions and lavender? Or will they pitch it all in the dumpster? Will it even matter?
What matters is that once I needed to say what's on those pages. They are my version of what I saw and how I lived and what I thought had meaning. Those pages are written proof that I was here, and that's enough for me.
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Kathy Sievert attended several Clarity Works retreats at Lake Logan and Seabrook. After nearly twenty years  away, she recently moved back to Anchorage, Alaska, the home of her heart. She enjoys writing, especially poetry these days, hiking, reading, photography, traveling, and spending time with her grandchildren in Alaska and Oregon. She figures these are her last years to say what she has to say, so she'd better get busy.
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Send it in!
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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: pmillin@clarityworksonline.com
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And the Kudos Go To...
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...Sharon Willen, who announces the publication of her book Not Done Yet, a compelling chronicle of the journey through liver transplant surgery. Vivid recollections and delightful anecdotes reveal the power and generosity of the human spirit. The story  contains practical recommendations for those with health challenges and models of resilience for anyone who has ever asked, "Why me?", "What now?" and "Can I handle this?" Order your copy of Not Done Yet at Amazon.
Sharon has also developed a 30 minute presentation based on this work, which speaks to the role faith and connections play in survival, the power of the human spirit to make miracles happen, and - of course - promotes organ donation. Contact Sharon at 828-890-4305 or through her website: www.sharonwillen.com.
 Sharon has attended ClarityWorks classes and lives near Asheville, North Carolina.
...Alice Owens Johnson, announces the publication of three of her pieces in The Gulf  Stream--one memoir and two poems. She is also a semi-finalist in Bethlehem Writer's Roundtable and they will publish her short story "Nuts and Bolts." Congratulations Alice!
Alice lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina, and has participated in ClarityWorks classes and retreats.
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 pmillin@clarityworksonline.com.
Thank you for sharing!
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The Gift of Creativity
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Peggy Tabor Millin, MA
ClarityWorks, Inc. - PO Box 9803 - Asheville, NC 28815 - (828) 298-3863 www.clarityworksonline.com - clarity@clarityworksonline.com
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Inspire your writing. Enrich your life.
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