#1000wordsofsummer begins June 4. Here is an explainer. Prepping suggestions are here. Information on the slack is here. Hi friends. I write this on day two of jet lag, so forgive me if I sound overly sincere, but I feel lucky I can say these things to you.
Lily Tomlin & Jane Fonda stand in a supermarket, trying to buy a pack of cigarettes. They are ignored — invisible because they’re old. Back in the car, Ms. Tomlin lights up a stolen cigarette. “We have a superpower. You can’t see me? You can’t stop me!” (Grace and Frankie, Netflix)
Wonderful movement: hair in wind, hooves beating the ground, the ladies have it. Two quotes inspire me in my writing: Te-Nehisi Coates: "...so much of this journey of writing is really the willingness to actually do it. To just put one foot in front of the other even when it feels like you're walking in the dark. And that's a hard thing." Then when I need reminding that nothing is wasted: Samuel Beckett: "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail Better." and from the dancer Karole Armitage: "Seek beauty. Show mutability. Move like a blaze of consciousness. Perfection is the devil. Express the eroticism of gravity."
I think writing with jet lag works for you. This is one of the most heartening and inspirational messages I've read. No hype, no dogmatic cheerleading, just straight from-the-heart, touching experience.
May 15, 2022·edited May 15, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg
I actually said to myself the other day that I had written a sentence that had been in me, being thought again and again, waiting to be written all my life. Like, this is what my whole life has been for: to write. So, I guess that’s my rallying cry.
I tell my stories through photography. Constantly, I'm questioning whether my efforts have value if no one sees or appreciates my images. Thank you for reminding me to be true to the story-telling power within me.
“How to Triumph Like a Girl” is one of the many, many tabs open in my browser. Thank you for redirecting me to it! Can’t wait for #1000wordsofsummer. I am ready this time.
Jami, I appreciate your encouragement and your optimism and that you've created this container/process/space to help others get their stories out. I have a story that's been clawing me up on the inside, trying so hard to get out. But I've pushed it down with fear and busyness. June 4th, though, I'm gonna sit at this keyboard and open the door. I'm both terrified and exhilarated to see what comes through it.
After I choose my inspirational writing piece, I'm going to record snippets of Jami's inspiring words on my phone to play back. I figure if I do that enough, I'll drown out that inner critic once and for all!
I have just found my song. Coincidentally I was talking to a friend about how this isn’t the time for me to adopt a dog (my mom’s personality disorder wouldn’t agree with it, it barely agrees with me), because I have caregiving and this book to finish first, and the book feels very feminist and woman-oriented (practically no men with important roles in it, for good reasons) so I feel rather militant about having neither a dog or a romantic relationship (especially not with a man) in my life right now. This clip from Dog Days Are Over really hit me as inspiring and as a rally cry today!
Thank you for this! That is a tremendous poem. Thank you for sharing.
I love Mary Oliver's "Wild Geese" and "The Summer Day" to help ground me when I feel far-flung.
Lily Tomlin & Jane Fonda stand in a supermarket, trying to buy a pack of cigarettes. They are ignored — invisible because they’re old. Back in the car, Ms. Tomlin lights up a stolen cigarette. “We have a superpower. You can’t see me? You can’t stop me!” (Grace and Frankie, Netflix)
I've always liked Seamus Heaney's "Digging"-- https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47555/digging
Wonderful movement: hair in wind, hooves beating the ground, the ladies have it. Two quotes inspire me in my writing: Te-Nehisi Coates: "...so much of this journey of writing is really the willingness to actually do it. To just put one foot in front of the other even when it feels like you're walking in the dark. And that's a hard thing." Then when I need reminding that nothing is wasted: Samuel Beckett: "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail Better." and from the dancer Karole Armitage: "Seek beauty. Show mutability. Move like a blaze of consciousness. Perfection is the devil. Express the eroticism of gravity."
Your posts are always so kind. Thank you for that.
I think writing with jet lag works for you. This is one of the most heartening and inspirational messages I've read. No hype, no dogmatic cheerleading, just straight from-the-heart, touching experience.
I actually said to myself the other day that I had written a sentence that had been in me, being thought again and again, waiting to be written all my life. Like, this is what my whole life has been for: to write. So, I guess that’s my rallying cry.
I tell my stories through photography. Constantly, I'm questioning whether my efforts have value if no one sees or appreciates my images. Thank you for reminding me to be true to the story-telling power within me.
Oh I love that poem and to hear her reading it perfection! Thanks for the pep talk! we can do this yes we can!
“How to Triumph Like a Girl” is one of the many, many tabs open in my browser. Thank you for redirecting me to it! Can’t wait for #1000wordsofsummer. I am ready this time.
Thank you for posting the link to that poem, which I didn't now. it gave me chills.
Jami, I appreciate your encouragement and your optimism and that you've created this container/process/space to help others get their stories out. I have a story that's been clawing me up on the inside, trying so hard to get out. But I've pushed it down with fear and busyness. June 4th, though, I'm gonna sit at this keyboard and open the door. I'm both terrified and exhilarated to see what comes through it.
After I choose my inspirational writing piece, I'm going to record snippets of Jami's inspiring words on my phone to play back. I figure if I do that enough, I'll drown out that inner critic once and for all!
I have just found my song. Coincidentally I was talking to a friend about how this isn’t the time for me to adopt a dog (my mom’s personality disorder wouldn’t agree with it, it barely agrees with me), because I have caregiving and this book to finish first, and the book feels very feminist and woman-oriented (practically no men with important roles in it, for good reasons) so I feel rather militant about having neither a dog or a romantic relationship (especially not with a man) in my life right now. This clip from Dog Days Are Over really hit me as inspiring and as a rally cry today!
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxmasLZc7j3u-KhsBXh_upIuN5n_lUXv8X