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- First drafts: allowing the worm to navigate the soils of your mind
- The boy whose butter I ate: writing from the inside out
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- It’s an anxious job, pulling out of the comfort zone
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Tag Archives: Memoir
Writing isn’t just about having an idea – you have to know what to do with it
I’m sitting at the bar of a coffeeshop in Amsterdam, scribbling away. A man, standing next to me, gestures at my notebook and says: what do you write? I’m actually writing about my notebook, I tell him. Some people who … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Travel
Tagged Creative writing, editing, Fiction, Gabriela Blandy, how to write, Memoir, short story, travelling, Writer's block, Writing, writing advice, Writing process
18 Comments
That tightrope moment in writing when stories either plummet or remain
Any story that’s going to be any good is usually going to change. I’ve been reading Alice Munro again. There was a point when I suddenly became afraid of the day I’d read all her stories and no more were … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged Alice Munro, Creative writing, editing, Fiction, Gabriela Blandy, how to write, Memoir, Review, short story, Writing, writing advice
25 Comments
Write of things you love
Three years ago, I spent a week in Shropshire and finally began to write of things I loved. These were memories of the farm I grew up on. For years, they’d been fidgeting as I sat down to work on … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged Arvon, Creative writing, editing, Fiction, Gabriela Blandy, how to write, Memoir, The Hurst, Writing, writing advice, Writing process
48 Comments
Balls, heartbreak and the real Jane Austen
The fire throws its warmth across the room and one of the guests has stretched out on the sofa to sleep. Though Miss Bingley has a book in her lap her attention is on Darcy as he reads his own. … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged Ball, Book, Catherine Morland, Darcy, Gabriela Blandy, Jane Austen, Jane Austen £10, Love, Memoir, Northanger Abbey, Pride And Prejudice, truth, Writing
25 Comments
The conundrum of being ourselves
During my second term at drama school, we had to face Shakespeare. All the students were frantic as agents from the RSC would be in the audience, scouting for new talent. There were tears after rehearsals. The toilets stank with … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged Acting, advice, drama school, Gabriela Blandy, How to be yourself, Lifestyle, Memoir, Performing Arts, Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare, truth, Writing
44 Comments
The wisdom of funk and soul, baby
The day before my fifteenth birthday, I’m on the bank of a river, attempting to have sex with a boy I hardly know. He’s a year older and would be the first person who came to mind if I heard … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged Facebook, Gabriela Blandy, Lifestyle, Memoir, Mostly Jazz Funk and Soul Festival, Social Networking, writing advice
45 Comments
What’s the problem with being up a mountain with no phone signal or orienteering skills?
It has begun to rain. The wind comes in cycles – building, building – so that at its peak my body wobbles and I contemplate the steepness below me: images of tumbling headfirst down lumps and bumps, through sharp grass. … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir, Travel
Tagged Adventure, advice, fear, Feeling, Gabriela, Gabriela Blandy, Health, How to, Laurence Sterne, Memoir, North Wales, Thought, travelling, truth, Wales, Writing, writing advice, Writing process
31 Comments
Worry – what’s the worst thing you can imagine?
The year I turned eleven, I joined all-girl choir that my music teacher ran. It was called The Julia Singers. We met once a week for rehearsals and, each term, put on a show. There’d be a tea party beforehand … Continue reading
Posted in Essay, Memoir
Tagged advice, Apprehension, Autobiography, comfort, fear, Fear of Public Speaking, Gabriela Blandy, Memoir, nerves, Public speaking, stagefright, worry, Writing
53 Comments
Don’t let fear keep you tied up
My trip is over. It’s hard to return from travelling, shifting from spontaneous movement back into a more fixed routine. But it’s a treat to know how much I’ve been missed. Thank you followers for all your wonderful messages! … Continue reading
Posted in Memoir, Travel
Tagged Adventure, Alice Munro, Brazil, Canada, Creative writing, Gabriela Blandy, how to write, Lake Huron, life, Memoir, New York, Photography, Travel, Workshops, Writers Resources, Writing process
49 Comments
It’s an anxious job, pulling out of the comfort zone
I’m in the bedroom, packing – two days until my flight. I’m filling with familiar sensations. As my body is about to be relocated, it grips the life I’ve been living and through this act I see everything close up: … Continue reading
Gabriela Blandy - The sense of a journey 