Writing Practice Prescription

My mantra of recent times has been, “Why pop a pill when you can get better with pen and paper?” Not always, of course, but often. Expressive and quick speed writing forces you into a state where thoughts begin to flow onto the paper–or computer screen should you write on the computer. (I do. I like to be able to read what I have written afterwards. This is not always possible when I write with pen and paper.)

I think this type of writing helps a great deal because a lot of chronic diseases or the impact of them spring from hidden distress and retained anger. Writing provides clarity that brings other options. Or as our grandmothers and mentors alway say, “Don’t get angry. Get clear.” In addition, writing things down provides an opportunity to reflect and the reconsider how to proceed.

In our WellWriting Workshops, we often hear our attendees question whether or not they could get the same emotive clarity and release through fiction writing. Today, I came across a blog post at Babblelogue that addresses that question.

The author of the post tells of a lecture she attended and then relates how a recent trip to Turkey was “bugging” her to the point that her experience of the here and now was interrupted. Then:

“As usual I began to write down my thoughts, and just allowed my pen to move across the page and spell out whatever came into my mind. As usual this activity began to bring some relief to my emotional state, and then, as sometimes happens during this process I had a real “light-bulb” moment, a sudden insight into what it was that had been bugging me. And I felt tons better from that.

But then things got even better. My imagination started to kick in, and I started to make up a story founded in my emotional mess. I found it was really easy to transfer all my stuff onto a totally made-up character, and allow her then to take up the reins for where it all might lead. Doing this also strenghtened the permission I gave myself to explore more deeply some stuff that was previously making me feel really uncomfortable. I could pretend, through the medium of my own imagination, that the things I’d been experiencing weren’t actually mine, and this made them much more accessible and acceptable to me.”

My experience echoes this. I have not written much fiction but when I have ventured into those waters, I have experienced the “watching” of my fictional character take me into places I would not have explored without her.

Try this as an exercise: take something that is nagging you and then make up a character who can stew in the same nagging juices you are feeling. What what he or she will do next by letting your pen just spill the story out. Try it. You might like it.

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I think that Babblelogue is a fun, upbeat blog. Why not take a stroll over there now and check out all more posts. To do so, click here.

Are you looking for a way to impart the knowledge you wish to pass along? Then consider writing a “mentor” book. These books take the reader on a journey where the protagonist finds a mentor who guides him or her through difficult life passages. Of interest to the fiction writer, “Meeting with the Mentor,” stage four of the Writer’s Journey, consists of the hero meeting the archetype of the Mentor. The Mentor then provides the hero with needed “supplies, knowledge, and confidence to overcome fear” for the journey ahead into unknown territory.[1]

Not so long ago, a book came in the mail with a letter from author Tom Pace, CEO of the PaceButler corporation in Edmund, OK. Tom had recently joined the National Speakers Association (NSA) and sent every member a copy of the book. I rescued the book from my “books to read” stack a few days ago and sandwiched it into my reading time.

The book is delightful because it lends itself to short reading times or you can whiz right through it in a short time at a single reading. The book follows young Tony from his days in jail as a 19-year-old through his coming of age as a budding entrepreneur. He meets his mentor, a CEO named Malcolm, while in jail and then meets him again the day after he is released from jail. Under Malcolm’s guidance, Tony learns:

• “People that have self-esteem do esteemable things.”
• “It takes a lot of energy to be angry about something. You can be right or you can be happy. Sometimes it’s better to let the little things go so that you can be happy.”
• Exercise is one of the most important things he can add to his life

A short chapter at the end of the book advises the reader how to find a mentor. The author encourages the reader by noting that, “Most successful people want to share their stories and help because they owe their success to people who helped them.”

How true. While there is no substitute for live and present mentors who are dedicated to helping you succeed, many more mentors wait for you at your local bookstore or library. Some have left this earth, but their words stay behind to offer guidance and encouragement.

You, too, can be a mentor. Have you ever had a major turning point that presented you with the choice of giving up and suffering or moving forward and overcoming the misery? If so, you have a story. When you write it out with all the details of how that turning point changed your life, you experience the healing of disclosing your pain and perhaps your long-held secrets. When you write the details of the journey you took to overcome the pain and distress of the turning point, you lay the groundwork to help others achieve relief and success in their own lives. Detail who helped you along the way. Then you can fictionalize your experience by writing about a mentor (you) who then helps another who suffers what happened to you.

When it’s all done, you may even have what publishers call a “pass-along” book. These books are bought in quantity for “passing the book on” to friends, family, and clients.

Did Tom Pace, in his book Mentor, The Kid & the CEO, believe that he wrote a “pass-along” book? I suspect so, because the letter he sent with the book ends with an amazing postscript: “I also want to extend you a personal guarantee; which is if you read my book and believe it to be a waste of your time, then I will personally give you $100.”

Tom won’t be sending this reader the $100.

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Notes:

1. Christopher Vogler: The Writer’s Journey, Mythic structure for writers.

Did you know that there’s more than one type of editor available to you for your nonfiction book writing? Indeed, six types of editors dot the landscape of nonfiction writing according to Barbara McNichol (pictured right).

Barbara, in a recent interview on the Laura Benjamin radio show, describes how each of these types of editors differ and offers tips on finding the right editor for you and your project. To listen to this 30 minute show, download the mp3 by clicking below.

Medical students often begin their training full of idealism and hope. Keeping that idealism intact while absorbing tons of facts and technical skills challenges both them and their teachers in medical school.

Now a new descriptive study on the use of reflective writing suggests that hope lies in the use of reflective writing at various stages in their career. The study, Reflective Writing in the Competency-Based Curriculum at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, by J Harry Isaacson, MD; Renee Salas; Carl Koch; Margaret McKenzie, MD can be found in the Spring Issue of The Permanente Journal.

The authors of the study conclude in part, “Our experience thus far suggests that creating an environment that fosters reflective practice is vital for the personal and professional development of medical students. Reflective writing is a key way to stimulate and further develop this skill set.”

To read the entire article, click here.

This past Thursday, on April 24, 2008, ten attendees came to the Creekside Communications Seminar on WellWriting: Seeking Wellness, Story by Story. Feedback in the evaluation forms turned in at the end of the day reflects the success of the group and their participation.

Feedback highlights included comments such as “I learned that…”

• “Writing is healing for the soul.”
• “That I have a story to tell, and I can write.”
• “Making the commitment to writing will help me organize and express years and years of ‘people experiences.’ The impact of today will keep me motivated.”

and

• “I am now truly ready to compile my poems and writing to give testimony to my life struggle, loneliness, and finally coming into the light of ‘power, love, and a sound mind.’”
• “I am enthusiastic about my own experiences and wish to share those with others.”
• “That suffering comes in many forms but that writing is a perfect method to come to terms with your struggle and then perhaps find meaning [in it].

The goal of this course and our work is to encourage attendees to develop and maintain an ongoing personal writing practice for better health, well-being, and productivity. Toward that end, Creekside Communications will be offering future courses for newcomers and past attendees. Stay tuned for future information concerning course dates and times.

Five Simple Techniques for Surviving Information Overload

Productivity Consultant Shows You How to Find Anything in Your Office in 5 Seconds–Guarantees Results

In spite of the promise of the “paperless office,” studies predict there will be 50% more paper in offices by the end of 2005 than there was in 1995. Only 10% of the people in a recent survey by University of Washington School of Information were happy with the way they handled electronic information. Research shows the average worker spends 150 hours per year looking for misplaced information, but 80% of what we keep we never use.

If you’ve tried to organize your desk in the past, but it didn’t last, consider these tips from Elizabeth Hagen, CPO® to eliminate clutter, reduce stress, and increase results:

Take everything off your desk except what you must do.

Today’s mail is tomorrow’s pile. Put everything else you can’t throw away in boxes to deal with later. Create a new system to eliminate future messes – then you can deal with the past.

Clutter is Postponed Decisions®! Implement The FAT System

1. File it in a reference file or electronic folder in case you need it later.
2. Act on it immediately or in the near future.
3. Toss, recycle, or shred it.

Get The Magic 6™ tools for your desk to implement your decisions and eliminate unnecessary paper

1. Wastebasket/recycle bin/shredder
2. Sorting trays on your desk for In, Out, and File.
3. Rolodex or electronic database for contact information
4. Calendar/electronic planner for appointments
5. File drawer or box for Action Files – things to do
6. File drawers or boxes for Reference Files – papers you want to keep

Organize your Action Files to prioritize your work and manage your time

Categorize them by date (a tickler file), by category of action (Date Entry), or by project name.

Create an Index for your Reference Files

A filing software program, such as Taming the Paper Tiger, creates a file index, prints labels, and allows you to cross reference files. You can also do a “Google search” for the paper files as well as electronic files in your own office.

An organizing service offered by Hagen called The 8-Hour Miracle™ guarantees three results: (1) you will know what to do with every piece of information from that day forward, (2) you will be able to find anything you file in five seconds, and (3) you will have a game plan for integrating whatever you didn’t handle during the eight hours into the new system.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

About the Author:

Elizabeth Hagen is a dynamic and inspiring productivity expert and speaker who has motivated thousands to take action and get organized. She is President of ElizabethHagen.com and works with overwhelmed people to help them get focused, organized, and more productive. Her newest book and manual “Organize with Confidence” will change your life! Subscribe to Elizabeth’s free ezine “Extraordinary Results” at http://www.ElizabethHagen.com and receive the “31 Tips to Simplify Your Life” as her gift to you.

Forgetting Too Many Things?

13 Tips for Getting Organized and Staying Focused!

A new book by Martha Weinman Lear, entitled “Where Did I Leave My Glasses?” addresses the increasingly distressful (to many of us!) issue of memory loss. Fortunately, she puts the issue in a more positive light and refers to our forgetfulness as “nature’s priority filing system!” Two of her key recommendations for improving ones memory are “Get Organized” and “Concentrate More.”

Elizabeth Hagen, CPO®, couldn’t agree more! Ms. Hagen offers the following tips.

For eliminating physical clutter:

1. Place an easily accessible “Give Away” box on each level of your home or office.
2. Continually ask yourself, “What is the worst possible thing that would happen if I didn’t have this.” If you can live with your answer, put it in the “Give Away” box.
3. Encourage those around you to do the same!
4. As soon as the box is full, take it to the nearest donation center.
5. Continue the process.

For eliminating mental clutter:

1. Use 3×5 index cards for writing reminders. (They’re cheaper than sticky notes, easier to process!)
2. Keep index cards in your purse, the bathroom, the bedside table, the car, beside the TV – wherever you might think of something you need or want to do.
3. Every time you think of something you should do or want to do, write it down – one item per card, so you can easily put the reminder where you need it – e.g., your calendar, your shopping list, give to your spouse, etc.

For staying focused on what really matters to you:

1. Before you leave work, or go to bed at night, identify the three most important things to accomplish the next day.
2. Implement a system to record those three things – for example, a reminder in your calendar, a note on your mirror, or a file in the middle of your desk.
3. Complete at least one item BEFORE you open your e-mail! If you can accomplish all three, even better!
4. Implement a system to remind you to return to your priorities whenever you get distracted.
5. At the end of the day, express gratitude for what you have accomplished!

Organization, like any other behavior change, is all about habits. Using some of these tips even some of the time will go a long way to make 2008 your most productive and stress-free year ever!

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

About the Author:

Elizabeth Hagen is a dynamic and inspiring productivity expert and speaker who has motivated thousands to take action and get organized. She is President of ElizabethHagen.com and works with overwhelmed people to help them get focused, organized, and more productive. Her newest book and manual “Organize with Confidence” will change your life! Subscribe to Elizabeth’s free ezine “Extraordinary Results” at http://www.ElizabethHagen.com and receive the “31 Tips to Simplify Your Life” as her gift to you.

Seven writers gathered at Cameron’s Pub and Inn to attend our April 19th, 2008 WellWriting Workshop: Seeking Wellness–Story by Story. At the end of the day, the group was bonded, happy, and pleased with their day. Each participant took home their writing materials and output as well as a CD loaded with resources about developing a personal writing practice and living the writer’s life.

Highlights from feedback provided at the end of the day:

• The workshop inspired me to believe that writing is something I can do.
• I learned that I can write! I learned that I have a creative side. I learned that taking time out to explore writing was well worth it!
• There are many niches in the writing world and there is a place for your writing—whether it’s private/personal or public.

Many of the attendees noted they had learned to appreciate how valuable a personal writing practice can be and vowed to continue developing and maintaining a personal writing practice once home. As one attendee wrote that she hoped to use her writing to achieve “more clarity in goal-setting” as well as “better mental/spiritual well-being.”

When queried, “Would you recommend this course to a friend, client, or student?” attendees said yes and noted:

• It’s a great way to treat oneself to some creative, personal growth with kindred spirits.
• The group forum/feedback was especially powerful.
• Great opportunity to “dive in” to writing in a safe, comfortable, and relaxed atmosphere (not a “classroom”).
• Recommend (the course) for anyone interested in furthering a writing career, or using writing as therapy.

Did you miss the class? Not to worry. The same workshop will be offered this coming Thursday, April 24th. To learn more about the upcoming seminar or to register for it online, click here.

One of 40 contributors to the just released book, Voices of Alcoholism: The Healing Companion: Stories for Courage, Comfort and Strength, is writing buddy Kim Mallin, MD. The book’s publisher, LaChance Publishing, is donating 100% of profits from the sale of its Voices Of series to The Healing Project (www.thehealingproject.org), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the education and support of those living with chronic and life-threatening diseases.

Kim and I met at the Maui Writers Conference a few years back. She is a family practice doc with heart and courage. Most of her writing work focuses on fiction, but she does not hold back her pen when a chance to help others by advocating comes along. A recovering alcoholic, Dr. Mallin captures her ownership of her problem with these encouraging words: “Gifts don’t always come in pretty packages, tied up with big colorful bows. Sometimes they don’t even look like gifts at the time. Sometimes they look like the worst things that could possibly happen, and only with the passage of time does the gift becomes apparent…such was the case with my alcoholism.”

Her contribution to this important book serves as a good example of “bibliotherapy” through memoir writing. The basic concept of bibliotherapy is that reading can be a healing experience.

Click here to review the Press Release for this book.

Leon and I were in the same writing retreat group with David Fryxell a few years back at the Maui Writers Conference. Since that time our group stays loosely in touch. What a joy to get Leon’s email a few days back in which he reported:

“Hot off the Press: ZigZag Pass: Love and War, is a memoir of my experience as a teenage soldier in combat in the Philippines during World War II and, subsequently, with the Army of Occupation in Japan. Interwoven throughout the book is a love story. After returning home, as soon as I turned 21, Florence, the girl I left behind, became my partner, lover, inspiration, and wife of 62 years.”

Leon was kind enough to send some info from the back cover of his forthcoming book:

An Endearing Love Story that Blossoms during World War II

A compelling account of a young infantryman’s experiences in combat in the South Pacific during World War II. His later work as a combat medic provides insight into what was and still is one of the most difficult and dangerous jobs in war. Readers also will find interesting the story of his boyhood days on an Indiana farm and his return to ‘the girl he left behind’ at war’s end.

–Dick Stodghill, author of Normandy 1944

I loved reading ZigZag Pass. It was great! I related to so much of it.

Peter Thomas, Oscar-winning radio and TV narrator

I finished your memoir … It is terrific! I wish I had learned WW2 history in that way. … ZigZag Pass definitely will appeal to teens. If I were an 11th or 12th grade history teacher, I would use your book as required reading.

Jane Kiester, author of books for children and youth

Your memoir is superb, a wonderful balance of history/fact and personal story that brought tear, laughter and learning for this reader. … This is … a real gift to those of us who didn’t live thru any of those horrors and only knew as teenagers ourselves through history courses, dry with dates and numbers.

Estelle Rauch

Apart from this work, I have not seen such a mix of solid history and first-hand experience. I do like it.

Tony Arnold

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Leon Hesser, semi-retired State Department Foreign Service Officer, is the award-winning author of nonfiction books, including the best-selling biography of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Norman Borlaug: The Man Who Fed the World. Learn more about Leon and his book by clicking here:

www.zigzagpass.com

Bavender House Press
P.O. Box 770883 www.bavenderhouse.com Naples, FL 34107-0883