open invitation no. 23: a series of three

Three is magical.

When you write in a series of three, magic is stirred. It is true. It is lyrical. It is bold. You can use a series of three by repeating sentences, phrases or words. It can add structure, cadence and meaning to your writing. I do it all the time, and I lovelovelove it.

Give it a try — a series of three — although you may want to think of it as The Magic of Three*.

*Early in my career, I heard someone refer to a series of three as “The Magic of Three,” I do wish I remembered who so I could give proper credit.

write

Open your blog and write a post. Just write.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 22: you have time

Find time.

It has been many weeks since I’ve written a blog post on my own blog. Each week I know exactly what I want to write:

A list of things to never-forget from Hannah’s graduation party
The way whimsy took over and led us to offering a win for the kids
A few lines about my writer-self
The gratitude that comes with the shift from summer to fall

Each week light and darkness, mostly light, fill my days, and before I know it the moon is high in the sky and my blog post is only written in my mind.

Find time. It’s a discipline writers must develop. There will always be one more thing tapping for attention. Let’s make time to write and share our stories with this charming community. It’s a challenge that is for me, and I hope you’ll accept it, too!

write

Open your blog and write a post. Just write.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 21: seasons change

Seasons change.

I live in a part of the world where we have four distinct seasons. Every few months the outside world changes. Colors change; sometimes things die and other times things sprout; animal rhythms shift; the sky looms and the noises of earth adjust to the new season.

The same is true for all of us: seasons change. It might not be as abrupt as trees shedding their leaves and the autumn corn fields turning harvest brown. Sometimes it is a quiet shift and a new stillness. Perhaps it is a resilient bud boldly announcing the arrival of the next leg of the journey.

If you are looking for something to write about today, consider the seasons. Perhaps you will write a “Goodbye Summer” or a “Hello Autumn” post. Use your five senses to convey the changes in seasons.

Of course, the magic of this community is you can write about anything you want — even if you haven’t written for a few weeks, even if you’ve never joined #sosmagic. I promise, the community will welcome you with wide-open arms.

write

Open your blog and write a post. Just write.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 20: just write

Just write.

It’s easy to not-write…at least it is for me. I write all day for my job; I write in a morning journal — every single morning; I write in a draft notebook; I write in a writing notebook. The thing that’s easy for me to not-write is a blog post…writing that is just for me, because I like to write.

There’s a difference between writing what needs done and writing just because. Today I need the reminder that it is okay to just write. And, I have the time to just write. We all do. Just write.

write

Open your blog and write a post. Just write.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 19: your writer self

Describe yourself as a writer.

My son Jordan is a high school sophomore and in creative writing. On his first day of school he came home with an assignment: to describe himself as a writer. “I’m halfway done,” he said.

It made me chuckle, because I wondered if he were halfway done with the assignment or halfway done with being a writer.

It wouldn’t take me long to complete the assignment: I write. That’s it. It is the basic tenet of my writer self.

I’ve been thinking about the way Jordan wrote a whole lot more than two words to describe his writer self. Perhaps it is a worthy exercise. Perhaps you want to try it. Perhaps you don’t. Either way describes a bit of your writer self.

And in the end, the important thing is to write.

write

Open your blog and write a post. It doesn’t have to be a heart stretched story…it just needs to be written…and shared.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 18: lists

Make a list.

When I’m not sure I have the capability to write, I make a list. Lists are low-pressure. Lists are forgiving. Lists are acceptable.

List of Lists to Write

  • Current Favorites
  • Gratitude List
  • This I Know
  • Things I Wonder
  • Recent Small Moments

List Tips

  • Be specific…write the tiny details.
  • Don’t worry about the order.
  • Italicize. And then write a little more before moving to the next item.
  • Tell yourself a list is a worthy thing to write.

Be a little “listy,” and you will find the joy that comes from writing is right there waiting for you (even when it feels like writing is too much to do).

write

Open your blog and write a post. It doesn’t have to be a heart stretched story…it just needs to be written…and shared.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 17: have fun

Write for the fun of it.

There are many reasons to write. Today, write for the fun of it. Writing is fun. Let the words wiggle and make something just because making stuff is fun. Write everything you know about zucchini or tooth brushing. Look for an unexpected color and write about it. Allow yourself to be charmed by the flowers or the lightening bugs.

Let’s not get caught up in the have to-s, as in I have to write a blog post today. Let’s not get caught up with the should haves, as in I should have written a blog post last week. Let’s not get caught up with the weight of a hard story or difficult times.

Smile while you write. Did you know that smiling can actually trick the body into a better mood? The act of smiling can trigger good feelings (powered by dopamine and serotonin) and lead you to being more open to fun.

PS — When you have fun while writing more magic is released into the world, making your corner of it a little more beautiful.

write

Open your blog and write a post. It doesn’t have to be a heart stretched story…it just needs to be written…and shared.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 16: writing communities matter

Don’t be alone.

It is natural to retreat when things get tough. Recently I wrote this sentence — I’ve had to learn to write through dark times.  I know uncertainty has the potential to destroy a writer’s mojo…I also know writing can be one of  the best ways to process uncertainty.  This is especially true when you are part of a writing community.

Maybe it feels like an epic battle to write a blog post. Maybe Thursday (and Friday and Saturday and…and…and…) slip by and you are left wondering if writing matters anyway, and maybe you’re a pretend-writer after all.

Maybe it isn’t like this for you, but it is for me.

Today, let’s take some inspiration from Maya Angelou. In 1975 she penned a poem, “Alone” that is as true today as when she wrote it. You can read the whole poem by clicking here. Filmmaker Andy Delaney explored the alone/together theme in Maya Angelou’s poem “Alone” in a delicately moving short film shot as the world fell silent in lockdown. You can read more about this project on Caged Bird Legacy.

Even if it’s a struggle to clack a few words in a post box, I hope you know that it matters. Even when it seems minute to read and reply to blog posts from people you’ve never met in person, I hope you know it matters. This writing community matters because nobody, but nobody/can make it out here alone.

write

Open your blog and write a post. It doesn’t have to be a heart stretched story…it just needs to be written…and shared.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic

open invitation no. 15: constant

Some things never change.

There might be magic waiting to be discovered in the things that seem to never change. Spend some time thinking about something that’s been a constant in your life. Maybe you always get a new toothbrush on your birthday or you still sit in the same porch swing as you did when you were a child. Maybe you start the day with the same routine or always recite the same prayer or mantra before bed. Perhaps you’ve always stargazed or always put your left sock on first. What in your life is consistent?

write

Open your blog and write a post. It doesn’t have to be a heart stretched story…it just needs to be written…and shared.

share

Reply to this post, jot a note and paste your URL.

comment

Pop around and visit some other blogs. Leave a comment about the ideas or the craft…encourage and soak up the magic that will find you.

grab an image for your blog

Use one of these images so we can find each other…and you can invite others to share their stories with us!

Offer an invitation to others.

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic