Think of Kasey as she travels with the rest of the crew to film our new documentary in Ethiopia this week.   If, perchance, you want details, here's our site.

Something to Ponder

"How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live." ~Henry David Thoreau, Journal, 19 August 1851

"Now and then, it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy."  

                                                                                      -- Apollonaire

Don't Ask Me to Explain

“I think that I am better than the people that are trying to reform me.”  Goethe

Confidence, self-certainty, cockiness.  In looking at some of my favorite authors, authors that have changed literature and its genres, I believe in the necessity of possessing a know-it-all attitude.  Why?  Because honestly, an author should be his own worst critic.  If your own work of fiction (or poetry, nonfiction, etc.) passes a thorough and honest self-evaluation, then the opinions of outside critics and reformers will be of little consequence to you.  That's not to say that a writer should ignore all external criticisms; however, these external criticisms should be weighed against your own instinct and intuition.

(I'm a huge believer in utilizing intuition while writing.  I'm a huge believer in not thinking too much during the first draft.  I'm a huge believer that analyzation can cause paralyzation.  Thinking too much leaves a writer open to inconsistencies, especially when creating a character.)

James Joyce linked the artist to God, stating: "The artist, like the God of the creation, remains within or behind or beyond or above his handiwork, invisible, refined out of existence, indifferent, paring his fingernails."  In other words, the artist is himself beyond the reproach of critics and readers.  But only after he has honed his art to a point of self-satisfaction.

To A Young Writer

I am currently reading a nonfiction how-to writing book by Joyce Carol Oates called The Faith of a Writer. In the chapter, "To a Young Writer," she opens with: "Write your heart out. Never be ashamed of your subject, and of your passion for your subject."


I like the idea that she presents, which is to let your subject be your focus, instead of yourself. Self-consciousness will never get you anywhere, and neither will self-centeredness. Use your subject as motivation to keep your writing a constant process.

Sometimes I have found myself being ashamed of my desire to become a professional writer, and other times I have used it to define myself in a crowd. I think it is better to constantly keep the focus of my career in the material itself, rather than my abilities as a writer, so that I can continue my work regardless of what stage of self-loathing I am currently in. (As deadlines approach, self-loathing kicks in to high gear and causes a unique hurdle for me to overcome.)

Is this a feasible option for writers? To put their faith in their subjects instead of their own abilities? Does it seem even possible?

A Humble Welcome

Someone asked me once why I was pursuing a career in creative nonfiction writing. My answer to that was somewhat vague, since it is always hard to pinpoint which parts of my being make me want to write. My family’s history, my life experience, my point-of-view, my challenging childhood – all of these things contribute to why I want to write. They responded with the question, “Then what if someone had a charmed life growing up?” My response went from vague to direct.

There is no way that someone with a charmed life would ever want to write nonfiction.

This statement is not to exclude but to explain the personality of a writer. To be a successful writer, you must possess a keen sense of feeling and experience to be able to convey that feeling to another. This does not mean that a woman cannot write about a man’s experience, or vice versa. As a reader, what seems to me to be the most authentic means to tell a story is through honest writing.

I hope you find inspiration here and will be able to relate to the experiences that Lauren and I have as we pursue our common goal of writing honestly and successfully. (And to one day be published, for goodness sake!)

Sincerely,

Kasey Ray-Stokes

In the Beginning...

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Yep, this Scripture alludes to Christ as the “Word.” But as a writer, as someone who loves words and their manipulations and combinations, words are God. Words are everything. They are more than communication, more than meanings. They are what define us. They are utterances that explain what are in our hearts and heads. They are manifestations of intellect and reason. And they are manifestations of a God that values intellect and reason. Words, in a basic sense, allow us to collaborate and join consciousness with others. They possess the power to create community and cohesiveness, or isolation and seclusion.

So then, I’m committed to the word. Words. All of them.


We’re starting this blog to share our experiences as writers -- not the professional kind with a bibliography to his name, but as people who want to express what they think with words. We’re amateurs. Novices. And while, sure, absolutely, I would love to have a list of published works a mile long and eternal fame, that’s not something that I’m actively shooting for at this point.

Who am I? I’m just somebody that wants to describe the sight, smell, sound, taste, feeling of it all in short, concise little sentences that kind of prick the reader. This dude, a theorist -- Roland Barthes, believed that photographs have the ability to “prick” the viewer. He called that the “punctum” in a visual work of art. I believe that words have the same ability, and that any good writer understands the importance of juxtaposition and imagery in creating a “punctum” with words.

Here we’ll share the short sentences that popped into our heads during the morning drive to work. We’ll share what the process of getting published is like. We’ll give you the inside scoop on what really goes down when your fiction or poetry is in the slush pile at your favorite literary journal. We’ll give you writing prompts that helped us, the daily writing routines of established authors, and music to write by.

And of course, we hope to hear from you. Let us know what you want to read about. Bitch and moan about the state of “art” today. Share your favorite quotes from authors. And tell us what helps you get rid of particularly bad cases of verbal constipation.