Future Workshops/Writer's Board Direction

[Jesse Michener]

Hello, beautiful mamas.

Do you have any input on future workshop topics and/or a direction you'd like to see this board go? We are talking about the future of the Writer's Board (not whether there is a future, rather what the future should be), and would love to hear your ideas.

What works for you about a focused topic?
What kinds of topics would you like to see?
Would another format suit you better?
My ideal writer's board would.....

Thanks!

Jesse

[nora--not a llama]

Thanks!!!

Jesse, I just wanted to say thank you! Thank you so much for the opportunity to focus on the births of my children and to heal through the writing that I did. Personally, I loved the fact that the topic was so focused. It helped keep my vision where it needed to be in order to get my birth story written. I was able to immerse myself in it and concentrate on it...the focus was such a blessing!
I look forward to more writing within this group!
Blessings to all you mommas!

[lavender]

Thank you, Jesse!

I really enjoy what you've done with the format of the writer's board and would love to see it continue in such a format. Now that I'm back home and have made some progress digging myself out from under piles of everything, I am dying to join in again.

I like the idea of a focused topic to bring a point to my rambling sort of writing. I still love to freewrite but have not really taken it past that, and this women's group presents such nice possibilities.

I just checked a great book out from the library called The Bitch in the House: 26 Women Tell the Truth about Sex, Solitude, Work, Motherhood, and Marriage. These are beautiful, honest essays about the issues and feelings of women. I've read a few of the pieces, beginning with one about how a woman feels about following in her mother's footsteps, then one about a woman moving in with her boyfriend and her need for personal space. I think topics such as these--parents, marriage, motherhood, sex, work, etc.--things we have in common as women--would make good topics for our group.

But, that's just an idea. I'd love to hear more ideas and will, of course, try anything!

[akmbloom]

I have never posted to this board before - although I would like to, the focused topic is probably why I haven't. I'm a "writing mama" but since I have so little time to write I am focused on more individual projects - poems and a book proposal. I might post more to this board if it somehow could discuss individual projects and/or broad subject matters more, although I see how that could be difficult! One thing I'd like to discuss is *how* moms get time to write and what tricks work for them, now that they are moms..........

[Saralynn]

Hi, I agree with akmbloom, I have my own writing projects and goals already underway and need to focus on those. However, I am dying for the support and eventually feedback of other writing mamas. What I would most like is to find a writing goal partner or goal partners who can help keep me on track, even when I'm feeling tired and overwhelmed.

For those who want to write but haven't their own direction, I think a prompt is great. But I'd love to follow along with the group with my own writing (one essay at a time).

Akmbloom - I keep up with my writing by keeping my outline of topics I want to write on, then when my daughter is napping I forget everything except for writing, whatever I can get out on the page to be edited later. Sometimes I feel I have nothing to say and it's all crap, but you have to get through that sometimes to get at the good stuff that's really on your mind. I also keep a notebook in my diaper bag so if DD falls asleep in the car, I just write until she wakes up - then we go about our errands. At night after my daughter is in bed I do some refining and editing if I don't feel the urge to write new material - and usually I don't because I'm too tired. DD is a high-needs child. Also, I read about writing other nights to help prompt further writing ideas and ways to improve what I've already written. There's no doubt it's a continual struggle and I have to keep reminding myself of my priorities. I feel a great satisfaction whenever I get a few pages scribbled out.

[quaz]

I've also never posted here, but I'd like to start writing again in my 'spare' time. I saw the tail end of this past writing project, but my birth experience with my last child was "get to the hospital, already dilated to a 10, baby arrives".... LOL... so the topic on ritual (and others), just didn't work for me. I had no ritual, just a baby that popped out fairly quickly.

I like the idea of almost two items going on....
- The first being a focused topic/workshop, kinda like what just happened. I like this, b/c for people like me that just write for fun and want to start it up again as a hobb... the focus really helps. Plus if my writing sucks, it doesn't matter.

For the next workshops, I'd personally like to see something a little less specific.

Like maybe an 8 week session on various feelings (love, patience, frustration, anger, whatever)... that gives a focus each week but makes it a little more open-ended. There are lots of themes like that, which could be done...
an environment theme (woods, air, water, cold) where one could write something real or imaginary to each theme...
a theme on different writing style for each week...
a poetry theme/workshop...
a workshop where a quote or poem is chosen, and then one has to write something somehow related to it in some manner
etc, etc, etc

- For the second thing... just a place where people can post there on going items, as others requested.


There could potentially even be two workshops going on at once. One for poetry, and one for writing...

Thanks,

Tammy

[BelovedK]

I liked Quaz and lavendars ideas...
When my group gets together, we have a specific writing assignment which helps to focus the attention, though my favorite times are when the questions are broad ranged leaving room for many interpretations and alot of creativity....for instance , this week it is simply to write a poem about "Death" now, it could be a literall physical death or it could be as in metaphor to nature or anything you can think of.

I'd also love to have a poetry forum as well as essay, i looovve to write poetry and love honest feedback

Blessings
~K~

[violafemme]

Thanks for all your work Jesse, I think the format of the board is great.

As for the focused topics, like PPs, I would like things to be slightly more open ended...........like writing a birth story instead of my birth story. I like to hide a bit and sometimes let folks wonder if a piece is fiction or not, particularly in such a public forum.

I also like having a couple of short free write topics thrown out there from time to time so that if I can't quite get it together to work on the larger focused topic, I can still write for 10 or 15 minutes and...........

baby calls be back

[zenfulmama]

short assignments

i'd like to do some short assignment type stuff ...

[BelovedK]

I agree with zenfulmama, I'd like more short assignments and more topics to write about so we can do extra writing if we have the time. I'm always chomping at the bit for the new assignments to come in...and i'd love more feedback..I love this forum, thank you Jesse

[Fairy4tmama]

chomping at the bit

Originally Posted by BelovedK

I agree with zenfulmama, I'd like more short assignments and more topics to write about so we can do extra writing if we have the time. I'm always chomping at the bit for the new assignments to come in...and i'd love more feedback..I love this forum, thank you Jesse

I think topics such as these--parents, marriage, motherhood, sex, work, etc.--things we have in common as women--would make good topics for our group

.

my favorite times are when the questions are broad ranged leaving room for many interpretations and alot of creativity....for instance , this week it is simply to write a poem about "Death" now, it could be a literall physical death or it could be as in metaphor to nature or anything you can think of

:
I would love a handful of topics/assighnment each week. I also think if would be nice if they were of verying lengths and may be some lead sentence activities ie:I came around the corner and my heart stopped....and we jump in from there . Thanks jessie for reviving this forum. I didn't participate in the last wrkshp because I just wastn't in a place to write about PG and birth but I am psyched about the new direction

[Fairy4tmama]

:
hungry for a new topic!

[BelovedK]

Me two :

[BelovedK]

Me three :

[quaz]

Oooh, what a lovely bit. Chomp, chomp.

(Chomping at the bit ;-) )

[BelovedK]

Tasty! (chomp chomp, hint hint)

[supersarahmommy]

Hello,

I am new. The city I live in has several parent publications and a few newspaper magazines geared towards women, but there is a distinct lack of any articles on cloth diapers (for the parent magazines) and on breastfeeding/motherhood experiences (for both). I would love to learn how to write to encourage and inform other women in my city as well as celebrate the unique experinece of womanhood.

[BelovedK]

Welcome I think that's a great idea, The more info out there , the better. Anyone can write as long as the desire is there, it just takes practice. Keep writing mama :

[supersarahmommy]

Thanks! :

[danaan]

I originally checked out the writing group a while back in hopes of support from other writing mamas. I would love to have a chat portion for support. I also enjoy the option to respond to topics, like the current one on autumn. Sometimes I only have the energy and focus to freewrite, and this would give me a place to do so within a group. I would also like somehow to be able to share projects in process with other writers for feedback. I am not a part of a writer's group in the "real world," so that kind of support would be invaluable.

Not sure how this all would be set up, but that would be the bones of my ideal group.

Thank you for asking, and for putting energy into this group!