“The BEST thing is just to write; to sit down and write, to begin doing it and not to be scared by the blank page.” ~David Almond
As we SPRING into writing, it’s always good to take advice from the authors we are reading. Let’s fact it. The blank page is intimidating. David Almond has experienced this and is generously encouraging us to stare down that blank page and to fill it with our ideas. This is, first and foremost, what writing is all about. Grammar and mechanics, and syntax and style follow.
Writing is a courageous process.
David Almond goes on to remind us that our ideas are a gift, “We have each other, and our stories twist and mingle like the twisting currents of a river. We hold each other tight as we spin and lurch across our lives. There are moments of great joy and magic. The most astounding things can lie waiting as each day dawns, as each page turns.”
He reminds us to explore, “Writing will be like a journey, every word a footstep that takes me further into undiscovered land.”
He reminds us to be brave, “We have to allow ourselves to see what there is to see, and we have to imagine.”
He reminds us to play, “And what is wrong with playing with words? Words love to be played with, just like children or kittens do!”
Then, he gets to the crux of it: “Then what shall I write?
I can’t just write that this happened then this happened then this happened to boring infinitum. I’ll let my journal grow just like the mind does, just like a tree or beast does, just like life does. Why should a book tell a tale in a dull straight line? Words should wander and meander. They should fly like owls and flicker like bats and slip like cats. They should murmur and scream and dance and sing.”
I love that: “Words should wander and meander.”
When we read books, we are inspired. We grow our precious fund of knowledge. But we also, if we dare listen, learn valuable lesson about the art of writing!
~Kimberly