Writing during these strange and scary times is challenging, to say the least. In the current state of the world, it seems a little selfish to be concentrating on writing essays, (and its ultimate goal, my memoir). At the same time, taking a deeper look at my personal experiences as refracted by what’s going on in the world gives my work both perspective and depth. It becomes more meaningful.
The long-form personal essay is rewarding to write, but it’s also exhausting. Fortunately, I’m balancing this work with other projects, such as planning my upcoming Flash Fiction Workshop for the Pittsboro Writers’ Morning Out via Zoom on Saturday, July 18, planning an online Humor Writing workshop for Central Carolina Community College, and, one of my favorite activities, writing poetry.
What I love about writing poetry is that it allows you to take a step back and capture a single moment in your life. There’s no pressure to overthink things or write for pages and pages. You simply jot down the words as they come to you — my little “field notes” are all over the house — and later arrange them in poetic form.
For the month of July, O. Henry magazine kindly published Buster Gets a Bath, which represents one of my more recent poems. Please note that if you were expecting a loftier thought, I apologize. 🙂 Sometimes, like Buster, in the post-bath whirl captured above, you just have to give yourself over to the delicious moment. In his case, he’s just grateful to have survived the bath.
As you continue in your own writing journey, I hope you remember to capture those little moments, reflect briefly on them, and write about them. Yes, it’s a quick fix, it’s instant gratification, but you may find that you’ve just seized a piece of eternity. As they say, the days are long, but the years are short.
So go ahead. Revel in the clover!
I love poetry for many reasons, but what I love most is how poetry can elevate the “ordinary” into something quite sublime. In fact, the most profound poems often come from everyday life—hearing the wood thrush, growing apples, or just the act of slipping on your favorite old shoes.
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of spending my morning with an enthusiastic and especially curious group of women writers at 
The words of the great Chilean writer Isabel Allende served as our theme last night at the first-ever Creative Writing Expo at Central Carolina Community College in Pittsboro. And it was indeed a night to remember!
Are you as excited as we are? I hope so! The First-Ever Creative Writing Expo sponsored by the Central Carolina Community College Creative Writing Program is just three days away!
FUN STUFF: In addition to inspiration, food, and fellowship, we’ll also be giving away some very exciting door prizes….including a year’s supply of Post-It Notes! That’s right. Sticky notes are perfect for jotting down those little nuggets of inspiration in a writer’s life. Images, bits of conversation, universal truths, and more–all those little details that add zest to your writing. Check out the ZESTY colors!
Our mission was brutal. The email from Al Manning, the head of 
It was the perfect day for poetry….wonderfully cool with a hint of sunshine, and the easy conversation among both old friends and new!
Ashley Harris 