Uncertainty in writing is possibly the sagest teacher. I’m not talking about the blind “I have no idea what I’m doing and I love it” enthusiasm of the beginner, but when the core concept, practice, and process of who you are as a writer goes “poof!”. That when you come to the page, you are …
Our words have power. How we shape them, in ignorance, or even with our best intentions, can be harmful. Like many writers, my first attempts were artless and raw. Simple and clichéd listing descriptions, they failed to capture my subject with accuracy or depth. They lacked an ability and intent to honour.
Revision is more than just polishing your writing to meet pre-defined standards—it is a crucible. This liminal refuge between mind and page is primed for transformation; the superfluous, what is unsound structurally or stylistically is seared away, so that a writer is cocooned in recomposing.
If you’ve been a member of a writing group or taken a writing course, one of the most nerve-wracking components is providing feedback for your fellow writers.
An interview-article on the writerly life of award-winning author Kayla Geitzler by Judy Bowman.
A regular feature of The Miramichi Reader, Kayla Geitzler shares her writing tips in her “Kayla Writes” column.
“Coltsfoot” was written by Kayla Geitzler for Spellbound by Nature: A Spell-kit of Nova Scotia’s Nature Words.
It’s inevitable, right? Creatives, especially writers, are often labeled with that word. I’ve been called that word. You know, the one that’s usually reserved for maiden aunts. Eccentric. And boy, was my maiden aunt eccentric! So, it must be in my blood. However, it’s not like I just rolled out of bed one morning and …
JUDY BOWMAN is an award-winning author and former President of the Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick. Her poetry and short fiction have appeared in a number of literary journals including Room, Qwerty, Rattle (US), and have also been anthologized in The Vagrant Revue of New Fiction. A former columnist and feature writer, she was voted …
Just like every other writer, I had to perfect the rules of fine writing—and in the beginning I didn’t like it much. I struggled with two important techniques: moving out of the abstract (“unpacking”) and understanding that the reader was not in my head.
I was five years old when I decided I wanted to be a writer. To be fair, most people don’t find their calling that early in life. But the passion and fascination I’ve had for books, the literary world, and the arts, never left me. Now, as Moncton’s inaugural Anglophone Poet Laureate, a professional editor & writing consultant, as well as the host of the Attic Owl Reading Series, the writing world is my entire life. But what I want to say to you is, that this is my journey and you don’t need to be any of these things to be a writer. To be a real writer, you only need three things.
© 2024 | THE Miramichi Reader
Nicholas Selig, Editor-in-Chief
