A Return to Writing
The ever-widening gyre of a writer's life
Hello everyone! I stepped away for a minute or two and several things happened to distract me, though I’m still here and still writing.
Writing Breakthrough
I’ve had a breakthrough in writing my memoir, a way to tie together the various section of My Own Private Waste Land to create more immediacy and an overarching voice that brings together the disparate fragments of the sections. I still see the structure of my memoir as sound, tied as it is to T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land.
So while I continue to query (and revamp my query letter as well), I am retooling sections of my memoir. I’ve read that writing is not done until the book is published, and even then, some authors want to make changes. I’ve also read that some writers toss their works into the audience and never look back and think of them again, striving always to work forward. I’m a tinkerer who will tinker until the galley proofs are proofed. And then I’ll move on.
I want to share parts 3 and 5 of my memoir, but I will be putting up a paywall for those sections. These are the sections that include two very difficult toxic relationships that comprise the foreground for the story of family mental illness, the death of my parents, and estrangement from my family. All of these events combined to form a decade of my life that almost led to great tragedy and a significant rebirth and revitalization of my life.
If you are interested in memoir and writing and toxic relationships, please sign up for a subscription now to be eligible for a discounted pay version. I’ll have more details about converting to a paid substack soon. Thank you for your support! My hope is still to attract a traditional publisher with my memoir. And with your support, I will be able to do so.
I’ve steadily gained a few subscribers here and there - tell your friends! Sign up! But recently I gained a subscriber and deleted them. That subscriber was my ex, one of the toxic relationships I write about. I haven’t spoken to my ex since the end of 2011, who in no uncertain terms said never to contact her again. So I haven’t - nor have I desired to.
Right now, as libraries and booksellers and school systems are under pressure to remove books due to content that some people deem inappropriate for children, a move toward censorship and suppression of ideas and thought, a suppression I find antithetical to the American experiment, having a toxic ex want a window seat to my writing feels overbearing.
So, just no. I write about my life and my experiences. That might include people who were in my life during various periods, including exes. I say - write your own story. You have no business lurking around the periphery to watch mine unfold.
I’m a great fan of Anne Lamott’s sentiment: “You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.” - Bird by Bird
Freelance Developmental Editing Business
I’ve earned a certificate in developmental editing from Club Ed Freelancers. My business, The Writing Prof Editorial Services, offers a full slate of editing services:
Manuscript Assessment
Manuscript Evalution
Developmental Editing
Copy Editing
Line Editing
Proofreading
Writing coaching
Ghost writing / Collaboratio
Book Doctoring
I work with the following genres:
memoir
literary fiction
men’s fiction
alternative lifestyle fiction and nonfiction (polyamory, kink, bdsm, leather)
dystopian fiction
general nonfiction
academic writing
websites
I edit both book-length works and shorter documents.
Right now I’m booking through the end of the year. If you are looking for a writing coach, a collaborator, or an editor, whether you are self-publishing or seeking traditional publication, I can offer a FREE 30-minute consultation for a Zoom or phone call to discuss your writing project and writing goals. You can find more information about me and contact information at my website: The Writing Prof Editorial Services.
Starting a small freelance business has been challenging, but I want to thank all of the editors (my colleagues) at Club Ed Freelancers, who, through their example and good-nature, have inspired me to be learn more about running my business and do better work.
What I’m Reading: Story Genius, by Lisa Cron
I recently finished Stephen King’s On Writing, one of the many writing craft books that sat on my bookshelf for far too long. It was delightful, especially the memoir pieces within. Given his success, it’s difficult to argue with King about writing, but he’s very clear that he has a method that suits him. Other craft books get further into the weeds about how to write. If there’s any take away from King’s book it’s to forge ahead. Just keep writing, as I always say.
Now I’m reading Lisa Cron’s Story Genius, though I’ve only just begun. It’s a look as story as a biological, hard-wired component of our neuroscience, separate from plot, character, setting, and the like. Cron argues that it’s “story” we respond to when we watch scary movies or when we fall under the spell of a novel that we stay up all night to read.
So far, I buy her thesis, at least through part 1. I’m looking forward to finishing the book and will report back.
What I’m Watching: Oz
I saw Barbie at the theaters and loved it. Allusive content is my jam so I was delighted at the beginning allusion to one of the greatest of films (no spoilers here - go see it!). I have yet to see Oppenheimer but will this week. I hope to see Asteroid City soon too, when it becomes available to stream at a more decent price.
But what I’m most intrigued by right now is the HBO drama, Oz. I am on record in thinking that The Sopranos is the greatest of cable shows ever, with close competition from The Wire and Breaking Bad. (This is not a survey of all of television - so I’m not including network shows like All in the Family and M*A*S*H and Mary Tyler Moore and Cheers and Frasier and great shows such as those that were produced for a network audience.)
Oz predates The Sopranos and The Wire. It ran 1997-2003 and had an impressive cast, many of whom were later in both The Sopranos and The Wire. It’s obvious that HBO had a stable of creatives during that time (the incomparable Rita Morena as a nun and prison psychologist, Edie Falco who would go on to be Carmella Soprano, Ernie Hudson of Ghostbusters fame, and so many others).
Grittier than most hard-nosed thrillers (think Se7en or Momento), Oz is set in the Oswald Maximum Security Prison and covers an experimental unit called Emerald City (M City). While there are some PSA moments in the writing, the choices made by the writers and producers of Oz were brave, to say the least. They do not shy away from hard choices regarding violence, hate, racism, and the brutal conditions of a penitentiary. I am surprised with every episode, applauding the audacity of the show runners to take their storylines to horrific places.
Rating: HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Gritty, violent, excellent acting, experimental story-telling.
If you’ve seen Oz, I’d love to know your own take on it in the comments.
Pickleball!
Yesterday, I played in a pickleball tournament hosted by Queer City Sports. There were 80 people, 40 teams signed up for a non-competitive tournament. It was very hot, mid-80s. I played with a woman named “Karen,” so we named our team the “The Not Karens.”
Over the past year or two walking with my partner through public parks, I’d hear the thunk sound of a pickleball and yell out “Pickleball!” It’s definitely my kind of sport. I played a lot of tennis, racquetball, and ping pong growing up, and Pickleball uses skills from all those sports. Easy to learn, difficult to master, with a low barrier to entry - it’s so much fun!
It’s also the most exercise I’ve had recently in a long time. That will change here soon as summer is waning and I bought a sailing membership in mid-April that I have yet to use once this season. I will get on the water soon!
Please support my writing
I’ve written a memoir, My Own Private Waste Land, which I’m in the process of querying for traditional publication. I’m at work on my second memoir as well as many other assorted writing projects.
Support my writing as I seek traditional publication for my memoir. You can also provide a subscription as a gift to other who may enjoy my writing.
On this substack, I write about:
writing, literature, and the writing life
writing process
memoir craft
mental illness - major depressive disorder, suicide, borderline personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder
sailing
alternative lifestyles - polyamory and kink
As always, thank you for reading. Comments are appreciated. Let me know what you think. Let’s get to know each other.
Until next time, I’ll . . .
Just keep writing!