by Deborah Lee Luskin | Jul 10, 2012 | Living in Place
I had two memorable professors in graduate school. One used to say, “and is the hardest word in the English Language to use well”; the other said, “The secret to good writing is subordination.” Essentially, they were saying the same thing. “And” is a...
by Deborah Lee Luskin | Jun 12, 2012 | Living in Place
What could learning to whitewater kayak possibly have to do with writing? In my case, four things: work, knowledge, companionship, and fear. #1. In the first place, I went to kayaking school on assignment, so technically, I learned to kayak for work....
by Deborah Lee Luskin | Apr 17, 2012 | Living in Place
I have not been writing a poem a week as I tasked myself in Cross Training, nor have I met the goal I set in my Bylines Calendar of writing a chapter a month. If I wanted to grind to a complete halt, I could trip over these “failures,” wallow in chocolate, and stop...
by Deborah Lee Luskin | Mar 20, 2012 | Living in Place
When I lived alone in Manhattan, a married friend with three sons once said to me, “Enjoy your solitude.” I did. But I was lonely, too. Later, in Vermont, waiting in line to be seated at a diner with my three young children while my husband was working, a different...
by Deborah Lee Luskin | Feb 21, 2012 | Living in Place
Starting a new book is like learning to drive manual transmission: it’s all about getting into first gear. And even though a writer may have cruised along in fifth to the end of any number of novels before, each new one is like learning to drive all over again. I’ve...
