I met Selena Wolff when she left a long, insightful comment on my Creative Catalyst column for Telling Her Stories. Her newest blog is Solitary Words. When I asked her the origin of the beautiful name, “Selena,” she said “Selena is from Spain; mine comes from Selene, goddess of the moon!” Selena lives in NW…
Retreating to Advance: Do-It-Yourself Writing Retreat Have you ever wanted to go on a personal writing retreat that you organize yourself? This post for Story Circle Network gives you the complete map to do just that. This post is part of the Creative Catalyst column I write monthly.
Jeffrey L. Buford Jr. is my guest today on Riehlife. He grew up on the banks of the muddy Mississippi River on my father’s property. He’s a growing writer and musician. Here is our conversation. –Janet ____________________________ Riehlife: Tell us about your writing path so far. Jeffrey: Through writing about history and politics I found…
After a writer’s meeting where would you want to go? A fancy restaurant with “bistro” in it’s name? A malt shop reminding you of high school? The Woolworth counter? Or…McDonald’s? For the four of us, it was definitely McDonald’s only a few blocks down the street in Alton, Illinois darkness. Safety in numbers with more…
I first met William Dawson in Mountainaire, New Mexico on August 2007 at the 10th annual Sunflower Festival. I performed my story “Big Butts Are Beautiful” complete with backup girl singers and drum. William has previously appeared on Riehlife several times. His most recent contribution is “River of Sadness.” Here are his thoughts on the…
Ever been in a critique group? Want to know how to make the most out of it when your work is being critiqued? Read the January post for our Creative Catalyst column. “The Critique Waltz” on Story Circle Network’s blog Telling Her Stories. Written by Janet Riehl of St. Louis and Stephanie Farrow of Albuquerque
Author Maryanne Raphael graces us with memories of her mentors. Janet __________________ My Mentors My first mentor was Grandfather Patterson who read stories to me, wrote letters to editors and typed up all the stories I made up before I learned the art of putting words on paper. He helped me appreciate my first rejection…
After moving to St. Louis I found myself engaged in a variety of tasks related to writing and literature. Hard put of how to encapsulate and describe what I did besides my own writing, my friend Stephanie Farrow suggested that I put “Woman of Letters” on my card representing my work. This I did. “Woman…
Writing is an effort of untangling the skeins of thought. Rather than rolling them up in a ball, all neat and tidy, the writer finds plain cloth to embroider them. With each strand of thought stitching through the other the writer makes a new design. My sister and I embroidered in the back seat of…
“Deep listening from the heart is one half of true communication. Speaking from the heart is the other half.” —Sara Paddison, author Hidden Power of the Heart When I sent this quotation to my friend Grace Madison (she is the mother of Curt Madison, one of my high school chums who know bases in Alaska),…