7-40 Challenge | Round 4, Day 16 In 2011, I wrote a short passage about a prisoner escaping a cell. He finds a footprint on the floor — proof that someone walked this path before him. He picks up a sword and feels something pulse through his arm. He remembers: I am a warrior. I … Continue reading Dare Mighty Things (Fifteen Years Later)
Category: Books & Writing
The Surgery
7-40 Challenge | Round 4, Day 14 I used to think that when I finished writing something, I was done. The story was out. The work was complete. Move on to the next thing. That was shortsighted and a little arrogant. I'm sitting in a coffee shop tonight working on the editorial pass for my … Continue reading The Surgery
The Volume Group
7-40 Challenge | Round 4, Day 12 There's a story about an arts professor who split his pottery class into two groups. The first group only had to produce one piece for the entire year. One shot at perfection. The second group was graded on volume — they had to produce as many pieces as … Continue reading The Volume Group
Forward
I’m in the planning week between rounds of my year-long challenge. I called Round 3 early. I’m supposed to be resting. I wrote a song today anyway. Some creative work feels like work. This one didn’t. It came out of me the way songs used to come out when I was younger and thought I … Continue reading Forward
The Song That Outgrew the Woman I Wrote It For
It must have been 2013. We were at our Toastmasters club, and our mentor — a woman who had been in the organization a long time, the kind of presence who leads by example without announcing she’s leading — stood up to give a speech. She titled it Watch Me. I don’t remember every word. … Continue reading The Song That Outgrew the Woman I Wrote It For
