May Newsletter of Personal Essay Writing
Vol. 13, No. 5 May 2013
© 2013 Carol Celeste
All Rights Reserved ISSN 2168-7854
CONTENTS
Welcome to "The Writing Well," a newsletter for better health and personal growth through life story writing. And a special welcome to new subscribers.
It's time for Spring Cleaning. If you practice that tradition, do you stop at housework? Technology helps us clear what we don't need today. Over the years, I have accumulated pounds and feet of paper, a hidden forest in my home. Research material, multiple versions of manuscripts, paid bills, etc. This year I decided it's time to downsize my archives. I won't incriminate myself by telling how many years worth of records cluttered files and closets, but my shredder has been busy. Some of those records needed saving so my scanner has been busy, too.
During my de-clutter project I realized that many of the photos I have printed were taken with film and to digitize them would be costly. I am still in the process of scanning them into digital files for future use and preservation. I also realized that my mind and emotions need cleaning from time to time and a good way to do that and still preserve them, is through writing life stories. Let's all set a writing schedule to capture our inner selves and boost our spirits before the speeding year is out.
The book review in this issue takes a journey into the past that many of you may relate to and the article, believe it or not, tells when deeply personal writing may not be the thing to do. Find out why on page 2.
Consider making this the year you publish. See markets on page 4 and, as always, the many markets posted on the website at Paying Markets.
Write to heal, write to grow, write to reflect,
"Carol, your newsletter inspires me."
"Wonderful topics Carol. I am looking forward to this assignment."
"I liked the anonymity of the class. I was able to express my emotions from the safe cocoon of my home."
"The course has gotten me back into writing again. This course was just what I was looking for."
"I like the well-written, clearly-explained, abundant information that arrives with each assignment."
"I liked the one-on-one critiquing. This course allowed me to focus solely on my writing."
As a healing tool, expressive writing requires honesty. Soon after a trauma you may back away from it, even deny it happened. In that case, you will not be honest with your self. Wait until you calm down and can face yourself without censoring. Writing daily about a particular trauma may lead to obsession with it. Expressive writing is meant to help you face and deal with life's difficulties and to reduce stress for better health. If you cant get away from the trauma, you will not achieve those benefits. It's normal to feel worse for a while after writing, but if that feeling continues for some time, a visit to a professional therapist may be wise. Writing alone won't conquer severe depression.
Writing life stories should lead to personal growth in a different way than expressive writing. Especially if you plan to publish your work, you are helping yourself and your readers overcome difficult times or learn life lessons through your stories. Certain tendencies block our ability to fill the needs of both. Avoid self-pity, vengeance and self-indulgence. These attitudes in memoirs not only bore readers, they don't reveal lessons learned and don't help the writer grow.
To heal and grow from life story writing, be honest, be sincere and be gracious.
Write about the first car you owned.
Individuals, facilities and associations may license and conduct these easy-to-lead therapeutic writing and discussion programs:
You do not need to have special education to be a successful facilitator. What you do need is compassion for people, a desire to help others face their demons and heal, and the ability to talk to others in a group setting and market the workshops. All courses promote personal healing and/or growth. Each license comes with lecture material, a step-by-step facilitator guide, handouts and an evaluation survey. Begin your new career helping others. Email Licensing for details.
Memoir, of course, deals with memories and My Mother Was Nuts offers plenty of those. Memoir also reveals the writer's feelings about events and relationships. The book seems superficial in that area. It begins with childhood which focuses on her mother, but I never got the reason for saying she was nuts. Eccentric, perhaps, but not really any nuttier than anyone else in the story.
Marshall drops many names and says she befriends everyone she meets. With her industry connections—brother Garry Marshall trailblazed and gave her many breaks—she meets many big names. I confess a lack of interest in the entertainment world and most of the names mentioned were unknown to me. But celebrity devotees will no doubt be impressed. In some cases, she tells tales that may not be appreciated by the subjects but no big shocks for readers with this cast.
Given the disparaging remarks about her parents early in the book it seems strange that later on the entire family works on movie projects together. An explanation of how her parents were brought into the siblings' work arena would be nice. In other places, numerous events are summarized in a single paragraph, gliding right over episodes that would probably interest readers more than a litany of names attending a party, which occurred often, with sparse details about the affair.
Memoir writers do well to consider what readers need to know about the past in order to appreciate the theme. We tend to expect everyone to know our back story as well as we do and that leaves readers wanting. The book ends with comments about how lucky Marshall was in life, how much she enjoyed most of it, but nothing about lessons learned.
There is no grand realization or theme to My Mother Was Nuts. Marshall comes across as someone only interested in the moment. For example, after surgery for a brain tumor and lung cancer, Marshall continued to smoke. She says she enjoys being a grandmother, but handles it by phone and video tape. School events start too early for her. Readers are left with a recap of Marshall's life and the movie-making process, but not much insight into Marshall's inner self.
Share personal essay markets you know about. Email them to carol@writingtoheal.com and I'll add them to the website list.
* Carol's Comments
* Memoir Quote
* Article - "When Not to Write"
* Course Offerings
* Personal Essay Topic to Write About NOW
* Become a Licensee
* Therapeutic Writing Fact
* Book Review
* Markets
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CAROL'S COMMENTS 
Carol Celeste
carol@writingtoheal.com
www.writingtoheal.com
www.twitter.com/writingtoheal
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Memoir Quote: "There are no formulas in memoir... the right form for your material should be as individual as you, as quirky or straight, as mysterious or matter-of-fact." Bill Roorbach, Writing Life Stories
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COURSE OFFERINGS ~
All courses are conducted by email and begin every Friday. Compare the prices to other online personal essay courses and you'll realize the value offered. Meidabistro=$499, Gotham Writers Workshop=$395, Writers.com=$295 and up, Truby's=$449 to name a few. Don't wait another day.
To register now or order a course as a gift visit Writing Courses.
These courses are now offered:
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WRITING PERSONAL ESSAYS Personal Essays
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WRITING PERSONAL ESSAYS--ADVANCED WPE Advanced.
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YOUR LIFE IN ESSAYS Your Life.
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WRITING TO SELL Writing to Sell.
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WTH,WTG writers say...
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ARTICLE - When Not to Write
Writing to Heal, Writing to Grow urges you to write life stories in order to reap many benefits for both mental and physical health. But have you wondered if there are times when writing our personal stories might not be a good idea? Considerable research indicates that most of the time most people benefit from honest, self-reflective writing, whether or not they share those writings with others. But some participants do not improve or do so only marginally. Why? It seems that in some situations we would do better to wait a while after a trauma before flinging our angst into words. Here are some reasons why expressive and life story writing may not have the desired effect on some people.
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PERSONAL ESSAY TOPIC
Looking for something to write about? Here's a topic to inspire your inner self to emerge.
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BECOME A LICENSEE!
Looking for extra income while you help people?
Writing to Heal, Writing to Grow licenses let you set your own hours as a workshop facilitator. All instructions provided. Individuals, facilities and associations may lead these easy-to-conduct therapeutic writing workshops.
* Writing for Wellness - Why wait until a specific condition strikes to write to heal? Writing helps maintain good health. This four-week expressive writing and discussion course is designed to help adults maintain good health by: reducing stress levels, improving immune system function, working through negative emotional issues, and increasing working memory. Clinical studies indicate that those who are coached in expressive writing show the greatest improvement in stress levels and memory function. Learn more at: Wellness.
* Writing About Cancer - promotes healing and growth for patients and survivors. Visit Cancer to learn more.
* Writing for Personal Caregivers - contributes to stress reduction and coping. Visit Caregivers to learn more.
* Writing for Health Care Professionals - may be eligible for CEUs in your area. Visit Care Professionals to learn more.
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Therapeutic Writing Fact
From: Writing to Heal the Soul by Susan Zimmermann. "Writing is a process of healing and regeneration. It cannot be done when we are thinking about the fifty errands we 'need' to do. If we are committed to dealing with the truly important aspects of our lives...we must subtract the distractions."
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Book Review ~ My Mother Was Nuts by Penny Marshall
You may know Penny Marshall as Laverne of the TV show Laverne & Shirley of the late 1970s and early 1980s who later became a TV and movie director. Like most celebrities, Marshall used a ghost writer for her memoir, My Mother Was Nuts. Unlike most, she told her story to a tape recorder and let the collaborator, give it form. The result reads more like a transcription than a life story, probably much like the meanderings of the recording.
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MARKETS FOR PERSONAL ESSAYS
Contact the source listed for details and to request guidelines. An extensive list of paying markets for personal essays appears at Markets. Writing to Heal,Writing to Grow does not screen or endorse these listings. Submit at your own risk and always check guidelines first. Good luck! If a link doesn't work cut and paste the URL into your browser or search for the title.
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Winning Writer Contest takes up to 6,000 words on sport-related essays. Prize: $1,000 per category and five $100 honorable mentions. Deadline Deadline May 31. Entry Fee $15. Find guidelines and submission details at:
Winning Writer Contest.
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Sport Literate takes sport-themed essays for its 2013 contest.Deadline June 30. Fee $15. Prize: $200, and publication. All entrants receive a copy of the book. No word count given. Find all the details for submissions at: Sport Literate.
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Tiferet Journal sponsors a writing contest taking up to 20 pages (no typo, it's for real) for essays dealing with personal experiences with the invisible. Prefer writers' journey or different culture themes. Deadline Deadline June 1. Fee $15. Prize: $400 and digital subscription. Unpublished online submissions only. Learn all you need to know at: Tiferet Journal.
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Chicken Soup is raining cats and dogs. Deadline August 31 for both. Submit your favorite pet stories. The usual payment given for published entries. Check for details at:
Chicken Soup.
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Bellevue Literary Review offers a prize of $1000 and honorable mentions of $250 on themes of health, healing and more. Publication for all prize winners. Entry fee $15. Deadline July 1. Bellevue Literary Review.
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