Category Archives: teaching

Why I Teach

Last Monday, at the second-to-last meeting of my Writing Skills Workshop class at UC Berkeley Extension, one of the students said, “I don’t even want to think about saying good-bye to everyone.”  Her large, expressive eyes opened even wider, and … Continue reading

Posted in community, craft, teaching, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Why I Teach

Try, Try Again

Whatever works for you, I tell my students.  There’s no one way to write, no hard-and-fast rule that guarantees success, as much as we want one.  And yet, certain koan-like statements have made it onto my bulletin board or refrigerator.  … Continue reading

Posted in craft, teaching, Uncategorized, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Try, Try Again

Voices in Our Heads

This week’s post follows up on last week’s discussion of Jane Anne Staw’s talk on the five components of a writing practice, given at the Fiction Writing Intensive this past July at UC Berkeley Extension.  Last week, I wrote about … Continue reading

Posted in reading, teaching, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Voices in Our Heads

A Safe Place

A few  weeks ago, at the Fiction Writing Intensive offered by UC Berkeley Extension, writer Jane Anne Staw spoke of the five components of a writing practice. The first thing you need, she said, is a place.  A real, physical … Continue reading

Posted in craft, reading, teaching, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Two weeks ago, I heard Daniel Coshnear talk on “The Balanced Life.”  It was the final day of UC Berkeley Extension’s Fiction Writing Intensive, and we’d gathered four panelists to talk about Where to Go From Here:  Sustaining the Momentum.  … Continue reading

Posted in craft, teaching, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments