Writing from Life (Inner Work Book) - Softcover

Albert, Susan Wittig

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0874778484 ISBN 13: 9780874778489

Publisher: Tarcher, 1997

Synopsis

Encourages women to discover their natural storytelling talents, find authentic voices, and record their experiences by providing exercises, meditations, and writing examples for inspiration

About this title

About the Author

Susan Wittig Albert grew up on a farm in Illinois and earned her Ph.D. at the University of California at Berkeley. A former professor of English and a university administrator and vice president, she is the author of the China Bayles Mysteries, the Darling Dahlias Mysteries, and the Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter. Some of her recent titles include Widow’s Tears, Cat’s Claw, The Darling Dahlias and the Confederate Rose, and The Tale of Castle Cottage. She and her husband, Bill, coauthor a series of Victorian-Edwardian mysteries under the name Robin Paige, which includes such titles as Death at Glamis Castle and Death at Whitechapel.

Reviews

Believing that all women have stories to tell and that they can grow spiritually as they learn to put those stories into words, Susan Witting Albert provides a guided writing program that is practical and inspiring. Her step-by-step instructions and exercises derive from her 30 years experience as a teacher of writing. She encourages women to discover their own voices through exploration of eight thematic clusters: beginnings and birthings; achievements, gifts and glories; female bodies; loves, lovers, lovings; journeys and journeying; homes and homings; visits to the Valley of Shadows; and, experiences of community. In an appendix, Albert shows writers how to create what she calls a "Story Circle," a community of women who can gain, through sharing their writing, a sense of belonging and an appreciation of "transformative magic of writing." Albert's book brings charm and elegance to the view of writing as a process of self-discovery.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Albert, a teacher, writer, and author of the "China Bayles" mystery series, offers women this guide to putting their life stories on paper. Hers is a writing program that, if followed chapter by chapter, promises to give the writer an eight-chapter book of her life. Albert includes writing exercises, meditations, celebrations, and examples of other women's writings. She maintains an upbeat and positive tone that will appeal to anyone who wants to begin a journal or start a writing habit. Her work is reminiscent of Natalie Goldberg's works on writing (e.g., Wild Mind, LJ 10/1/90) and will attract the same readers. One nice inclusion is a list of suggestions for women interested in starting a "story circle" to share their stories and work through writing problems in a group setting. Recommended for writing and women's studies collections.
Lisa J. Cihlar, Winfield P.L., Ill.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Tarcher
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0874778484
• ISBN 13: 9780874778489
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 256