Fiction Scribe

Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of the Bird by Bird book discussion. Last week we discussed “Shitty First Drafts” and “Perfectionism” two subjects close to my heart and often close to each other - as strange as that may seem by the title.

This week we get into “School Lunches” and “Polaroids” (despite my chapter mistake yesterday).

I’m honestly not surprised Lamott chose to talk about school lunches. Was there ever a time in life when life was more dramatic every day? And school lunches. As Lamott says: “The contents of you lunch said whether or not your family were Okay. Some bag lunches, like people, were Okay, and some weren’t.” Not only were lunches secret codes for your family, but where you sat, who you talked with, and where you ate were all pieces determining your status on the social ladder.

Talk about a complex society to write about - and I didn’t even have Body-Snatcher Jam.

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The Bird by Bird book discussion will be continuing tomorrow, don’t forget!

Remember to have your copy of Bird by Bird and have read “School Lunchesâ€? and “Polaroids”.

Thank you to all who participate. Feel free to jump in at any time on the discussions.

Welcome again to another Bird by Bird discussion. Last week we discussed “Short Assignments�. This week we’re reviewing “Shitty First Drafts� and “Perfectionism�.

The reality of ‘shitty first drafts’ is something I think needs to be told to every writer, as early as possible. The sooner you realize no one sits down and writes (without revision) what you sit down and read in book form, the sooner you’ll be less overwhelmed by the whole writing process. As Lamott says, “The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.�

When you realize that the first draft isn’t going to be perfect – likely not anywhere near perfect – then you can get everything down and let it out without the usual roadblocks or voices.
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The Bird by Bird book discussion will be continuing tomorrow, don’t forget!

Remember to have your copy of Bird by Bird and have read “Shitty First Draftsâ€? and “Perfectionism”.

Thank you to all who participate. Feel free to jump in at any time on the discussions.

Welcome to another edition of the Bird by Bird discussion.

Last week we discussed the first part of the book: “Getting Started”. This week we’ll be talking about “Short Assignments.

I like the way Lamott starts this section out. She doesn’t grab your attention by yelling or being snarky about the writing industry; she talks to you like she would babble on to a good friend. Someone might ask why they would want to buy a book about writing where the author “babbles�, but this is, in a way, one way you draw in your readers when writing a story.

Talk to them like you’re talking to a friend. Give them something or someone they can identify with. Then slowly swing toward the real action – what you’re really trying to say.

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The Bird by Bird book discussion will be continuing tomorrow, don’t forget!

Remember to have your copy of Bird by Bird and have read “Short Assignments�.

Thank you to all who participate. Feel free to jump in at any time on the discussions.

Hello everyone, and welcome to the first Bird by Bird book discussion. Today we’ll be discussing chapter one, appropriately titled “Getting Started�.

Lamott starts off with the basic human longing – to understand the ‘why’ of life and of who we are as people. Why do things work the way they do? Why am I the person I am today? Then she moves into writing is about telling the truth.

Now, I didn’t want to get stuck on this little point when I was barely into the chapter, but there are so many arguments about writing being about telling a good lie/tale and not about the truth. But reading on, I realized the truth is where you get started.

I may have never traveled to another world when I was in high school, but I wanted to, and that’s where the grain of truth to start my story came from. That’s why Lamott says to start with your childhood. Start with the truth there. You remember it, so write down what you remember and you can build on it later.

She goes on to touch on something I feel is very important:

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