How to Find Your Voice: Steal It From Annie Dillard

Steven Pressfield says he can’t read authors with strong voices anymore (he cites Philip Roth) because they rub off on him. That’s fine for Steve, but for us fledgling writers, those voices are like calcium supplements. They make our bones strong.

Lately, I’ve been reading Annie Dillard’s The Writing Life. This is a problem because Annie Dillard has a unique and beautiful voice, and without meaning to, I stole it. I’m slightly embarrassed about it, so keep it on the DL.

Hemingway’s Brush Strokes

When my English Literature professor, Marilyn McEntyre, told us Hemingway would write all day in small Parisian cafes and, afterward, take his lunch to the Musee du Luxembourg where he would look at Cezannes, it transformed how I looked at authors—and writing, for that matter—forever.

Steal From Poets

Can non-fiction writers borrow techniques from poets to set their writing apart?

Last night, I finished Rob Bell’s explosive and polarizing book about heaven and hell, Love Wins. While I don’t want to review or comment on a book that has been reviewed and commented on en extrema, I do want to make some observations as a writer.