Thoughts upon reading Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott ~Rebecca Moll
Be kind and practice life…
I remember a boy in the fourth grade who was the funniest kid. Doug. He had this way of scrunching up his face, widening his eyes, even dropping a few well-placed words and the whole class fell to fits. Inherently funny, he was, effortlessly so. I only have to conjure his boyish face, stringy arms and legs, and slip slap antics and I feel the laughter bubbling up from my take-myself-too-seriously adult depths.
Anne Lamott hits the spot much like Doug always did. Bullseye. Dead center. And if you are a writer, a title earned by profession or just for the sheer love of the art, spot on is what you need when it comes to writing advice. Few endeavors, other than, perhaps, a tone-deaf soloist on America’s Got Talent, preclude the ability to remain objective like writing fiction. And, few, bear the brunt of lovingly placed well-intended platitudes that delude you into continuing down a road that should have never been traveled in the first place.
This I know. Having worn many hats, a few amply compensated careers, none of which included writing fiction, I can tell you when it comes to creative writing, deep down honest-to-goodness fashioning your own world and all the little people in it, like a god with a big messy ball of clay and only three days left to finish, who spends an eternity on just the wings of a single mosquito, is an endeavor totally inside the brain, closed in the closet, or as Stephen King says, with the door closed. No checks and balances along the way. Just the grand finale prospect of Applause! Applause! or a face full of shame and a heart full of pain.
If you don’t write, let me clue you in…
Sharing your work is akin to birthing to a baby that inherits all the physical characteristics you abhor about yourself, showing that baby off for the very first time, agonizing every second while you hold your breath, your heart in your throat, desperately hoping for coos and woos, not the pinched smiles that say, thank the Lord it’s not my kid!
But, step outside your brain, come out of the closet, and write with the door open and improve you will. So, open the door you must, grit your teeth if you must, and sharpen your pencils ahead of time. On-pointe constructive criticism from a trusted friend, family member, fellow writer will get you half-way there. The other half requires humility. Humor yourself. And on that note, Anne Lamott in Bird by Bird tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth in her unabashed totally hilarious way.
Bird by Bird, Some Instructions on Writing and Life is a wonderful go-to book, even if you rarely put pen to paper. For at the crux of the matter of writing and most everything in life is the need to be kind. Kind to yourself. Be kind to others.
“You can either practice being right or practice being kind.” ~Anne Lamott
Even employing the word practice imparts kindness, and understanding that we are all human, we make mistakes, we try again. Like Catholics us “practicing Catholics,” and doctors “practicing medicine.” And in our failings, we identify and connect with others through humility. Of course, one hopes their doctor will find humility somewhere other than the surgical theater and your left, &%$@, I mean, your right knee.
A book to add to your list, Bird by Bird is a keeper. If you write, get a copy. If you don’t write, get a copy. Clear out the closet, open the door, and get outside your brain. Be kind and practice life, one bird at a time.
I remember a boy in the fourth grade who was the funniest kid. Doug. He had this way of scrunching up his face, widening his eyes, even dropping a few well-placed words and the whole class fell to fits. Inherently funny, he was, effortlessly so. I only have to conjure his boyish face, stringy arms and legs, and slip slap antics and I feel the laughter bubbling up from my take-myself-too-seriously adult depths.
Anne Lamott hits the spot much like Doug always did. Bullseye. Dead center. And if you are a writer, a title earned by profession or just for the sheer love of the art, spot on is what you need when it comes to writing advice. Few endeavors, other than, perhaps, a tone-deaf soloist on America’s Got Talent, preclude the ability to remain objective like writing fiction. And, few, bear the brunt of lovingly placed well-intended platitudes that delude you into continuing down a road that should have never been traveled in the first place.
This I know. Having worn many hats, a few amply compensated careers, none of which included writing fiction, I can tell you when it comes to creative writing, deep down honest-to-goodness fashioning your own world and all the little people in it, like a god with a big messy ball of clay and only three days left to finish, who spends an eternity on just the wings of a single mosquito, is an endeavor totally inside the brain, closed in the closet, or as Stephen King says, with the door closed. No checks and balances along the way. Just the grand finale prospect of Applause! Applause! or a face full of shame and a heart full of pain.
If you don’t write, let me clue you in…
Sharing your work is akin to birthing to a baby that inherits all the physical characteristics you abhor about yourself, showing that baby off for the very first time, agonizing every second while you hold your breath, your heart in your throat, desperately hoping for coos and woos, not the pinched smiles that say, thank the Lord it’s not my kid!
But, step outside your brain, come out of the closet, and write with the door open and improve you will. So, open the door you must, grit your teeth if you must, and sharpen your pencils ahead of time. On-pointe constructive criticism from a trusted friend, family member, fellow writer will get you half-way there. The other half requires humility. Humor yourself. And on that note, Anne Lamott in Bird by Bird tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth in her unabashed totally hilarious way.
Bird by Bird, Some Instructions on Writing and Life is a wonderful go-to book, even if you rarely put pen to paper. For at the crux of the matter of writing and most everything in life is the need to be kind. Kind to yourself. Be kind to others.
“You can either practice being right or practice being kind.” ~Anne Lamott
Even employing the word practice imparts kindness, and understanding that we are all human, we make mistakes, we try again. Like Catholics us “practicing Catholics,” and doctors “practicing medicine.” And in our failings, we identify and connect with others through humility. Of course, one hopes their doctor will find humility somewhere other than the surgical theater and your left, &%$@, I mean, your right knee.
A book to add to your list, Bird by Bird is a keeper. If you write, get a copy. If you don’t write, get a copy. Clear out the closet, open the door, and get outside your brain. Be kind and practice life, one bird at a time.
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