The Necklace – Osip Mandelstam (1920; translated from the Russian by Christian Wiman) Take, from my palms, for joy, for ease, A little honey, a little sun, That we may obey Persephone’s bees. You can’t untie a boat unmoored. Fur-shod shadows can’t be heard, Nor terror, in this life, mastered. Love, what’s left for us, … Continue reading Poem of the Week, by Osip Mandelstam
Diagnosis: Birds in the Blood – Anna Journey The hummingbird’s nervous embroidery through beach fog by our back patio’s potato vine reminds me of my mother’s southern drawl from the kitchen: She’s flying, flying like bird! I’ve heard that as a child I involuntarily flapped my hands at my side during moments of intense concentration. … Continue reading Poem of the Week, by Anna Journey
An acquaintance asks you if you have any words of wisdom to contribute for a talk she’s giving on the topic of “Building a Writing Life.” You start to tap out a bunch of little bromides along the lines of a) make a practice of writing regularly, b) look at writing as a process rather … Continue reading Plan B
PICTURE BOOK WRITING WORKSHOP Greetings, writers! Any of you picture book writers out there still feeling isolated? I’m offering another one-day picture book manuscript workshop on Saturday, April 7. We’ll talk about the fascinating/fiendish (take your pick) specific challenges of writing these fabulous little books, including the essential elements of picture book writing: characters, story … Continue reading Another Picture Book Writing Workshop, Saturday, April 7
Outside Thermalito – D.A. Powell Persimmons ripen with the first frost. The bitterness inflicted on them takes their bitterness away. Would that there were some other way. — For more information on D.A. Powell, please click here: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/da-powell — Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Alison-McGhee/119862491361265?ref=ts Blog: alisonmcghee.com/blog Continue reading Poem of the Week, by D.A. Powell
Goodies from my mailbox and camera
Telling all sides of the parenting story
Waking Up to Your Dreams
On James Baldwin and Diverse Literature
Putting those recalcitrant toddler cancer cells to bed...
your own PDK for writing
a collection of beautiful words.....
Objects, Memory and Meaning
If it can't be said in a hundred words, then it can't be said in a thousand.
sewing a handmade wardrobe
"drink from the well of your self and begin again" ~charles bukowski
Musings on poetry, language, perception, numbers, food, and anything else that slips through the cracks.
Thoughts on the world around me
Alison McGhee 