Writing Gifts, Book Tour Indignities, Arizona and Musical Magic
Plus a creative writing prompt at the end.
Writing as a Gift: The Gift of Writing
Writing a novel is a gift that we give first to ourselves: all those hours, all that concentration, creativity, struggle and joy—all in the hope that one day readers will enjoy our tales. But teaching writing is a gift that transforms lives from the very start. It gives voice to the silent and cleanses the soul. And its benefits continue to ripple across time.
At this time of year, I’m completely consumed with my work as the director of The Writers Circle. Our teen Summer Intensives are more than a full-time job, and we run writing programs for adults and younger kids, too. I don’t just run the programs. I teach several classes each week, plan curricula, field trips, order busses, manage staff…. I even design the t-shirts that we wear!
But, during this time, my own writing suffers. It’s a real challenge to balance my creative energy with what’s needed to nurture creativity in others. Still, teaching has been a tremendous gift in my life, as I watch how it has helped so many people grow. I have come to believe that this work, especially with these young writers, is ultimately the most important thing I do. Whether my students become published authors someday or simply remember to embrace their creativity in everything they do, I know that I will have left an enduring legacy.
Book Tour Indignities
They all want to play Hamlet.
begins the Carl Sandburg poem that my husband used as an audition monologue many years ago. It was apropos for a young actor who did go on to play Hamlet in his brief career. Writers might more aptly say that we all want to be Shakespeare, or Jane Austen, or at very least Barbara Kingsolver! We all want our stories to be read, admired, and ideally remembered long beyond our time. But that only happens if people read our books, and most books have a very small window of a few weeks or months to grab readers’ attention before the next fresh, buzzy read takes its place.
Back when my debut novel, The Thrall’s Tale, launched, my publisher sent me on a two-week book tour. Even back then, it was extremely rare to be flown all over the country to give readings and sign stacks of books in cities across America. At the time, I thought it meant my novel was a guaranteed success. But as I traveled farther from the cities where people knew me, my audiences dwindled. There was little comfort in the fabulous boutique hotels my publisher paid for where I would nurse my disappointment after another frustrating day of empty chairs in front of my podium.
Here’s a little insight into the truth of book tours from Booker Prize winner John Banville who, despite winning the Booker Prize in 2005 for his novel The Sea, still considers himself “among the lower order of writers” who cannot draw a crowd to his book events. (If he’s among the lower order, what the heck am I?) He writes:
Literary stars and the authors of blockbusters, the Norman Mailers and the Frederick Forsyths, had always been swaggering about the world touting their wares. Now the rest of us, poor moles digging away in the dark of obscurity, were hauled up into the light and sent abroad to appear before live audiences and pretend to be a more or less plausible and if possible entertaining version of ourselves.
I had some advantage—when I managed to draw an audience—that I came from a theatrical background. As I read the words I’d written, I gave a subtle performance, voicing various characters to help bring my novel to life. But the audiences in those far-flung cities didn’t know in advance that they were in for a performance. My heart finally broke at my last event on a dark winter night in the Midwest. Only two people showed up: one to ask me how to write their own novel (Oh, if only I’d started The Writers Circle way back then!). The other had come simply to escape from the frigid January cold.
These days, authors are responsible for most of their own publicity, unless they are truly famous enough to make it worth the publisher’s investment to promote. (Yes, there’s irony there.) Who knows what’s ahead of me as I face the podium with my new novel? But I can guarantee that, if you show up at a book event, listen, ask questions, and buy the author’s new book, they will be eternally grateful.
New Interview in… Shoutout Arizona?
Yes, my northeastern friends and neighbors, my latest interview is in Shoutout Arizona. I am not sure how they found me. Maybe it was through my Instagram feed and the photos I took when I was there back in May? I am always happy to talk about my work, and this time I got to share some of my favorite places from my Southwest journeys. If you’re headed down there, let me know if you visit any of the cool spots I mention in the interview.
Musical Magic
Also while in Arizona, we visited the Museum of Musical Instruments. We weren’t sure what to expect, given the kid-focused promotions my husband and I passed on our way to the Phoenix airport baggage claim. But my family is deeply musical, so we gave it a chance. When we finally got there, we were amazed. Their collection is stunning and truly comprehensive, with instruments from every corner of the world and deep into humanity’s musical past. It also included several instruments directly related to my novels. From Akmaral, there was the Mongolian horsehead fiddle (called a “morin khuur”), several shaman’s drums, and animal totem bells that speak to the culture’s deep and ancient spirituality. And from Greenland, an Inuit shaman’s drum reminded me of some very rich side research I did during my work on The Thrall’s Tale.
For those who prefer more contemporary musical excitement, there was a special exhibit that included Prince’s custom-made purple piano, and his bassist’s instrument, too!
Creative Writing Prompt: The Butterfly Effect
A butterfly flutters its wings in a country garden and the motion creates a tornado a continent away. The Butterfly Effect states that in a complex system like weather, or human life, small and seemingly insignificant occurrences can have tremendous impact on circumstances over time and space.
PROMPT: Imagine that you change one small thing in your (or your character’s) life or in human history. It can be something simple like choosing to attend different summer camp when you were a kid. Or it can be something bigger: adding a(nother) sibling or taking one away, changing the town where you grew up or which college you attended. Or maybe you found the courage to follow your heart in a way that you simply couldn’t back then. One choice and suddenly everything shifts. Imagine all the other things that would change in your life or in the history of your family, culture, or even the planet. Follow those consequences and write about what that small shift might do to transform you, your character, or the world.
Thank you, everyone, for your support. And to my paid subscribers, you are ANGELS!
Forthcoming by Judith Lindbergh
AKMARAL: a nomad woman warrior on the ancient Asian steppes must make peace with making war - May 2024 from Regal House Publishing
"Meticulously researched, deeply imagined Akmaral brings the joy and hardship of a nomad woman warrior to vibrant, often aching life.”
—Cathy Marie Buchanan, New York Times bestselling author of Daughter of Black Lake and The Painted Girls
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