Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within, by Natalie Goldberg, is a fantastic read for anyone looking to free themselves or their students from all the preconceived notions about what writing should be and all the doubts and criticisms that we inflict on ourselves.
It’s far from a manual on how to write. Rather, it’s a long talk with a good friend—the kind that helps free you from some hang up you hadn’t even been willing to admit had been holding you back until the two of you got together for dinner one night and just started talking.
This is not to say that there isn’t advice on writing that you can grab hold of. There is. The entire book is really about the concept of writing practice and how all writers can benefit from open, honest and regular exercise in timed writing practice. Goldberg says very early on, on page 8, “You may time yourself for ten minutes, twenty minutes, or an hour. It’s up to you.†And she gives concrete “directions” on how to go about starting writing practice. She says,
“1. Keep your hand moving. (Don’t pause to reread the line you have just written. That’s stalling and trying to get control of what you’re saying.)
2. Don’t cross out. (That is editing as you write. Even if you write something you didn’t mean to write, leave it.)
3. Don’t worry about spelling, punctuation, grammar. (Don’t even care about staying within the margins and lines on the page.)
4. Lose control.
5. Don’t think. Don’t get logical.
6. Go for the jugular. (If something comes up in your writing that is scary or naked, dive right into it. It probably has lots of energy.
Goldberg says the aim of this process is, “to burn through to first thoughts,” (pg. 8). First thoughts are, “the way the mind first flashes on something. The internal censor usually squelches them, so we live in the realm of second and third thoughts, thoughts on thought, twice and three times removed from the direct connection of the first fresh flash,” (pg. 9).
Goldberg compares writing practice to physical conditioning. “Like running, the more you do it, the better you get at it. Some days you don’t want to run and you resist every step of the three miles, but you do it anyway. You practice whether you want to or not. You don’t wait around for inspiration and a deep desire to run. It’ll never happen†(pg. 11).
From these early discussions on the reasons for and benefits of writing practice, the book takes off on a meandering path, alternating between chapters that focus on strategies for getting the creative juices flowing—like why to get out and write in restaurants and how to do it to best effect—and others that tap into the spiritual side of writing.
My personal favorite of these Zen-inspired spiritual chapters is A New Moment (pg. 120). “Tulips come up in the spring for no reason. Of course, you planted bulbs and now in April the earth warms up. But why? Becasue the earth spins around the sun. But why? For no reason except gravity. Why gravity? For no reason. And why did you plant red tulip bulbs to begin with? For beauty, which is itself and has no reason. So the world is empty. Things rise and fall for no reason. And what a great opportunity that is! You can start writing again at any minute. Let go of all your failures and sit down and write something great. Or write something terrible and feel great about it.”
This book touches on every aspect of writing—the where, as in creating a writer’s studio, writing in restaurants, writing in laundromats; the how, as in tips for adding detail to your writing, as simple as, “Don’t say ‘fruit.” Tell what kind of fruit,” (pg. 77); the why, as in, “Baker Roshi from San Francisco Zen Center said, ‘why? isn’t a good question.’ Things just are. Hemingway has said, “Not the why, but the what.” Give the real detailed information. Leave the why for psychologists. It’s enough to know you want to write. Write.”
What is best about this book is that it mixes a discussion of the spiritual aspects of writing with more practical considerations, like how to add detail and the need for frequent writing practice. If this book is on your shelf, you will be able to pull it down whenever you’re feeling stuck, in need of inspiration or just want to get your mind going. Each chapter is self contained. If you flip through it and open to the beginning of any chapter, you will find a few pages of succinct, heartfelt and caring advice from one writer to another. Somehow, I believe, whatever chapter you stop on, it will be exactly what you need at that moment in time. It’s just that kind of book.
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