This grant gave me more than memories; it gave me a crucial experience that is formative to all writers: the ability to perceive that we become writers in exile, where what we write is the only link across distance and time…I became a Maryland writer because the community of Juneau took me in.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the transformative power of community and experience in shaping a writer's identity.
In this quote, Paula Vogel reflects on how a granting experience not only provided her with cherished memories but also significantly influenced her development as a writer. She highlights the importance of feeling connected to a community, specifically in Juneau, which helped her understand that writers often exist in a state of exile, bridging gaps in distance and time through their words. This collective experience formed the foundation of her identity as a Maryland writer.
In practice
In a writing workshop, discussing how the community can shape a writer's work.
One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary, looking for long words because you're maybe a little bit ashamed of your short ones. This is like dressing up a household pet in evening clothes. The pet is embarrassed and the person who committed this act of premeditated cuteness should be even more embarrassed.
A man who publishes his letters becomes a nudist - nothing shields him from the world's gaze except his bare skin. A writer, writing away, can always fix things up to make himself more presentable, but a man who has written a letter is stuck with it for all time.
When I'm working on a book, I constantly retype my own sentences. Every day I go back to page one and just retype what I have. It gets me into a rhythm.
I think a lot of the dull parts of first drafts come from a kind of over-managing, intrusive writer who wants to direct traffic. The idea of taking out the parts that the reader could infer is very liberating, and it's weirdly part of radicalizing your work: it allows you to go to new places fast.
I do not like to write - I like to have written.
I made a decision to write for my readers, not to try to find more readers for my writing.
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