The awesome co-hosts are Tamara Narayan, Tonja Drecker, Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor, Lauren @ Pensuasion, Stephen Tremp, and Julie Flanders!
Be sure to thank them!
August’s IWSG question is - What was your very first piece of writing as an aspiring writer? Where is it now? Collecting dust or has it been published?
I wrote the third place-winning essay for the American Legion Young Citizens Contest when I was in the 10th grade, but my first published piece was a poem for rape victims.
Although I do have a file cabinet that collects dust, and it does have several hand written projects sitting in a file, so yes, a few are collecting dust. So many ideas, so little time! J
I hope you all have a great writing month!
Don't forget to sign up for the latest WEP Flash Fiction Challenge – it's all about Gardens!
Here are a few words about gardens, to inspire you!
In my garden I spend my days; in my library I spend my nights. My interests are divided between my geraniums and my books. With the flower I am in the present; with the book I am in the past.
~Alexander Smith, "Books and Gardens," Dreamthorp: A Book of Essays Written in the Country, 1863
If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.
If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.
~Cicero
A garden was the primitive prison, till man with Promethean felicity and boldness, luckily sinned himself out of it.
A garden was the primitive prison, till man with Promethean felicity and boldness, luckily sinned himself out of it.
~Charles Lamb, 1830
39 comments:
Hi Yolanda!
Love the Alexander Smith quote. How beautiful! Don't we all have so many pieces of writing gathering dust? Great shout out for WEP. Can't wait to read/see all these entries for GARDENS.
Denise :-)
Hi Rene,
I JUST SIGNED UP for the gardens .... hopefully I can write something decent. LOL. It's certainly been a while.
I wrote poetry in grammar school, but my first big writing paper was in a women's fiction class in college where the feminist professor told me my paper on the degradation of the male hero in 20th cent. women's fiction was publishable. I was too young and stupid to follow up on it. Imagine having a published paper at age 19....stupid me.
Wow, a file cabinet full with ideas and topics. You'll never be bored with what to write. Interesting also. I came in second place on an essay contest in the senior year olf high school. It was on Patrick Henry's favorite word, Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death.
All the best and looking forward to seeing you at The Garden.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia
Yay for winning an award in 10th grade for your writing! That's awesome and probably had a big influence on where you are today.
Those are great quotes on gardens and books. I especially love the one from Alexander Smith. It feels so true!
Those are great quotes! When we lived in a house, I used to have a garden and loved puttering around in it. I would often think about the things I had read the night before as I did the gardening. They're two hobbies which go so well together. Cheers - Ellen
Awesome you won an award indeed. Very true, so little time to get all the ideas one has written.
Third place - you started with a bang!
Everyone in the IWSG seems to have started writing back when they were fairly young. I didn't know I liked writing fiction until about ten years ago.
Receiving an award must have really given you inspiration to continue writing.
Oh, man... I didn't even think to include my poetry. I wrote VOLUMES of angsty poetry as a teen that will never see the light of day. If I have a granddaughter some day, maybe she will inherit the notebooks. My kids are too near, but if you skip a generation they might be okay. I'd love to know this sort of thing about my grandma, but not my mom.
Third place! That's quite an accomplishment! I have many things collecting dust in a file cabinet. Some going back to high school! Cicero's quote is spot on!
A poem for rape victims is important. I'd love to read it. There needs to be more awareness on this topic, and more for victims to help them deal, as I'm sure your poem did.
How cool that you won third place for your essay. Fun!
Looks like you got involved in your community at a young age, or am I a late starter? :-)
Anna from elements of emaginette
Indeed--so many ideas... I got into that discussion with someone the other day and told them about my story file of ideas, and how basically, if I wrote full time for the rest of my life, I'd never be able to complete them all. Here's to having an abundance, eh?
I must get a filing cabinet :) Looking forward to the WEP :) Have a great month.
That's is inspiring, Yolanda. And quite a mark on who you are. I'd love to read it one day. Happy IWSG Day. Best of luck to the WEP.
So true about so many ideas, so little time. I was at a writing thing recently where someone said they couldn't come up with ideas. That struck me as crazy.
Third place in grade ten? Wow, that's quite an achievement!
I need to climb back into my writing balloon and think about the WEP entry.
I love Cicero's words, even though I don't have green fingers...
I love the quote about having a garden and a library. I don't have a garden but I overlook a beautiful one out back. It is in an old cemetery so that helps.
Hey, Denise, I've been very busy but it's worth the effort to try and catch up. But I love being busy. The WEP is going to be even more unique this time! I've no doubts!
I love the idea of a garden and a library. Such beauty and peace. That's how I'd design my ultimate writer's cave!
Hi, Michael!
I've no doubt that you'll write something truly wonderful for the WEP!!
Poetry is such a wonderful start! When we're young we seldom realize the opportunities in front of us. I'm sure we all have those stories. :)
Hi, Pat!
I write them all down, although now I've gotten in the habit of keeping my file on the computer. I can't throw away all those other possibilities. In fact, just thinking about all those ideas in the file made me start seriously thinking of pulling one out. The characters suddenly noticed an open door. :)
Yes, see you in the Garden!
It was a huge influence as were many of my teachers, despite my grammar hangup. :)
They do go well together! I never really thought about it until now, but working in the garden is always a way to get back on track for me! Thanks, Ellen, and have fun go-hosting!
Hi, Pat!
I've never had the courage to throw those earlier ideas away. I've always thought someday they might make a great 'something' LOL. Even had one of those old stories pop back up recently. Time to get to work on it! :)
Writing was my first love in school. Elementary through High School and College. But a bang, never thought of it like that. :)
Hi, Ken!
Nothing wrong with that. I've met many a writer who discovered it recently, and wow, they've made it work for them! It was a great inspiration!
That makes sense, but I prefer that my stuff be burned and never see the light of day. :)
Love my filing cabinet! LOL
Gardens and writing go so well together!
I hope so Chrys, I know it helped me to write it. Thanks!
It was fun. They held a ceremony where we all got to read our piece and get our picture in the paper. I'll have to pull that out sometime. I don't think they published the actual work though, thank God. So many grammar errors! LOL
I did, and I wish I'd kept it up. Moving around makes that harder, but this political season is changing that!
So true, and since writing this one of those ideas has popped back up. The characters saw an open door. :)
Time to get to work!
I love filing cabinets, especially those that don't look like filing cabinets! :) So useful!
Happy IWSG Day to you Joylene, but no, that will never see the light of day! LOL So many errors!
Truly, Shannon!
The world is full of ideas!
It got me an A for the year, so I was pleased, but no, the work isn't anything I would share now. LOL
Happy Writing :-)
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