Out Of The Blue – a creative non-fiction flash piece of mine won first place in Discourse Literary Journal’s June competition with the theme of ‘Weird.’ (The link takes you to the Featured Essays page, and my piece is second down). I need to add a warning as this very short piece describes some strange/disturbing things. I wrote it some years ago as part of a daily practice of writing I call ‘A Page a Day’ and then very recently edited it for sending out. I have another short piece coming out in a month, also written some time ago and then recently edited.
That these pieces were buried in a pile of “old” writing and now are being made public somewhat astonishes me, and reminds me how powerful and productive the Page a Day process can be, and how much I wish I had kept at it – each day, every day. Another thing that these publications prove to me is what I so often say – that editing work is MUCH easier the longer you leave the writing in a drawer.
I talk about the Page a Day process in the Story Machines blog here. While this blog was written for those with chronic illness, the practice works for anyone, at any stage of writing.
Over the years I’ve had many short pieces published from this practice, and while I think the meme below is both funny and mostly true, I do know that I feel better, if not happier, when I write, and particularly if what I write speaks to others.
I promise myself I’ll start a new Page a Day practice, today, but of course I won’t. I’m writing this blog instead. But I’m still promising myself!
Sandra Jensen 