An Author's Life: Books about Writing (XII)

Last night's fun -- and I mean that with all seriousness -- included joining Dawn Goldberg of WriteWellU.com for "Writing Hour," her monthly tele-chat. (First Tuesday of the month; follow Dawn on Twitter.)

It doesn't matter whether I'm chatting with writers who have been publishing forever or folks just starting out, we seem to share the same concerns: how to make the time, how to hunker down, how to manage the naysayers. Relative to the that last point, I found myself referencing Julia Cameron's classic, The Artist's Way (1992) which, in Chapter Two, zooms in on the problem of "poisonous playmates" and "crazymakers."

While I was at it, I mentioned several other books about writing by writers. Kimberly (also on Twitter) asked if I'd posted that list on my website. Uh...no, but here it is now, on my blog! With the possible exception of Brenda Ueland's classic, most of these books will probably be familiar to writers at all levels of experience. All, for different reasons, had a significant impact on my authorial life. They're listed in the order I read them, a project starting in 1990. Although I'd been published by magazines since the late 1970s, the first of my seven books wasn't published until 1998.

• Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within (1986)
• Natalie Goldberg, Long Quiet Highway: Waking Up in America (1993)
• Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life (1994)
• Brenda Ueland, If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit (1938)
• Carolyn See, Making a Literary Life: Advice for Writers and Other Dreamers (2002).

An Author's Life: Nourishment (V)

You might not think that sitting in front of a computer screen is hard, hunger-generating work but it's all that and more.

For me, book writing generates a snack-a-thon of major proportions and so for this latest endeavor, I've been fixated on three major food groups: salty, crunchy, and carbonated.

When I worked in and wrote for the holistic health industry, I learned to appreciate the body's wisdom. I learned to honor food cravings. So what if I'm craving salami, Cheez Doodles, and Diet Cream Soda instead tofu, carrots, and kuchika tea? Craving = body wisdom.

Now I'll admit to feeling a wee bit guilty, not to mention bloated, but the writing has been going relatively well -- considering it's book writing -- and I don't want to mess with that by switching to leafy greens and lean meat.

Plus, I'm observing portion control by getting small bags of the Doodles. The label on the cream soda explains that it has "no nutritional value" which, as far as I am concerned, means it's benign. Gornish mit gornish, so to speak. The salami? What can I say? I'm writing about how Christians need to be more educated about Judaism's legacy.

Pathetic? I'll be sorry? You'd think so. But I had blood work done two days ago and someone from my doctor's office called to say, "Your blood work looks great! Your cholesterol is very low!! Keep doing what you're doing!!!"

I know. I hate me, too.

An Author's Life: Beginning Again (VI)

This is me, extending the pregnancy metaphor to announce that I'm expecting [to publish] another book in July 2009 while still recuperating from publishing [birthing] one in July 2008.

For years I've been thinking, researching, and giving public talks about how Judaism's legacy is revealed in the structure and substance of worship at liturgical churches. And for years I've been revising the book proposal. Morehouse, which just released The Word Made Fresh: Communicating Church and Faith Today, is publishing my next baby.

I received this happy news on Wednesday from my beloved editor [midwife] who called to say, "Congratulations, you get to work with me again." Indeed. We have a major mutual admiration thing going on.

Next order of authorial business: the Nail Clipping Ritual whereby my longish, well-shaped natural fingernails get cut down to sports length -- the sport being typing, of course.

Product Review: Faith Database

Faith Database
CD: $39.95
[1,646 MB]
Annual upgrades planned.

This review was written as part of The Catholic Company product reviewer program.
Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Faith Database CD-ROM.

Faith Database is the labor-of-love brain child of Tim Cooper who entered the Catholic Church in 2003. For five years, Cooper collected Catholic resources for his own study. Then, while leading a parish-based group on early church writings, he wrote a computer program linking doctrine to scripture and content in those early texts.

With encouragement and guidance from folks at Catholic Answers, the project evolved. Launched in August, Faith Database allows users to search through writings by the early Church fathers, Doctors of the Church, popes, and orthodox theologians (e.g., Chesterton, Newman); 10 different translations of scripture; Church Council documents; the Catechism of the Catholic Church, The Old Catholic Encyclopedia, the Baltimore Catechism, and the Code of Canon Law.

Via email I asked Tim to tell me more about his vision for the project. "My original intent was for all Catholics for wish to learn their faith better," he wrote. "As a former Protestant I can say with all sincerity that most Catholics don't know what they have and most Protestants don't know what they're missing." Yesterday I spent a lot of time wandering through Faith Database to see what was there and to evaluate the ease of navigation.

Mostly I used key words from research for my new book about the Jewish roots of Christian identity and religious practice. I greatly appreciated the convenience of having all church writings and scripture in one place. Normally I log on to several different websites to find this stuff. The database of art images and maps is a useful, inspiring addition.

While I didn't find everything I wanted, I did find material I needed and was pleased with that outcome. According to Cooper, he and business partner Jerry Suelzer plan to add approximately 10 new texts a month. Personally, I hope they either stick to agreed-upon classics or broaden their view of who is making important contributions to Catholic thought these days.

Technicalities: According to Tim, I'm not the only one who had installation troubles. He admits the install with Vista is very slow. They're working on a new installer program and encourage calls for technical support. I also found the navigation a bit cumbersome and hoping they add a spell check to their next iteration. I have every confidence these technical quirks will get worked out. Meanwhile, Faith Database is a good resource, one that does indeed introduce the Catholic faith.

JOTTing right along...

Using voice activation technology, JOTT transforms spoken content into emails and text messages, will generate a list and organize appointments. It's free and does indeed "get simple back" as promised by the company's tag line. I've been using Jott for several weeks and love its convenience and ease-of-use.

But I did not anticipate how getting email from me to me would tap into memories of years in the personal growth and self-discovery industry. Specifically, I've been reminded of the quasi-spiritual practice that involved writing affirming love letters -- to self.

This exercise was usually assigned to participants of self-esteem programs -- after they'd learned the difference between kombu and wakame as well as negative and positive self-talk. The handwritten letter was supposed to be from Self to self. It was usually composed in a mediative state induced by the scent of Nag Champa and the taped sounds of distant wind chimes and pan-flutes.

At the end of the session, letters would be stamped with reverence and sent on a journey through the U.S. postal system. As a result, they'd arrive long after participants had returned to their esteem-depleting and soul-sucking lives. Theoretically, receiving a letter from Self would remind recipients of lessons learned, at least more tenderly than the retreat center's Visa charges. I both wrote and, as a program assistant, handed out hankies and postage for these things.

My last such letter was written and posted on November 15, 1995 while I was working my way through The Artist's Way. I found it tucked in my well worn copy of that book. (Looks like first class postage was once 32 cents.) And having reread the thing, I see that many of my hopes and dreams have come to pass. Very affirming. Thanks be to God.

So now it's the 21st century and I spend most of my time online. I use Jott. Get where I'm going with this?