Few writers/writing teachers have influenced me as much as Natalie Goldberg. After reading her books, Writing Down the Bones and Wild Mind, I found new life and new direction for my writing. I discovered writing as practice, self-inquiry, personal exploration. Now, nearly 20 years later as I look back at my writing since then I see what a big difference that really has made. Oddly, I haven't been driven to publish as much as I was back then. I have found deep solace and closure from the simple practice of journaling, writing for the sake of writing. In short, I found writing to be deeply personal. While I have written some for publication and for sharing with students and like-minded friends and practitioners, the greatest reward is in my own personal journey through writing, writing as practice.
Writing for practice obviously isn't for everyone. But we can extrapolate the concept and look at dancing as practice, Taiji as practice, music as practice, life as practice. Natalie is a Zen practitioner and uses the lessons of Zen in her writing and teaching. Ultimately, one of the greatest lessons of Zen is eternal presence, which means being present in Zazen, working, driving the car, playing the trombone, of whatever one finds oneself doing. Presence is the key...to everything.
Following is an interview with Natalie from July, 2016: The Writing Life
Writing for practice obviously isn't for everyone. But we can extrapolate the concept and look at dancing as practice, Taiji as practice, music as practice, life as practice. Natalie is a Zen practitioner and uses the lessons of Zen in her writing and teaching. Ultimately, one of the greatest lessons of Zen is eternal presence, which means being present in Zazen, working, driving the car, playing the trombone, of whatever one finds oneself doing. Presence is the key...to everything.
Following is an interview with Natalie from July, 2016: The Writing Life
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