One of my favorite authors, Michel de Montaigne, put the name “essais,” to a genre of literature that is at least as old as the Roman Republic. The word means “attempts.” The idea is that the literary work does not need to follow a set form, but rather could follow the workings of the human…
Tag: self-care
“Don’t Say Gay” is Bad, Not Just for LGBTQ Kids
(Editors Note: On February 25, 2022, the Florida House of Representatives passed H.B. 1557, “Parental Rights in Education,” colloquially known as the “Don’t Say Gay,” bill. The addendum discussed here, which would have required schools to out LGBTQ kids, was struck from the bill before it was voted on. Meanwhile, The Florida Senate is expected…
The Writing Group: No Single Authors
Writing is often seen as a lonely journey. Whether you’re a content creator, a novelist or the author of a journal article. Imagine having to hide in a cubicle the whole day, not allowing yourself to get out, eat or drink, go to the washroom… Or picture yourself getting up painstakingly early just to write…
Rebirth: The Day I Became a Writer
We often mark time in our lives with rituals and rites of passage. Moments of birth and rebirth. Baby showers, weddings, funerals. There were a couple of years in junior high school where many weekends were taken up with b’nai mitzvot for friends or family members, followed a few years later by sweet sixteens. We…
It’s Caturday and We have Questions: Distractions
So Erika (a.k.a. Human-Mom) was doing some typing the other day with her three cats sitting on her like tiny royalty. Every time she tried to reach the keyboard it seemed like there was a cat’s butt in her way. Distractions, am I right? Such are the tribulations of a writer. And yet. Erika loves…
The Nazis are Getting Worse
The Sound of Music was my introduction to Nazis. I can remember watching that scene as a small child, and feeling frightened. I can remember asking about what the flag meant and my mother explaining it. Even without seeing the clip I can recall how chilling the anger is in the scene. The only thing…
Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Law: Outlawing Openness
Conversations we Can’t Avoid There are a lot of conversations we have to have about things that are uncomfortable or difficult to talk about. We try and avoid things like sex, politics or religion–we label them as “out of bounds” and find less controversial things to talk about with people, but there are always going…
Watch/Listen/Read: Banning Books and Other Concerns
Adam Writes: The Fragility of Mozart I’ve been playing that one Mozart piano sonata every young pianist learns when they take formal lessons (Sonata #16 in C major, K.545). Specifically the middle movement. I often have this problem with Mozart (more, I think, than other composers) where most of a piece is… fine. And then…
Celebrating Rejection
A Rejection Letter of My Very Own It seems there’s a theme going on right now at 2 Rules of Writing. Adam wrote about rejection letters last week. Erik Cheung also wrote about rejection letters last week. And now it’s my turn. Last week I got a rejection letter. I was expecting it, although strangely…
Watch/Listen/Read
If you want to contribute to our Watch/Listen/Read, please do not hesitate to reach out! Adam Writes: I got to read children’s stories to my nephew this week. The author is a favorite from when I was a kid: James Stevenson’s Grandpa and Wainey series. I remember being delighted by these books some thirty years…