Writing By Laura

I have shared a lot of writing updates on this blog where I have had nothing to update. I have a little update this month and hopefully more to come.

A few days ago an online publication that just published their first issue was released along with a poem I wrote. I found out a few months ago that this poem was accepted to the first issue of “The Giving Room” and it was just released a few days ago. My poem is called “Invisible Man” and it’s on page 28.

The poem “Invisible Man” was actually written by me in 2003. I re-discovered it when I was cleaning and organizing my books and shelves. It was around that time that I found a few things to submit my writings to and decided to submit this poem. This is probably the last poem I’ve written as I don’t really write poetry anymore. I shifted from writing poems to writing novels (I haven’t really finished a novel yet) essays, and now my memoir. When I found this poem I remembered the inspiration behind it. As someone with a couple of degrees in English, I have read plenty of literary theory and criticism. There are many different camps when it comes to reading and understanding literature. Do you read what you know about the author into the text? In this case, since I am the author I could give context behind the poem… But I’m not going to. I can if it proves maddening but I hardly think that will be the case. I hope you read it and enjoyed it and are inspired to read more of The Giving Room Magazine, Issue 1. I certainly am going to read more of it as I haven’t read it all yet!

I have more writing being published. I have an essay I wrote for an anthology of invisible conditions called “But You Don’t Look Sick.” I am not certain when that is coming out. This is the essay I wrote a few months ago that helped inspire me to set aside my memoir and start anew. I still would like to sit down and have some uninterrupted tinkering and puttering time on my memoir before I can say I feel completely engaged in this new direction. I haven’t been dedicating any writing time lately to my memoir. I plan to, it just hasn’t happened yet. I will say that seeing my written words (in poem format) next to the creativity of others is providing me with some much-needed creative inspiration!

Much like living with a brain injury is new and uncharted territory for me, so is writing with a brain injury. I think I am navigating through a time when I don’t feel like ruminating and thinking and just feel like doing. I think that’s why I have been so successful with my Daily Doodle journal because it feels like I am doing something! Now I just need to translate that into my memoir… Can you doodle a whole memoir? Yes! I attended an online session 2 weeks ago with Alison Bechdel and I am certainly inspired by her and her work. For those unfamiliar with her, Bechdel is a graphic memoirist who draws a version of her story. Her first graphic memoir was adapted into a Tony-award-winning musical called “Fun Home.” It was inspiring to see how pictures drive her story. I see myself more of a writer than artist, but having pictures drive the story could help me in this writing stage.

Daily Doodle Weekly Project Highlight

A Selby Sweetie Conclusion

It was haircut day for Selby on Wednesday. She was hot and shaggy and I was counting the days until she would have her haircut!