In the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Habit 6 is Synergize: "Synergy is everywhere in nature. If you plant two plants close together, the roots comingle and improve the quality of the soil so that both plants will grow better than if they were separated. If you put two pieces of wood together, they will hold much more than the total of the weight held by each separately" (Covey 263).
I'm blessed to have a husband and a daughter who are both writers. Not only do they provide the raw material for many of my poems and essays, they are also great readers and critiquers of my work. And I return the favor. So at our home, synergy happens.
Ways to synergize your writing life? Let's count some:
1. writing workshops at your local college, art center, senior center or SMSU Senior College
2. writing groups (imagine the synergy of The Inklings, the informal Oxford literary group with writers C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien)
3. writing partners
4. online writing communities
5. writing conferences and festivals
6. writing residencies
7. writing and foreign travel
8. writing coaches
9. readings (give them, go to them)
10. writing websites and blogs
11. mentoring young writers
12. writing and yoga retreats, writing and camping, writing and eco-tourism
And on and on. Any activity that brings you into the orbit of other writers can create synergy.
What are your favorite ways to synergize your writing life?
I'm blessed to have a husband and a daughter who are both writers. Not only do they provide the raw material for many of my poems and essays, they are also great readers and critiquers of my work. And I return the favor. So at our home, synergy happens.
Ways to synergize your writing life? Let's count some:
1. writing workshops at your local college, art center, senior center or SMSU Senior College
2. writing groups (imagine the synergy of The Inklings, the informal Oxford literary group with writers C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien)
3. writing partners
4. online writing communities
5. writing conferences and festivals
6. writing residencies
7. writing and foreign travel
8. writing coaches
9. readings (give them, go to them)
10. writing websites and blogs
11. mentoring young writers
12. writing and yoga retreats, writing and camping, writing and eco-tourism
And on and on. Any activity that brings you into the orbit of other writers can create synergy.
What are your favorite ways to synergize your writing life?
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