Susan diRendeinMaking Marks: Art, Writing, and BeingThe Secret in the Musical ScaleThere are some natural rough spots in any endeavor, almost like it’s a law of nature and follows more or less the pattern of the musical…·2 min read·Mar 5, 2023----
Susan diRendeinMaking Marks: Art, Writing, and BeingWriting, Art, and the Empty-Handed LeapIt took me so many years to learn that when I slam headfirst into the wanna-give-up-cuz-it’s-not-working wall, THAT is the beginning of…·2 min read·Mar 3, 2023----
Susan diRendeinMaking Marks: Art, Writing, and BeingWillpower Is a Morning PowerWhy do so many successful writers and artists have regular morning routine? There’s a psycho-physiological reason for it. Willpower is…·2 min read·Mar 1, 2023----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt from How the Garcia Girls Lost Their AccentsA story sets out on a journey from a particular world and by the end that world has changed. Clear description and telling gestures can…·3 min read·Jul 15, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt from 1984Here the sentence that starts with the most banal and cliché opening, the weather, only to turn bizarre with the final word. The narrative…·2 min read·Jul 8, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt Using Pride and PrejudiceWhile many of the books I’ve looked at start with short sentences, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin strikes modern readers as rather long…·3 min read·Jul 8, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt from Ethan FromeHere’s another great beginning that points to the story on the page being less than 100% reliable. The speaker admits being uncertain about…·3 min read·Jul 1, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt Using The Catcher in the RyeThis first person ramble starts The Catcher in the Rye by putting you inside the head of an unhappy teenager. That he is unhappy and…·3 min read·Jun 10, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt Using The Handmaid’s TaleThis story starts with a simple declarative that manages to set off warning bells. The speaker et al are sleeping in an odd place for an…·2 min read·Jun 10, 2022----
Susan diRendeinThemed Writing PromptsWriting Prompt Using David CopperfieldDavid Copperfield by Charles Dickens also opens with the narrator speaking in the first person. Unlike the others, however, this time he…·2 min read·Jun 3, 2022----