Writers Retreat | Book Excerpts

Pittershawn Palmer

Writers from all walks of life are trying to find the secret. They want to know, how do I become a great writer? How do I create a body of work that will be remembered long after I am gone? These writers ask the questions that many have asked through the ages. And still, there are others who do not long for immortality, but only for their words to be heard, and they never realize that in wanting that, they will inevitably create a permanent place for themselves in history.

Writing is a solitary art. But it need not be learned in solitude. Writers must come together with other writers, their peers, to learn the craft and learn it well. They must break bread with the brothers and sisters who have gone before them to build worlds through prose. Writing takes work, time and relentless effort.

This is why it is important to share your work. Talk to writers you trust and admire, people whose achievements you aspire to. Read the kinds of books that will help strengthen your recognition of good writing, so you can in turn write well. Take courses on writing. Read books on writing. But more than anything, write daily. Writing daily is possibly one of the most important things a writer could do for his or her career. Rise early, taking advantage of the quietest moment in nature and time. While others slumber, write.

"The heights of great men reached and kept, were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward through the night." - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Fellow writers, toil on. Great heights await you.

Join us at our Writers Retreat in May 2007.
For more information visit: literatisocialclub.org.