Poetry Inspiration from Appalachia

Good morning readers! I am sitting here in awe of nature. As you read, I am from a small mountain town in East TN. These mountains are the life blood of anyone who has been born here. There is an echo in the bone coming from the land and my heart. I cannot explain it for those who do not experience it beyond what I have. Be that as it may, spring is upon us. What I love is that the landscape changes so drastically. Just a few weeks ago, we had snow coming down, the land was barren with brown grass, and the trees were naked. Yep...naked! Now, the world has come alive. It is so miraculous and wonderful to see. I believe I have mentioned it before. One of the aspect I love about this area is the sheer amount of inspiration one can gain. So that's what I am going to talk about today.

I recently read a story about a West Virginia town where a small group of citizens held some photographers hostage because they were taking photos. The whole backing of this story seems completely vague. The citizen who started the ruckus seemed to believe that the photographers were taking photos of her children. When shown with the evidence that the photographer didn't take the photos, she continued to rant about stereotypes of documentaries and photographs to that area. Instead of bringing any positive thought toward our area, her actions and the action of the community paint us with the exact brush we hate - hateful, bigoted hicks who cannot see passed our own noses.

I live in a small Appalachia town just like these individuals. I see tons of tourists come and go. I have seen them stop and steal fruit off of trees and other such incidents. I have seen them stop in the middle of the road with no thought to traffic and take pictures. It is rude. It is uncalled for. But, I could never stand by the actions of those citizens of West Virginia. As a citizen and as an Appalachian American, I would never fault someone for being interested in our town, our nature, our home, or our people. It's part of who we are. We should be happy to share it.

I know. You are probably wondering what this has to do with poetry and why I went from talking about nature to West Virginia. Well...I can tell you. It has to do with sharing our "home" with someone who isn't from here. Home to me is the nature surrounding me. It is the people I share a community with. It is the family I spend holidays around. It is the history, the culture, and the lifestyle of each and every citizen in my area. Nature is just one part of that.

In the past few months, I have found that I have been inspired by not only nature but the people in which I grew up around and the history that paints the communities of Appalachia in such a horrible light. Yes, there is high amounts of poverty. Yes, there are high amounts of drug use. Yes, there are some people who barely have shoes to wear or food to put in their mouth. There are even people who exploit for gain. So when I am faced with a story like the one mentioned above, I am reminded of the broad brush we get painted with.

What is so strange is that when you take the word Appalachia out of the equation, you will see that those things happen in every place on earth. It can be happening in your own community. So when I look around my community and the Appalachia's, I am reminded of my history and my community. I see the negative things in life and hope for betterment of all. Just like you, and everyone else. 

Best Writing Advice

Isn't this a topic every aspiring or published writer can talk about until the cows come home? I cannot count, on my fingers and toes, the number of times I have been offered advice on writing. Writing tips are to writers as mommy blogs are to moms. They fit together like two peas in a pod, but not everyone likes peas. I remember trying to follow advice and tips to a T in the beginning. It was a priority of mine in the early days. Here, I thought, are individuals who have experience with writing and obviously know more than I do. So why not trust their judgment and accept their advice as the honest truth? What isn't mentioned by any of those writers or professors is that not all tips fit every writer.

Maybe it is something all writers develop - a desire to impart knowledge to the next generation. From that perspective, I can certainly stand behind gaining some insight to the world of writing. Yet, I often wonder, now, why I chose to follow some advice and tips instead of taking the steps toward finding my own voice. It is a precarious cliff. Follow the advice of published authors, or take a leap of faith, jump off the cliff, and find your own path with your own voice.

As an author in my 30's, I know the only advice I could really get behind was experience life first. You cannot write without experiencing life. Well, you can write without experiencing life, but it won't be realistic. You need to feel. You need to see. You need to smell. You should taste and touch. Those things make scenes and stories come to life. Writing without that experience is shown so well in 50 Shades of Grey. The author shows she has no knowledge of the actual life that she is writing about. Her words, when describing the books, are "All my fantasies in there, and that's it." I found this quote here. Fantasies is the operative word in that description. The roles she writes about would never play out in that manner. It's a woman's fantasy gone awry with poor grammar and unrealistic situations.

I am not saying you have to live a particular life to write about it. I am saying that research is a necessary part of your writing experience, but your own experience is paramount to that research. Those authors who do not research and who do not experience create a mass hysteria over nothing important. They turn into passing fads that are tossed aside for the next "sexy" thing presented to the world. I do not want to be that type of author.

I want my experiences to shape my writing. I want the essence of who I am to be ever present in each of my writings - poetry, fiction, or otherwise. I want to leave something important to the literary world that captures our society and presents a better way to cope. My experiences lend to my goals as a writer. So no matter what your experience level or how many tips you receive, figuring out what you ultimately want as a writer will shape the type of advice you should follow, what experiences you should seek, and what to avoid when writing.

Let your experiences guide your writing hand.

Writing Beyond Life

I am in a writing slump. I know! I know! There are many sayings about how a "real" writer writes no matter what life throws at them. It's a nice quotation, but not exactly truthful. Each of us get swamped with life to the point that we can hardly breathe. Let's be honest. Most authors feel like the day will go perfectly to plan. One will wake up happily, drink beverage of choice with a nice pastry or fruit salad, lift the screen of the laptop and putter the day away writing meaningful prose that would make Hemingway envious. Yeah...I am just as disillusioned as you are.

The truth is...life happens. I would love to say that I could sit down at any moment and write. It is actually a dream of mine. I can picture the above scenario in my head with no hesitation, but it doesn't always happen like that. I admitted I am in a writing slump, but here's the reason why: Depression is a bitch. Yep! I said it. Anyone who suffers from anything that affects their whole life would understand the sentiment.

Perhaps there are authors out there that spend all day writing with no distraction, understanding friends and family, and still have a semblance of a social life. I am unfortunately not one of them. If this struggle sounds familiar, then perhaps you are not one of those authors either. It's okay. It really is. You do not have to be a keyboard god to have a successful writing life.

So how do we get our mojo back?

Well...the obvious answer is to write. LOL! I know. Writing slump. No matter what you write, there is a lot of setup and creativity involved. Personally, I find other things to write - like this blog post. Something that will activate the mind and creativity without ruining a plot or character's life.

Before you do that though, you have to reassure yourself that it is perfectly natural to have a slump. Or ten! What makes you a "real" writer is your ability to not allow a slump to define your writing career or your ability to finish what you started. What is common among all authors is the act of putting one word after another on paper until the story is finished! That's an author. A real one. Take it easy on yourself. Writing shouldn't be easy. It should be gut wrenching, soul searching, and stomach gouging from beginning to end. If you can take those steps...one word at a time...you will accomplish the goals you set.

Poetry Tuesday - My Favorite Poem

There is a moment when you read or hear a poem for the first time that it touches you at a deep level. It is something so pure and so touching that you feel that the poet spoke words directly from your heart and curbs all your hurts and fears. I remember when I read my favorite poem. It was my junior year in high school in English Honors. Our professor was asking us to develop an author study on a list she had chosen. The whole aspect of the assignment was to view who was behind the writing and how it affected the outcome. In a way, it was created to connect young readers to authors and poets while destroying the barriers that exist of time, space, and even speech choices.

I didn't know it at the time, but my favorite poet ended up being similar to my own background - writing about rural life, Scottish in descent, didn't enjoy "normal" jobs, chose an education in English,  and suffered from bouts of depression. You may be wondering who this individual is. Well, I can tell you. My favorite poet is Robert Frost.

I am only part Scottish, but each of those connections were like a lifeline toward something I enjoyed and loved - writing and storytelling. There had been so much going on in my life - moving in with my father, my grandparents' deaths, a lack of real support emotionally, and a stifling atmosphere for creativity and thought. I stopped writing. Prior to moving in with my father, I spent the late hours of evening writing poetry in a small journal. At this time, I needed focus. I needed something that would clear my mind.

When I read The Road Not Taken, I knew that paths existed for each person. That the paths were usually trodden on by many before me. What I didn't seem to grasp was the way I perceived those paths. With this poem, I came to understand that choices were nothing like the black and white scheme pushed at me from the womb in America. There was so much grey that even the black and white was turning into a tie-dyed version of themselves. Perhaps it was my questioning nature or my desire for truth, but I used Robert Frost's poem as a way to view life.

Every choice has a different path. Every reaction creates a different atmosphere and scenery. My choices are not someone else's, nor do they affect someone else. It changed my mentality. As a young girl, I had no inclination of attending college. It never interested me. I spent months lolly-gagging around after graduating hoping to find something I enjoyed. I stayed away from writing. The fear was too great. What I feared was the rejection for my writing, which wasn't something I felt I could handle at the time. What I feared was that my path choice would be wrong. That small action would crush my tiny little flame.

I found a small job at a large book chain. I was surrounded by books and book lovers for hours and hours in a day. It was a peaceful job that continued to solidify my desire to be found in one of those stores later in life. Then, I got married to a man that provided the first real support in every way I had experienced in my life. So I began writing. Another path taken, but the path began to be covered with rubble. I struggled to put words to paper. I remember sitting there thinking how I would be able to write realistically when I hadn't experienced much. I continued trying to run from what I was and where I came from. It wasn't working.

Fast Forward through life!

I am back home. I am still married. I am still a writer. And I am now a published poet. I chose many paths that led me to where I am. None of them were greater or less than someone else's. What each of those paths were...was a stepping stone to a greater person and life. As I sit and reflect, I am happy that the poem and poet that chose to touch my heart was one that helped shape my direction. Even if I spend the rest of my life struggling to earn a living with writing, I will know that I am, and always will be, true to my heart's desires.

So I ask you, what is your favorite poem or poet? Has it shaped you into a different person and provided a different outlook on life?