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Recently, a friend of mine has been toying with the idea of “finding his inner author” and posted a status on Facebook asking for some suggestions about what books/resources he should read to get started – or, as he put it, build a good foundation.
Since he posed the question, and because I’m always a sucker for an inviting status post like that, I’ve been thinking about this a bit. As a former teacher (and now curriculum developer), writing, teaching writing, and working with the writing of others is part of “what I do.” Clearly, it’s also something I do “off the clock”. In fact, I’m not sure I can compartmentalize writing anymore – it’s vital to both my professional success and mental well-being.
But, his question made me think.
What would I tell folks who are not in a place where formal instruction is desired or necessary?
[I need to admit here that one of the coolest things about teaching is taking something that you know and trying to remember what it was like to NOT know it. The act of dissecting something that's second nature is extremely interesting and I highly recommend it. Please warn friends and family prior to starting though - it can become an obsession and I'm all about the warning before the OCD kicks in!]
So here are my top 5 writing tips – in no particular order. Hopefully, these will be helpful for someone struggling to find “their inner author”.
1. Don’t THINK about writing. BE a writer.
Too much thinking can kill a good creative streak! Now, don’t get me wrong, good writers think and plan and draft and think and plan and draft … but those are actions toward a goal! Don’t get stuck on the idea of “being a writer” or think that there is a method or procedure or recipe that you can use to become one. Just write. … and write and write and write. It doesn’t even matter if what you are writing is formal or grammatically correct or even if it makes sense. It matters that you are getting your thoughts on paper. That’s the biggest hurdle most of the time!
Oh, and please fortheloveofallthatisgoodandrightwiththeworld, please don’t worry about your spelling or handwriting!!! [You know, assuming that you still write on paper with a real pen, pencil, or even a nice colorful crayon from time-to-time.]
Blank paper, like the dark, can be scary and overwhelming. Turn the light on – get something down. Draw a picture. Write a letter. Scribble. Write down everything that comes into your head. Rhyme as many words as you can. Write a shopping list. The act of writing is the first step to becoming a better writer.
While we are here at the “being a writer” discussion, I should mention that it will probably help to rid yourself of any romanticized notions you might have about writing. It’s very often hard work. Although I secretly have visions of writing from a perch overlooking a crystal clear, blue ocean in a house full of windows. Of typing away, hearing the breeze, listening to the waves and the seabirds, and seeing an occasional whale or sea lion. I do know that this daydream is more than a tad unrealistic – both from a monetary and work efficiency standpoint. While I’m sure that some writers write in these exotic/romantic settings, I’d be willing to bet that most find their get-away at Starbucks or on their very regular living room couch. So, get thee a pumped up cuppa coffee and find a comfortable spot!
2. Embrace the messiness.
Writing is a messy business. It’s all thoughts and scribbles and phrases and rabbit trails [*grin*] and run on sentences and … you get the idea. It’s OK. Relax. That’s part of the process. It can actually the best part of the process if you let it. This is the place and time when anything is possible. Anything!
Sometimes the messy is in your mind. You incubate your thoughts for a long time and then whoosh, it all spills on the page in a mostly-coherent draft. Although some writing teachers don’t formally count that as drafting, for my money that’s one solid way through the writing process. I tend to be a fan of what works over formal process definitions – especially when it comes to stretching the creative muscle.
Sometimes that mental drafting doesn’t work. When that happens, the mess may show up as hundreds of sticky notes or words flowing over pages and pages in a document or journal or blog. While this looks a bit messier, this often brings all of the possibilities together. [A very beautiful thing, I think!] At this point the ideas need a little tidying up … sort of like scrapbooking your family vacation. You make decisions about what ideas and phrases work in your current project and the rest becomes material for other/future projects.
Whatever your mess looks like, don’t be in too much of a rush to reign it in and don’t be embarrassed or shy about it. Celebrate the mess! Embrace it … let it be messy. You’ll clean it up eventually … probably more than once!
3. Read. Read. Read.
It’s almost cliche at this point and if it wasn’t so dang true, I’d skip it here. But, the role reading plays in becoming a good/better writer … well, it’s vital. Good writers have good models. Good writers read. If you are a blogger (or want to be), read blogs. If you want to write fiction, read a lot of fiction. If you want to write non-fiction, read a lot of non-fiction. Yep, it’s about that simple. Well, sort of.
Just reading good writing won’t automatically make you a better writer. You’ll need to pay attention to the devices, tone, and style used by the folks you are drawn to. What do they do to move the story along? What tone do they use? How do they handle dialog? What forms of poetry do they choose? What topics do they tend to write about? What draws you to their writing? What do you like/dislike about their approach to a topic? In short, you want to read like a writer. It takes things to a whole different level.
Then, the fun begins. You can try on their style for size. Pick an author’s style/tone and write something that mimics it. See what’s comfortable. See what’s not. This part is play, but I think it’s important play. You don’t want to mimic or become someone else long-term, you just want to wear their literary shoes for a bit.
I believe it’s also incredibly helpful to read what good writers say about writing and their process. I’ve mentioned Anne Lamott here before. Her Bird by Bird remains one of my favorites – and a perennial read for me. There are some online folks that I’ve found as well. I really like The Novel Doctor. I love how he uses language and humor … and I adore, absolutely adore, this post. It is spot on!
Literature, blogs, writing discussions … these become your resources and models. The advice and examples become part of your tool box! Invaluable.
4. Get social.
One of the things I’ve found most true about writing is this … audience is everything! Knowing your audience matters. Having an audience matters.
When you are your only audience, you write differently than when you write KNOWING that someone else will read your work. The difference is more than content. It’s more than dealing with the distinction between personal and shared content. There is something about “being published” that causes you to carefully consider your words and writing structure in a way that simply doesn’t happen when you are writing in a personal journal.
Oh, and here’s the good news. Being “published” doesn’t have to mean submitting work to a publisher and getting it printed in a known or highly distributed print/online publication. It simply means putting your work “out there” in a place where others can read and react to it. This opens up a wide range of possibilities that include personal blogs, “notes” in Facebook, and sharing with a colleague.
Time for a fair warning. Getting social on this level can be scary. The “What Ifs” can be overwhelming. What if the readers don’t like it? What if readers are highly critical of my work? What if everyone else posts something that is so much better? What if I can’t be as good as [insert writer's name here]? It can be terrifying. But, it’s a necessary part of getting better. You need feedback. You need to be pushed. You need to know, specifically and in some detail, where others are struggling with what you’ve written. That’s how you grow. It’s how you become better. It’s how you get out of your own way … out of your own head. It’s scary and frustrating and hard to hear (sometimes).
But, guess what? It’s likely that this new social group of yours will also tell you what’s good about your writing. They’ll celebrate your strengths and help you work through the challenges. They’ll give you support. They’ll become your writing family. They’ll make the hard work worthwhile because writing is meant to be read! Having readers is wonderfully energizing … having readers that make you want to be a better writer is a gift.
There are quite a few places writers/artists congregate online. Here are a few. You might want to try them on for size.
- National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) -is an annual (November) novel writing project that brings together professional and amateur writers from all over the world.
- National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) – National Blog Posting Month is the epicenter of daily blogging! People who want to set the habit of blogging by doing it every day for a month, including weekends, can come here for moral support, inspiration, and the camaraderie that only marathon blogging can provide.
- Art House Co-op – Art House creates massive, nationwide art projects that tie hundreds of artists together – and anyone can participate.
5. Play with words.
Sometimes work really is play and the old saying, “All work and no play…” comes directly into focus. I find writing is one of those situations. Mixing up your writing time with a combination of “real” writing and just taking time to explore or work with words is, in my opinion, vital for keeping the wheels on the road. (It’s also a fun way to get past a spell of writer’s block!) The great thing about this one is that there are ALL KINDS of ways to mix it up so, by all means, play your way!
Here are some of my favorites.
- Complete an “assignment”. I like the challenges in Room to Write by Bonni Goldberg.
- Design a Twitter-friendly/tweetable story .. 140 characters at a time.
- Find or take a picture of something and sketch out the back story.
- Create and describe a new character.
- Invent humorous/clever status entries for Facebook (or the social network of your choice).
- Find a poetry form/pattern and write a poem using it. (I especially like to write against type – like using Haiku for distinctly non-nature oriented topics.)
- Rewrite the words to a favorite song or nursery rhyme. (Really want a challenge? Work your kids/family into the new song lyrics on the fly to entertain them while making dinner. Write these down, they’ll ask you to sing them again!)
- Challenge yourself to write a paragraph about an everyday topic using using alliteration a la
This Thanksgiving morning, I find myself doing typical Saturday morning chores. Because we don’t have family in town, we have a pretty lo-key Thanksgiving celebration.
As I was doing the morning dishes (and, let’s not kid, last night’s and those from yesterday’s lunch), I started thinking about being thankful. And, I am very thankful!
- I’m thankful for the piles and piles of dishes that I have to do today – because it means that my family has enough food to put on the table at every mealtime.
- I’m thankful for the loads and loads of laundry that I have to do today – because it means that we have clothes on our back.
- I’m thankful for the diapers I have to change today (and the fights that will come with stopping Louie long enough to get them changed) – because it means that we have a wonderful, feisty baby girl who is happy and healthy and … growing up too fast.
- I’m thankful for the sand that I will have to sweep up today – because it means that my very active Little Man has been doing what he loves and will be anxious to tell us all about it (over and over again). It means he’s healthy and happy and … growing up too fast.
- I’m thankful for the squabbles I’ll have to mediate today – because it means that the kids have each other and because I will eventually get to see them hug and tell each other, “I love you!”.
- I’m thankful for the insane amount of vacuuming that will need done – because it means that my house is truly a home and … a well lived in one at that!
- I’m thankful for the nagging that Husband will show up after dinner. The reminders of what is not done even though we are bone tired (Wait, it’s not going to be starting after dinner. He just popped his head in the door to tell me that blogging isn’t going to get the furniture rearranged.) – because it means that I have a Husband who is actively involved in everything this family does. A Husband who cares about tradition and family and togetherness.
I have so very, very many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. They are simply too many to count.
My family wishes you family a safe, healthy, and very blessed Thanksgiving!
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
This week, we lost one of the most outgoing, happy, loving, gracious people I have ever met. Tonight, I gave his wife a long hug and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”
And I am.
I’m sorry that cancer stole the love of her life way too soon.
I’m sorry that she will know this pain so young.
I’m sorry that this family will have to find a way to live without this man they loved so much.
… and there is so much more.
I’m sorry that we didn’t spend more time together.
I’m sorry that we didn’t do more to help you fight.
I’m sorry that we weren’t there as much as we should have been.
I’m sorry for so many things.
Mostly, I’m so sorry that he’s gone.
I know he’s with God. I know that as sure as I’m here typing while tears rush down my face. He’s no longer in pain – no longer suffering.
ET has gone home. I consider myself blessed to have known him. I consider myself doubly-blessed to have called him a friend.
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
I’ve got a thing for family. That sounds kind of odd now that I’ve gone and typed it … but it’s true. I like almost everything about family. The history, the drama, the kookiness, the togetherness, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
For the past year or so, I’ve been looking into our family’s past. I think it’s important for us to know how and where we’ve come from and we are getting to the point where many of our “primary sources” are starting to be of an age where they no longer remember things as they once did. If we don’t do it now, there will be many things lost forever.
So, I’ve been painstakingly trying to harness the collective memory. It’s been both frustrating and exciting!
I started with a group of folks I knew well – or thought I did. The stories behind the photos – the life stories – are captivating and quirky and real. And, they make me love these folks even more than I already did.
my great grandfather, my grandfather, and his brother there's a story here
my grandmother and her brother
Recently, we attended a family reunion and I was able to meet a whole branch of the family tree for the very first time. Having these folks in one place led me to a treasure trove … of both family and memories!
Aren’t these folks stunning in their best attire? This marriage led to Husband being here on this earth – without it, he doesn’t exist. It’s stunning when you think about it from that perspective. Stunning and humbling.
As we met folks that day, looked at old pictures, and chatted about all sorts of things, I was struck by the continuity of it all.
my father-in-law and his sister - he hasn't changed a bit!
Generation to generation – some things different, many things the same. And it’s part of everything we are now and everything we will be.
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
I have a soft spot for black and white photographs. There’s just something about the “lack of color” that allows a good black and white to tell a story in a way that color shots just can’t mimic. So, when Beth threw down the black and white gauntlet this past week, I was pretty pumped.
This challenge is all about processing in these days of digital. The good shot is really the starting line … and it can be a long way to the finish. That said, a good shot is really where it all begins.
For this week, I decided I wanted to play a lot with the different ways to covert to black and white. I decided that I wanted to start with a picture of a building that, if photographed when built, would have been photographed in black and white. I took a short tour of a nearby town and shot this. This was my original shot.
I processed these in Photoshop Elements using standard tools … except for the last. On the final shot I used a free brush to get the marks and scratches. The first thing I did was straighten the shot using the straightening tool. Then the fun began.
desaturated color using hue/saturation tool
adjusted color using remove color tool
color removed with convert to black and white tool - scenic landscape
color removed using tonal adjustment
removed color with convert to black and white tool - newspaper
If you want, you can see an actual black and white shot of St. Mary’s Catholic Church from a local historical society. If I was going for realism, this newspaper setting seems to be the closest!
But, “real” isn’t necessarily part of the challenge so…
aged photo
To age my photo, I started with a black and white created with the convert to black and white tool set to scenic landscape. I added a border, noise, and scratches to make it appear old and well looked at. Then I adjusted the black and white tones one last time. I also find a nice handwriting font to “write” on the border … just for fun!
So, here’s what I learned/confirmed.
- The way that you convert a color digi shot to black and white matters – a lot.
- It’s helpful to know what look (purpose) you are going for before you convert.
- It’s not difficult to make a photo look old but it helps to envision in your mind what type of environment “the photo living in” so that you can scratch and mark it realistically.
Strangely enough, my favorite from this set is the one that’s technically not black and white. I really like this shot desaturated. I also really like how the aging turned out. Although, when I do it again, I’ll start with a lighter black and white shot.
In the process, I discovered about 4 more processes related to black and white processing that can make my photos look better at the end of the day. Now, I just have to practice!
Head on over to Beth’s to see how other folks stepped up to this challenge!
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
There are several alternate titles for this post. Among them,
- Taking the Easy Way Out
- It’s about Dang Time
- Whew, Dodged a Bullet There
- #1 Reason Grammy’s Rule
Your are now fully intrigued, no?
I may have mentioned before that Little Man is not a very good sleeper. He’s just not. If I think about it, he never has been. At the root of it all, I think is this simple fact … he doesn’t want to miss anything. Little Man is also an opportunist – as most 5-year-olds are.
If you combine those two elements with a new baby sister on the way, you get … bad mommy!
Here’s how it works.
When I was in the last months of pregnancy with BK (a.k.a., Louie), I couldn’t easily get to the level of Little Man’s trundle bed to read to him. So, he got to read with me on our bed where, snuggled in, he often fell asleep – soundly asleep. Fast forward about 20 months and you find Little Man sleeping on the floor in our bedroom.
[You can gasp if you like. You might even want to "tsk" or shake your head. I'm OK with that too. You might want to nod knowingly. I've gotten it all. Little Man is not shy about flaunting this Bad Mommy behavior of mine!]
Although I know that he cannot sleep on our bedroom floor forever, I must tell you that he sleeps well there. He goes to bed when we ask him to and he sleeps through the night. This is not a phenomenon we experienced when he was in his own bed/room.
Oh, and if you ask him about it, you’ll get something like this.
I don’t sleep well. I need some of that stuff they show on TV for people who can’t sleep at night. But, I like my pallet here in “our” room. I’ll sleep in my bed when I’m 5 6.
If he’s feeling like he needs to impress you, he’ll tell you more (including a myriad of “logical” reasons why it’s necessary for him to sleep there) and you will laugh at the seriousness silliness seriousness of it all.
We’ve been working on this for what seems like forever and, frankly, we’ve just not been motivated enough to get him sleeping where he needs to be sleeping. We’re afraid that we won’t sleep and we’re just too old and wimpy to be going without sleep anymore. [There, I said it.]
Enter Grammy and our little Louie (BK).
The kids have gone to Grammy’s for their summer sabbatical. [We hope they want to come home.] When we set this all up, there was some discussion about where the kids would sleep because Gram doesn’t have a crib. Gram decided Louie could handle a toddler bed and made it so.
[My mother has this power, you know. She says things like, "He will be potty trained by Friday." And, he was. It's a little awe-inspiring and a tad overwhelming.]
Little Man decided that he and Louie should sleep in the same room at Grammy’s and made it so. It’s been a happy 3 weeks!
Bad Mommy heard about all of this happy sleeping and had an idea! A wonderful idea! A-ha!!!
We could move Louie to a toddler bed in her room and Little Man could sleep in the big kid bed in that room! Brilliant! They are of an age where sharing a room isn’t a big deal and he’d be OFF MY FLOOR!!!! Woot!
So, my mom asked Little Man what he thought of the plan. This is what she said he said.
I would like to share a room with Louie and help her feel safe in the toddler bed when we get home. I am her big brother and it would be a good idea for us to be in the same room. I would also like to make my bedroom a toy room so we could have another place to play.
Whew. Really? This might actually work. So, taking stock, here’s where we are.
- Brilliant plan hatched? Check
- Preschooler buy-in? Check
- Toddler bed acquired? Check
- Big bed readied for new tenant? Check
I’m now holding my breath for when they arrive home. Good news, though … my mother is staying for a week.
- Bad Mommy problem #97 solved? Maybe!
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
When I think of shapes, I instantly think of so many, many things. So when Beth challenged us all to capture shapes this week, I began my normal weekly process of over-thinking the whole thing!
Yes, I know, it’s a recurring theme nightmare. As usual (and blessedly, I might add), life intervened and the plan for the challenge started to take shape. [Oh, sorry, really bad pun. I actually groaned out loud as I typed it.]
So here we go. My sweet husband bought me some glass art to hang in our bathroom windows and I just love them. They make beautiful rainbows in the morning sun. [He also hung them for me on demand after changing the filter in my van so that the AC would work decently ... and when I'm certain he would have rather been doing anything else!!!] I heart him. Very much.
glass art from eisenart inovations
My second photo op came out of the blue, or rather, out of the blacklight. After a night of fun with some folks from church, our pastor pulled out a blacklight and announced that he was going to go scorpion hunting. He’d not seen any since moving here and really wanted to. Well, it just so happens that we currently have a plethora of scorpions living in our backyard. I don’t heart these. Someone has been called!
mama scorpion and her two babies under blacklight
When I first looked at his creepy critter, I thought it was dead – it looked a bit flat and skeletal to me. Upon closer examination, I noticed the tiny shapes of two baby scorpions on her back. This shot really needed a tripod and some play with lighting, but it was well after midnight and these guys are CREEPY! I was afraid (um, hoping) that she’d scurry away so I just took the shot. It’s cropped, but otherwise straight out of the camera.
Scorpion fact: The babies are more poisonous than their mama and they don’t glow yet because they lack a protein buildup in their exoskeleton. I learned something this week! I also found myself wishing that we had the kinds of critters Shell gets to photograph!!!
When Husband heard that “shapes” were the in thing this week, he suggested that I get up-close-and-personal with our very blockish pavers. So, I got the wide angle lens out and captured these. [I checked the ground for scorpions first!] I think I’ll be trying out some more shots like this. The perspective is really fun.
These were just begging for a quick shot. I snapped a very organized stack of kindling on a whim and then played with the black and white conversion setting. The landscape setting was the most realistic for sure, but I’ve been doing ancestry research and the newspaper setting gave this kindling a sort of “old treasured artifact” feel that I liked. It also really made the wood jump out!
old plant stakes waiting for winter fireplace use
I’ll end this where I started, I think. You see, my first plan of action was to make a picture using shapes … a mosaic picture of the photos I’ve taken. While I tossed the idea aside as too complicated for me to pull off, I couldn’t help doing a search for some software that might do it for me! Lo and behold … Mosaic Creator. [OK, the page this takes you to is horribly, sickeningly busy. The software is pretty cool.]
This is my first attempt using the software. If you look closely, you’ll see Little Man and BK in there … and a clock I shot for one of these challenges is in the lower right. The tree is made from a lot of beach shots. It’s like a seek and find! I’m going to play with it some more as it looks like it’ll do some pretty cool stuff.
me and a sycamore tree - first try using mosaic creator
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
With the kids gone, I often sit for a few minutes and “hear” their voices echoing through the house. They are such lively little buggers that they leave their energy behind – just long enough to get us through to their return!
This weekend, as I sat with my eyes closed, I remembered and encounter I had with Little Man.I guess before I start, it would be helpful to give you a bit of background. Hmmm…
- Little Man loves his fish … although he can’t really remember their names from one day to the next.
- The average life span of a fish in my care is not long – particularly if they are goldfish.
- After I killed several goldfish, we bought fish of heartier stock – with the help of the lovely people at PetSmart.
- I have not killed these yet. (I don’t suppose that’s a necessary detail, I’m just proud of myself.)
- Little Man is convinced that his fish need a house and a plant. Our fish tank isn’t big enough for both.
- The fishbowl is my job around here. All mine!
Just before Grammy came, I cleaned out the fishbowl. It was getting kind of nasty and I had some time so I just did my thing. I didn’t think to much about it at all, actually. I cleaned the bowl, replaced the stones and the filter, and swapped out the plant that had been in the take with the house that we’d used before. No fish died in the process and the kids weren’t even aware that I was cleaning the tank. No biggie.
the castle and the algae sucker
So, finished with the bowl, I went on to other things. I was in the office working on something and all of a sudden Little Man runs in with a HUGE smile on his face. HUGE! [I initially wondered what he'd gotten into. Candy seemed to be a logical guess.]
“THANKS, MOM!”, was followed by a hug the size of his grin.
Startled, I asked, “Little Man, you are very welcome. But, I’m not sure what I did.”
He said, “You put the castle in the fish tank.”
I had no idea. No idea at all that this castle meant that much to him. Wanna know something else? I had no idea how much I loved this type of spontaneous hug.
Have you ever had the experience of not missing something because you’d never had it before, but then really missing it once you found out what you were missing?
Yeh, me too. I miss him. I miss them.
Spontaneous hugs all around!
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
I love jeans. No, really, I love them. It’s almost sick. I prefer them over any other type of clothing, except maybe jammies. I would wear them everyday. I need to reiterate that. E.VER.Y.DAY … even when it’s 115 outside!
[I wore a beautiful gown for my wedding. That day might be the exception, but it's about the only exception.]
Husband thinks I’m nuts. My jeans addiction is one of the many things that he doesn’t understand about me. He thinks jeans are the most uncomfortable piece of clothing, EVER. It’s just another one of the many ways we are complete opposites.
I know that many people don’t share my love for the denim pant. I’ve read that many women don’t feel confident in a pair of jeans. That they are not flattering or some such thing. Bah. Craziness, I think. A good pair of jeans is simply unbeatable.
I act differently when I’m in jeans. I am at my most confident, relaxed, and myself. I have swagger. Swagger is good. Swagger is spunky. Swagger is fun.
I walk differently in jeans. Really. I had a coworker (female) mention it to me one Friday – said she’d never noticed how much I swayed my hips before. [Kind of a freaky thing to have someone say to you out loud at work, actually. But whatever.] I just smiled knowingly and told her it was the jeans.
I think differently in jeans. My most creative moments tend to occur when I’m relaxed, comfortable, and confident. So, it’s no surprise to me that I get a lot done and am able to think a tad more outside the box when I’m dressed for “off-road” thinking.
I have worn jeans for just about every occasion imaginable. I wear them to church. I’ve worn them to plays. I’ve worn them to parties. I am usually, by most standards, the most under-dressed woman in the room on any given occasion. And that, for the slightest instant, causes me to be a tad self-conscious and it makes my mother NUTS!
[Husband loves to dress up and is usually "appropriately dressed" for any given occasion. Bet you didn't see that comin' did ya?]
Put me in a pair of jeans and I can concentrate on what I’m doing and relating with those around me. Put me in anything else and I worry about what I’m wearing and how I look. And, that’s really the thing, isn’t it. Finding a place and space where you can be yourself. Where you can be who you really are? Where you can ditch most of your insecurities and just get to the business of living – the work.
Maybe that’s really it. Jeans are my “get down to business” attire. Unpretentious. Durable. Comfortable. Dependable. Secure. Everyday.
… so if you’ll pardon me, I’d like to say, “We’d do OK, forever in blue jeans”
Neil Diamond
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
I’ve had a love affair with Sedona for many years. Seriously, I think it’s been almost 15 years now. With all of that love and history, where do I begin? [Can you hear me humming?]
Here are my “5 Things” about Sedona.
1. Peace
There is something about Sedona and the Red Rock area that puts me at peace. I’m not sure what it is. I just know that when I’m there, the stupid self talk stops and the still,quiet voice inside gets heard. Also, I think I’m just generally a much nicer, happier person when I’m there. That self talk can do a real number on your disposition.
The Sedona area is said to be the location of some spiritual vortexes and there are certainly quite a few folks making money selling tours and what I’ll call “vortex paraphernalia”.
Depending on your beliefs, you can chalk it up to the vortexes supposedly there, I guess. My personal beliefs don’t necessarily run that way, but I can’t deny that there is something different about the place. I just know that when I can use a little peace in my life, I’ll find it in Sedona.
2. Diversity
Sedona is a place where everyone can find something. For such a small town, that’s pretty amazing. And the diversity is everywhere in everything!
- You can tent camp next to Oak Creek or find a posh $250+ a night bed and breakfast. [We splurged one year ... if you are going to splurge on a B&B in Sedona, I can recommend this one!]
- You can find a quick deli snack or a $50+ a plate meal.
- You can be in the desert one minute and in a riparian area – so green you can’t imagine – it in the next.
I’ve not been there yet with someone who didn’t find something to like about the place. You can go to shop, hike, visit galleries, mountain bike, ride horses, or just hang out. In the times I’ve visited, I’m not sure that we’ve ever done the same thing twice. It’s all good!
3. Umm … Red Rocks
OK, seriously. There is no place on earth like Red Rock country. I actually think it’s better than the Grand Canyon – although that might be because it’s more accessible.
The colors are just stunning everywhere you turn and the formations are just awesome. Most pictures don’t do the area justice … although on our recent trip, I certainly tried! [It's an amazing place to practice your photography habit!]
One of my favorite places to visit is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. The architecture is just amazing and the church itself is so simple. The simplicity makes it a perfect match for the amazing “cathedral” of rocks around it. I just love it!
There are hikes and tours to just about anywhere you would want to go want to go – and you can find something suitable for all ages and abilities. [I don't hike, normally. I will here. It didn't/doesn't kill me.]
At the end of the day, however you get wherever you get, a good long sit and stare is necessary and appropriate!
4. Water
When you are surrounded by desert, water is important – and interesting – and wonderful. Oak Creek is life to the areas around Sedona. The area gets about 10 inches of rain each year and depends on the run off from the Flagstaff area. But, no matter what the season, water is a main attraction.
In the summer, Slide Rock State Park is packed with folks trying to cool off in the cold waters of Oak Creek. I must tell you that it’s not my cup of tea … but clearly it works for a lot of people!
I think I prefer to experience the life of the canyons here in other ways. I love to sit and eat at The Hideaway where you can thoroughly enjoy a great pizza and cream soda (or whatever you like) on a terrace overlooking Oak Creek. And I’ve recently ventured into the canyon itself … the hikes into the Oak Creek area – West Fork Oak Creek Trail and Huckaby Trail were two that got us “waterside” and allowed us to see the area from a different perspective!
5. Tlaquepaque
OK … this may be a stretch, but I have to put Tlaquepaque (pronounced Tla-keh-pah-keh) in the mix just because it’s a fun word to say!
Seriously though, you can watch artists sculpt in clay as they prepare the models for amazing bronze sculptures. You can get a great meal. [Can I get a WOOT for beer-battered fries prepared in the local brew?] You can sit and listen to musicians play in the courtyards. It’s an amazing place … and one of the many places to see artists of all kinds in the Sedona area.
Oh, and the flowers, fountains, and sycamore trees in this place are just wonderful! And, at Christmastime? Forget it. You just want to stay!
For me Tlaquepaque represents all of the cool places to discover in the Sedona area. It’s a place where you can see/get things you just can’t anywhere else – some are pretty pricey (fantastic art usually is) and some are perfect for taking a bit of Sedona home with you.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. If you get a chance to visit Sedona, don’t turn it down. Whether for the day or for the week, it’s worth it. Yep, everyone goes there – it’s not off of the vacation radar. There’s a reason for that – embrace it!
Oh, and while you’re there? Don’t be afraid to “go off-road” a bit. There is a lot to see and do … and learn!
[Wow. I may have just sounded like your mother there. Sorry about that! Now, go book your ticket! What are you waiting for???]
I'll be hoppin' along now ...
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