At the moment I am reading lots of essays via Substack. Always of interest are the letters showcased in Shaun Usher’s newsletter, Letters of Note.
Many wonderful letters have been preserved in libraries, online, and in shoeboxes at the bottom of closets. Maybe you’ve read beautifully expressive excerpts, or seen videos of actors or famous people reading such letters on YouTube. Or perhaps you’ve watched history documentaries where narrators read letters from soldiers writing home to their loved ones. How beautifully they wrote—so eloquent and heartfelt. I wonder if it isn’t only their writing skill that matters, but that the retelling of their experiences feels real and true.
”A letter is a time bomb, a message in a bottle, a spell, a cry for help, a story, an expression of concern, a ladle of love, a way to connect through words. This simple and brilliantly democratic art form remains a potent means of communication and, regardless of whatever technological revolution we are in the middle of, the letter lives and, like literature, it always will.“ Shaun Usher, Letters of Note: Art, Canongate Books, UK, 2020
Like many of us, I tried The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. For months, I woke up and faithfully dumped all my thoughts onto three pages. Three pages daily were more than enough, and eventually, I got sick of the sound of my own whinging! A year or two later, I joined Amy Kennedy’s Fresh Eyes writing program and discovered a way to work through creative ideas, find solutions, and gain clarity of thought. It was amazing! In the aloneness that often accompanies a creative life, I was able to have conversations with myself—gaining understanding, generating ideas, solving problems, and practicing the skill of writing which artists need to speak about their work.
If the urge strikes you, I highly recommend giving flow writing a try. No need for any writing expertise. It’s a method that lets you put pen to paper freely, without expectation or judgment. A quick Google search will bring up plenty of information, and be sure to check out Amy Kennedy Ceramics on Instagram. There might be something coming up in January!
