Last Night's Guild Meeting

The July Writers' Guild meeting sneaked up on me. A couple of people who were to get in touch about a place on the agenda did not, and in waiting, I lost track of the month. So I had to figure out a program--and fast.

Thanks to Donna at over at http://donnasbookpub.blogspot.com, I had an idea. Donna had won a place in this year's Erma Bombeck contest and then attended the conference. One of the speakers there was Suzette Martinez Standring who spoke on meditative techniques and digging deep for creativity. I listened to her presentation from the conference and then ordered her A Writer's Meditation CD.

So I took a player and the CD, dimmed the lights, the called this the program for the meeting. I was squeamish a bit because some people fear meditation of any kind; some even feel it borders on Satanic. I prepared the group and felt no great resistance and proceeded. I goofed  by hitting the button for the meditation for relaxation instead of the writer one. I could have kicked myself, but we were into it so I let it play. This meditation dealt with using color for relaxation.

Since I was in charge, I did not let myself get too relaxed. I could see people really unwinding. About halfway through, a man took his glasses from his closed eyes and laid them on the table. Several slumped in their chair. It was only ten minutes but refreshing. One lady said she had suffered a pain in her neck that was gone. Any dissenters were quiet and the only comments were good ones.

For those of you who fight your inner critic or a monkey mind when writing, you might consider this technique for help. There are many sources out there. If you want more info on Suzette's CD. go to www.readsuzette.com. Even if you aren't interested in a CD, Suzette as a writer and teacher is interesting enough to be worth a few minutes of your time.

After a discussion about fiction and non-fiction, I made the statement that I thought I would stop trying to write non-fiction focusing only on fiction work. Then I came home and found an acceptance for a short non-fiction piece. The editor wanted more pictures too. Hum, you never know where this writing life will take you. But I am along for the ride be it non-fiction or a trip to my subconscious!


Do you use any kind of relaxation therapy in your writing?