{"id":5925,"date":"2015-05-17T19:38:08","date_gmt":"2015-05-18T00:38:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/?p=5925"},"modified":"2015-05-17T19:38:08","modified_gmt":"2015-05-18T00:38:08","slug":"surrounding-yourself-with-writing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/2015\/05\/17\/surrounding-yourself-with-writing\/","title":{"rendered":"Surrounding Yourself (with Writing)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Penguins<\/a>One of my favorite podcasts<\/a> is Otherppl with Brad Listi<\/a>. (If fact, it’s the only podcast to which I’ve subscribed to premium content; after all, it’s less than $10.00\/year.) I love the way Listi digs and gets writers to talk not just about their writing in ways they usually don’t discuss, but their lives and other things that highlight why they write the way they do. More than that, though, listening to the podcast is about extending the surroundings of good writers in my life to be more than just books on shelves or on my Kindle Fire.<\/p>\n

(I also love that most of the writers Listi interviews are writers I’ve never heard of until listening to his show.)<\/p>\n

For me, listening to writing podcasts is like this blog: it keeps writing on my mind. I’ve been fortunate that in recent weeks at the day job, I’ve been formatting documents and linking things more than writing and editing…which means all day long, I can listen to podcasts about writing. As far as day jobs go, I have the best job I’ve ever had, but still — it’s nice to have time during the day to let something I like even more hold court inside my head, causing me to think about my own writing — or just writing in general.<\/p>\n

Some of the ways I surround myself with writing…<\/p>\n

Other Writers<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I probably know more artists and musicians than writers, but the writers in my life are people who have inspired me in ways I never expected. One of the stranger things for me is that I lean toward upmarket fiction (a fancy way of saying, “Sometimes fully literary, with commercial appeal.”), but most writers I know are into genre fiction. But what they all write doesn’t matter because at the center of it all are people who make writing a priority and strive to be the best they can be.<\/p>\n

The handful of close writer friends I have, who often seem to understand my writing (and me) better than I understand at times, is vital to what I do.<\/p>\n

\"Hands<\/a>
Deacon McClendon typing away at this year’s annual writing retreat.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Other People<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I am fortunate to have always had cool coworkers who think it’s great that I devote time to writing. They may never read a word I write, but they ask how my writing is going, which makes going to a day job instead of devoting a full time life to what I love a bit more tolerable.<\/p>\n

There are other creative friends who can understand what it’s like to have a job and work on other things on the side: artists, musicians, and people who make things in workshops. In many ways, I view my writing differently when talking with these friends than when talking with other writers. One of my favorite people to talk to is a commercial pilot who is into astrophotography and building things in his garage. He’s always doing something, and few people are as supportive of what I do as this friend.<\/p>\n

The other people in my life are every bit important to what I do as a writer as other writers.<\/p>\n

\"Cellos<\/a>
You can do worse things in life than hanging out with musicians…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Social Media<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I’ll be the first to admit that social media can be a time suck. It’s a place one can go to see absolutely horrible people projecting the worst of who they are (which is why I often take social media breaks). But once filtered, the experience one can have online is a great thing.<\/p>\n

Twitter<\/a> acts like a micro publishing newsfeed for me. Tumblr<\/a> is my reminder of how much I love comic book art. I chat with more tech-minded creative people on Google Plus<\/a>. All these places online keep me surrounded in a bubble of things that remind me that it’s always worth writing — even on tough and long days when I don’t feel like sitting down to write.<\/p>\n

\"Twitter<\/a>
Twitter and writers seem to go well together.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bookstores and Author Appearances
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Yesterday, I went to see Mad Max: Fury Road<\/em>. I arrived at the theater earlier than planned, which meant killing time. Few things are better in life than a bookstore early in the day, when there are just enough other people to remind you that people still love books, but not so many people that aisles are crowded. As great as Amazon.com can be, for discovering totally new things, nothing beats actually looking at books on shelves for me.<\/p>\n

Writer events and signings, whether at a bookstore or elsewhere, are also wonderful things. One of my fondest memories — not just a writing memory — is meeting Ray Bradbury after he talked about writing at Southern Methodist University in the early 90s. It’s one of the few life-changing writing moments of my life, and I sometimes think, “Man, what other great in-person events am I missing?” … like this event in Dallas on Tuesday<\/a> night.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
There are some really cool bookstores and libraries in the world.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Book Festivals<\/strong><\/h2>\n

What’s one of the best ways to meet other readers and authors all in the same place? Checking out a book festival!<\/p>\n

It doesn’t matter if they’re small or large, meeting writers famous and unknown is a great way to spend a day or two. Chatting with other readers — from other places — is an added bonus.<\/p>\n

A couple festivals I hope to attend in the next year or so:<\/p>\n