Author Archives: first person productions
A Paean to My Oaxacan Queen
Some readers of “True Stories Well Told” may remember April Gutierrez Manning–she participated in a few of the writing classes at the South Madison Library, early on. She blogged about her Mexican Adventure, moving with her husband and baby to … Continue reading
A Train Ride to the Past
By Sheila Spear The train wasn’t like the ones I remembered. Those thundering giants commanded respect, their brasses gleaming, wheels churning, steam venting on all sides, clouds of smoke streaming from the chimney, and the whistle giving off its curdling … Continue reading
“Autobiography is like chocolate for the brain.”
I’ve just finished reading Dr. Gene Cohen’s The Mature Mind: The Positive Power of the Aging Brain. Talk about sweet food for thought! In Dr. Cohen’s book, published in 2005, he teaches us much about the rich possibilities for the life of … Continue reading
Upcoming Workshops Late Spring 2012
“Remember to Write” starts 4/19 in South Madison In this workshop we’ll spend six evenings discussing how to structure your stories, how to organize your project, and how to deal ethically with writing about living people. Participants read their work, … Continue reading
Izzy and the Bed
By Carolyn May (Note: I wrote this as a letter from my dog, Izzy, to my daughter’s cat, Elmer.) Dear Elmer, We’ve never met. That’s a good thing because I would probably want to chase you and you’d have to … Continue reading
Book Review: Finding Home in “Pulphead”
The essay is a satisfying literary form. Especially when the essayist takes on subjects you’re familiar with, but not deeply schooled in. Like (for me, anyway) Axl Rose. Which is why I started reading the essay, even though I lack … Continue reading
Raising Sonia, Spirit of the Cimarron
By Katie Ravich My three year old daughter Sonia sometimes seems like a curious combination of my husband Dan and me. Right now we are struggling with her resistance to having “friends.” I mean I am struggling with her resistance … Continue reading
Salad Tamate, or, a Tale of Two Tomatoes
Recently I’ve been working on curriculum for cookbook-memoir classes–one to be taught online, another for a local class at our food coop. This has me trolling for ideas among my notes from the “Meals and Memory” workshop for the Odyssey … Continue reading
Did You Feel That Too?
By Linda Lenzke Hazelden’s online recovery site Sober24 provides an online fellowship for people who are sharing the journey of recovery from addiction and compulsive behaviors. The site features “Our Stories” written by people like myself in recovery. I submitted … Continue reading
True Stories Well Told 
Putting Words in Chefs’ Mouths
Continuing my food-related theme of the moment, I’ve blogged on the Association of Personal Historians blog about a recent article in the New York Times that got me thinking about the parallels between ghostwriting and personal history work. Read that … Continue reading →