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PORTLAND WRITING: WHAT TO SAY AFTER IT’S ALL BEEN SAID

January 13, 2022 by

Portland writing classes made it seem like everyone in town was a writer. Publish a book and that’s good enough to fill a teacher’s role? Yes it is. Word of mouth got around, a friend offers space, and people pay to show up and listen. And learn. But what do you learn?

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PAIN WRITERS: GUIDELINES FOR A PAINFUL STORY

January 12, 2022 by

Pain writers draw inspiration from two sources: Their own pain. Someone else’s pain. The source of pain is a standard feature. Pain writers want you to feel it. For example:

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SPORTS WRITING FOR THE WIN WITH HORSHACK

January 11, 2022 by

Sports writing is more than sports stories and sporty personalities. Sports betting is another story. Those guys care about sports and personalities, winning and losing, but care more about the point spread. We’ll stick to sports writing in regard to sports and personalities, about the underdogs, not the underbelly.

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CLIMATE WRITING: IS IT HOT IN HERE OR JUST ME?

January 10, 2022 by

Climate writing, climate change writing, global warming writing, are all stories to tell. The problem is those telling aren’t doing a very good job. Could I do better? Me? Hell, no. But maybe you could. Maybe you could tell it so it gets under the thick skin of big decision makers? I have ideas to […]

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DIE WRITING, OR DIE TRYING?

January 9, 2022 by

Who wants to die writing? A yes answer means one thing: Death is a metaphor. Unless it’s s sudden death and they keel over on their keyboard, no writer dies writing. But something does die in a writer who does everything they can to succeed before giving up. Who’s ever done that? One comes to […]

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WHY WRITE IT DOWN, WE’LL REMEMBER

January 8, 2022 by

‘Why write?’ I ask myself while trolling Costco with a legible list, a battle plan against over-shopping. After sweating it out over a hot keyboard all morning I pick up ‘the list’, the most important writing of the current era. “Do not write so as to be understood. Write in order to understand.” The real […]

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THUNDER ROAD ON NW LOVEJOY, PORTLAND

January 7, 2022 by

Thunder Road is a map of the love/hate relationship I’ve felt for Bruce Springsteen since 1975. I love that Bruuuuuce has persevered beyond all expectations. I hate the decision I made when Mary Anne in the Philadelphia clinic invited me along with her friends to see the local phenom across the river in New Jersey. […]

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BOOMER TIMING? THE ‘BETTER LIFE’ CLOCK STARTS NOW

January 6, 2022 by

Boomer timIng started the moment mom and dad decided on a better life for themselves. “The kids will have a better life because of us,” weren’t their exact words. Some of our parents grew up in rural life, out of town. For them, living in town was a better life. Recently I spoke with a […]

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TRICKLE DOWN JUSTICE STARTS AT THE TOP

January 5, 2022 by

Trickle down justice is different than trickle down economics where the rich get richer with tax breaks. In one the results are more visible: People get charged, tried, and sentenced if guilty. We’re not left wondering, ‘Do the 1% really give up their haul so the minimum wage workers in their companies can afford the […]

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GIFT GIVING? HOLD MY BEER SIGN

January 4, 2022 by

Gift giving is such a mixed bag of emotions. From the funny: “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you, this is just what I wanted.” To the sad: “I didn’t know what to give you, so…” For reference, no one wants a beer sign after college, at least that’s the common adult thing. Beer sign […]

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