by Jordi Alonso
Talk to any writer you know for long enough, and “writing habits” are bound to creep into the conversation. (And if you don’t know any writers, hang out at Lighthouse, there’s a lot of us there!) Writing daily has long been a goal of mine and yet I find writing every day very difficult unless I have a long-term project or two in mind, which is why I tend to work in series. Series of poems, I think, lend themselves to exploring our obsessions, which every artist has, in some way.
I’m currently in the first year of my MFA, and, in a conversation with one of my professors, during the fourth week of classes, she realized I already had my thesis planned without even thinking of it as my thesis, just because I’ve found myself returning, again and again, to the concept of food as a generative metaphor (both creative and erotic) in my poems. So, to all of you who want to write every day this year––and yes! I’m right there with you––I’d recommend that you find your obsession and start exploring it from every angle, through every voice you have, and a handful of voices you don’t. Don’t be afraid to work on multiple things at once, either! A side-project I want to work on in 2015 is a poetic diary of sorts, where I’ll write three or four lines a day for as long as it interests me and as long as I don't find it takes away from my other writing, and see what comes of it, hopefully, I’ll end the year with 365 snippets of verse.
Happy writing, everyone!
Jordi Alonso has an AB in English from Kenyon College. He is the author of Honeyvoiced, and served as a Lighthouse Lit Fest intern in 2012.
“Resolution Write” is a blog series offering writing tips from Lighthouse faculty and members. We’ll feature posts throughout January to inspire writers who’ve resolved to make 2015 a productive and successful writing year.
