Blog

This is the first in a series of blogs by Larksong member and volunteer Brandi Shaffer:

My Story:

Hi! I’m Brandi, a current creative writing MFA student at Southern New Hampshire University. I’m also an intern and volunteer for Larksong Writers Place. In the next few blog posts I want to share a little about my experience with becoming a member of Larksong, about the value of volunteering and how writing groups can help writers develop their craft and build a supportive community. I hope this series helps you find your people, identify your mission, and develop a plan for your writing life.

How I Got Involved:

I can’t say that I was excited at the idea of reaching out to Larksong for the first time. I’m a writer with anxiety who was content in the cozy little world I’d created for myself surrounded by hundreds of books, papers and pens, and my laptop.

But then my MFA professor suggested I reach out to my local writing community and get involved to see what they had to offer. The idea of doing that was terrifying. I was perfectly fine where I was at. Then came an essay assignment that “highly encouraged” it, and I wanted that “A” badly. So, I begrudgingly made my first phone call to Larksong to interview the director at Larksong Writers Place. I was completely taken aback by how that call went. Karen Shoemaker showed me the kindness and patience I needed in that moment. She understood my anxiety and had me relaxed and laughing in no time. She explained everything that Larksong was about, and by the end of our call, I knew what it was that I wanted to be when I grew up—I wanted to be the kind of person who picks up the phone when the nervous writer calls, reassures them, and guides them on the right path that will help them grow as a writer and as a person. I want to help spread the joy of the written word to those who need it most, to uplift other writers, and to help people share their stories. I want to be a part of something bigger than myself—to be part of Larksong.

I became a member shortly after that first call and have since used my newfound passion and direction to put myself “out there” and become more involved in making a difference in our community

Final Thoughts:

So, there you have it, that’s the story of how I became a member of Larksong Writers Place. And before I move on, I want to add that I'm glad I did--and I did get an “A” on my essay! A huge thank you to Karen for her help with that!

Now it’s time for me to get back to my grueling assignments so I can finish up this degree and have more time to support my literary community. See you at Larksong!

What can I say at the strange beginning of this year that writers might need to hear? I’ve been thinking a lot about the value of writing in changing or difficult times. That’s probably no surprise, given that writing is both my vocation and avocation. As our tagline says, Larksong is “where writing happens.” I’m thinking about the act of writing—the specific act of putting words down on paper or into a computer—as well as its role and value in the wider community, culture, history, and the timeline in which a writer lives.
 
I’ve been reading about the Mass Observation project from the World War II era in Britain. The project, which ran from 1937 to 1967, was designed to record the mundane details of British life across every level of class and location. According to an article in Time magazine, Brits from all walks of life were tasked with keeping journals about their lives, “recording the public’s behavior in places like pubs and war memorials, as well as people’s attitudes about topics as varied as football pools, eating, and facial hair... They wrote about the intimate details of their lives as well as their thoughts and feelings about the world around them... The result is an intimate portrait of British life that is also completely individual.”
           
The journals from this project are now considered an invaluable resource for historians, sociologists, cultural and social anthropologists, artists, educators, and literary scholars. As the founders described it, it is “an anthropology of ourselves” spanning 30 years, covering, among other things, the build-up to World War II, the war itself, and its aftermath.
 
As far as I know, there’s no similar public project underway anywhere in the world right now. If you know of one, please let me know!
 
Thinking about journaling reminds me of the book that first sparked my desire to keep a journal when I was a young teen: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. As you no doubt know, this is the journal of a Jewish teenager chronicling her family’s two years (1942–44) in hiding during the German occupation of the Netherlands. The book was first published in 1947—two years after Anne’s death in a concentration camp—and later became a classic of war literature. It wasn’t written for the world; it was a young girl writing to make sense of her experiences and feelings about life. Yet it has impacted millions of people across the world.
 
I’ve been a journal writer my entire adult life. I have boxes of journals filled with the mundane ramblings and earnest seekings of someone who finds that the point of the pen is the most reliable place to discover clarity, wisdom, mystery, creativity, peace, release, solace, and a whole lot of things I don’t even know I need. I write them because writing helps me make sense of life and the times I live in. I keep them because I want to be able to look back and see how things really were. I want to remember my life as best I can.
 
The benefits of journaling are well-documented. Regular journal writing has been credited with everything from lowering blood pressure to improving memory, brain health, creativity, and joy. It doesn’t matter how you do it—the writing itself becomes an act of self-preservation.
 
Over the years, I have taught creative journaling to kids and adults. Larksong has a monthly art journal club for members who are crafters and artists. Type “journaling” into your search bar, and you’ll find thousands of books, ideas, techniques, apps, templates, and prompts to help you get started or keep going. It’s unbelievably easy to do, and as the examples above show, journaling can be exponentially beneficial—not just for the individual writer but for the world.
I recently saw the new movie about Bob Dylan, A Complete Unknown. The timeline covers his early years, from obscurity to fame, in a world changing as quickly as he was. It offers fascinating insights into those transitions. The words of his song keep running through my mind: “The times, they are a-changin’.” That was true in 1963 when he wrote it, and it’s true now. Watching the film, I was struck by how important writing—songwriting, in this case—was to the events and the people living through them. Now and always, writing matters.
 
And that is the point I really want you to take from this: writing matters—your writing matters. Whether you’re doing it for yourself or others, for publication, posterity, or kindling—now is the time to write. Grab your pens, charge up your laptops. Join us at Larksong or cozy up in your own living room. Let’s write—together and alone.
 
We could change the world.

Hope to hear from you soon. 

Karen Gettert Shoemaker
Director, Larksong Writers Place

If you’d like to get a copy of Larksong’s bi-monthly newsletter, which includes the director’s report and the schedule of upcoming events, please register at the link on this page of our website.