Rolling silence
by Adriana
Silence duplicates itself.
Categories: Art, Fiction, Meditation, Writing • Tags: Art, Inspiration, Meditation, Patience, Silence
Tag: Inspiration
Heat and sun
by Adriana
I noticed the sun first this morning followed by the heat piping out of the old radiator. Lightness on one hand and heaviness on the other.
Categories: Art • Tags: Art, Inspiration
Before and after the thunderstorm
by Adriana
Blue walls, red curtains, and gold-framed mirrors that reflect who is up on stage behind the microphone. Clothes damp, shoes soaked, a number of us had gathered to hear the Bennington Writers fiction reading at Cornelia Street Cafe while a thunderstorm raged over New York City. When the storm hit earlier in the day, I watched the sky cast charcoal gray from my perch on the eighth floor at the Center for Fiction. I headed out onto the Midtown streets […]
Categories: Events, Fiction, Reading, Writing • Tags: Inspiration, Mindfulness, nature, Readings, Thunderstorms, Writing
Enter stillness to practice listening
by Adriana
On a stretch of highway near Great Barrington, MA, I was called to stop at a dirt road framed by trees (pictured above). On one side a cemetery hid in the shade and on the other a green, grassy lawn stretched into the sunlight. The road felt majestic like the trees were tall knights guarding a secret passage. And the road’s existence itself felt hidden, especially to me as someone who wasn’t from the area but rather enjoying an extended […]
Categories: Meditation, Poetry, Travel, Writing • Tags: Creativity, Inspiration, Meditation, nature, Poetry, Stillness, Travel, Writing
Books that fill the sky with color
by Adriana
Some books fill the sky with color. Some authors leave a distinct hue, their indelible mark in the space beyond the clouds. When Maya Angelou passed on May 28 in 2014, I watched a gorgeous sky take shape at sunset in Salinas, Ecuador. The clouds stretched across the sky and shades of pink lingered before giving way to gold then yellow then orange. It was her sky that evening, a majestic tribute in her honor. That evening I began a Maya Angelou reading […]
Categories: Ecuador, Fiction, Poetry, Reading, Travel, Writing • Tags: Ecuador, Fiction, Inspiration, Travel, Writing
On habits of highly productive writers
by Adriana
Napping was not on a recent list of habits of highly productive writers featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education but I think it should be. Napping is a practice in letting go of any judgment about doing nothing. When you sit down at your desk and stare at a blank screen you are sitting down at your desk and staring at a blank screen—not doing much. But that’s okay. In that space, the mind rests and reboots, if you […]
Categories: Writing • Tags: Creativity, Inspiration, Stillness, Writing
Allow space to create
by Adriana
I noticed the cow standing guard at a clearing in the woods. He had wandered into the forest and watched as we trekked to an area of moss-covered rocks. It was sometime after 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning. I had led a group on a hike during a recent Jersey City Writers rustic retreat in Mount Vernon, New Jersey. About 11 of us were staying in a farmhouse for a weekend writing immersion. Could we be as diligent and […]
Categories: Jersey City, Travel, Writing • Tags: Creativity, Hiking, Inspiration, Jersey City Writers, Mount Vernon, nature, New Jersey, Retreat, Travel, Writing
Yoga and writing: ignite your creative fire
by Adriana
I look forward to guiding a workshop this weekend, “Yoga and Writing: Ignite Your Creative Fire,” which is being held in collaboration with Jersey City Writers. The workshop brings together my two favorite worlds. It will offer writers a chance to step away from the keyboard and take an extended break to unblock stagnant energy through gentle movement. It will also help get their creative juices flowing through basic yoga postures, breathing exercises, and meditation. Finally, I’m going to teach […]
Categories: Events, Jersey City, Writing, Yoga • Tags: Creativity, Events, Inspiration, Jersey City, Jersey City Writers, Writing, Yoga
Writing from the sky
by Adriana
Take to the sky on a helicopter ride for some writing inspiration. When I did a few months ago, I experienced awe and excitement at incredible heights. My mind’s eye took in the expansiveness of the New York City area as the helicopter made its way up the Hudson River. I took the excursion on a beautiful, sunny day when the views were crisp and clear. Tall buildings multiplied into small squares, trees resembled bushes, and the Statue of Liberty […]
Categories: Jersey City, Travel, Writing • Tags: Creativity, Helicopter, Inspiration, Jersey City, Urban landscape, Writing
