Monday, March 14, 2016

Day 15: #SOL16- Robert Frost's Writing Exercises


The Slice of Life Challenge is hosted by the inspirational writers of Two Writing Teachers. Each March, they invite people to join them in a commitment to write every day. Here's to another year of daily slicing!


I spent Sunday doing a lot of work for the creative writing program I am taking, as well as my Sunday night writing group. All day, I was pretty immersed in reading and writing. One of my favorite lines I came across was in John Gardner's book The Art of Fiction where he quoted Robert Frost as saying:
"I never write exercises, but sometimes I write poems which fail and then I call them exercises."
Good to know that even Robert Frost sometimes wrote poems that failed--or were they exercises? I hope this quote makes others smile, as it made me laugh out loud!

Happy Slicing,

11 comments:

  1. Melanie, Yes it is good to know that Robert Frost failed. But of course he did! He was human. Still it gives me hope when I try to write a poem. Thank you for your inspirational post.

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  2. Melanie, Yes it is good to know that Robert Frost failed. But of course he did! He was human. Still it gives me hope when I try to write a poem. Thank you for your inspirational post.

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  3. Love it -- maybe I will write something that fails and it call it a poem!! I have trouble with poetry. Thanks for the laugh.
    Clare

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  4. I guess many of us are doing "exercises", and sometimes celebrating a poem. Thanks, Melanie, fun to read this about Frost.

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  5. I am laughing out loud...I know this feeling!

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  6. I am laughing out loud...I know this feeling!

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  7. It is reassuring to read quotes like this from literary giants. It makes me feel less alone (and less like I'm failing to do something right) when I hear how greater writers have struggled.

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  8. I love this quote, Melanie. The great Robert Frost found humor in his own works.

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  9. Thanks for the reminder that mentors can model success AND failure! And he did it with such style and humor. Wonderful.

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  10. Thanks for sharing this, Melanie! I'm off to do some "exercising!"

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  11. I do love that even Robert Frost knew failure. But he continued to show up at the page, thank goodness.

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