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Winter Writing Assignment 6

Click through for Assignment 1, Assignment 2, Assignment 3, Assignment 4, and Assignment 5

Your fifth (and final) Winter Writing Assignment is below. I hope you've enjoyed these weekly assignments, and that the writing helped make your January feel reflective and productive.

"There are writers who write for fame. And there are writers who write because we need to make sense of the world we live in; writing is a way to clarify, to interpret, to reinvent. We may want our work to be recognized, but that is not the reason we write. We do not write because we must; we always have a choice. We write because language is the way we keep a hold on life. With words we experience our deepest understandings of what it means to be intimate. We communicate to connect, to know community. Even though writing is a solitary act, when I sit with words that I trust will be read by someone, I know that I can never be truly alone."
— bell hooks  

This week, two assignments.

1. Reach out to a writer you know who is also working on a writing goal this year. This could be a friend, someone you've met on Facebook, in a class, or at a reading or event. Make a writing contract with that person: a document that outlines what each of you agree to accomplish (i.e., writing for an hour every day for five days a week). Include the start and end of the contract period - for example, three months. Each of you will be responsible for your own promises. At the end of the day, after you finish your writing, email your partner a short "Done." They respond with a short "Good," so you know they're paying attention. Writing is done in solitude, but you don't have to be alone. To see Aimee Bender's writing contract, go here.

2. Write a thank you card to a writer you admire. Write this card on good paper, and send it in the post. If the author doesn't have an address on his or her website, you can send your card care of the publisher's address on the inside cover of the book. Be brief and generous, and honest about why you are grateful that they are writing. Pick out a nice stamp. As you know, the details matter.  

Photo credit (top): Casper Van Battum on Unsplash.