What Is the Difference Between Writing and Writing?

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I spent most of the fall talking with students who more or less openly because they were writing for me every week, were acknowledging the nature of their own trauma. It was all essentially an internal adjustment to the strangeness of the world around them. I would say the only good thing we have to look forward to is a raft of astonishing vaccines and administration will restore science to the center of medical care. The vaccines are coming, but they're not here. Human behavior has not altered appreciably for the better.

In Episode #18, we explore becoming a better writer. We’re joined by Verlyn Klinkenborg, author and Yale professor. We cover learning from farm life and work, finding rhythm in writing, and debunking writing cliches.

“So what I do now is essentially help students escape from their education. That's my enterprise every year. And it's always fun, because they escape quite readily. They all know that what they're making in their classes is an artificial product that doesn't actually have any particular interest for anyone except them.” – Verlyn Klinkenborg

EPISODE GUIDE (LINKS, QUOTES, NOTES, AND BOOKS MENTIONED)

https://www.danielscrivner.com/notes/verlyn-klinkenborg-outliers-show-notes

FULL TEXT TRANSCRIPT

https://www.danielscrivner.com/notes/verlyn-klinkenborg-outliers-transcript

CHAPTERS

This episode is our definitive guide to becoming a better writer. In it we cover:

(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:01:54) – Rural life and the “home place”
(00:04:50) – Raising animals and eating meat
(00:11:07) – Learnings from farm life and work
(00:15:35) – Verlyn’s reading habits
(00:28:40) – Verlyn’s book Several Short Sentences About Writing
(00:34:49) – What is academic prose?
(00:40:08) – Why people should use shorter sentences in writing
(00:44:43) – Finding rhythm in writing
(00:48:49) – Self authorization and noticing the world around you
(00:55:26) – Writing cliches that are untrue
(01:06:43) – Writing is rooted in experience more than language

ABOUT SEVERAL SHORT SENTENCES ABOUT WRITING

Verlyn Klinkenborg teaches creative writing at Yale University, and was a member of the editorial board of The New York Times for 16 years. His work has been featured in The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine, Esquire, and National Geographic, and he has authored several books, including Several Short Sentences About Writing. This book aims to debunk general cliches about writing and creativity and remove obstacles keeping us from clear self-expression.

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