Sky and earth reflect eternal values. Inferior concepts fall away like ashes. The wind ebbs and flows under the sky and across the land dissolving words into dust. Don’t talk. Breathe life in. (Tao Te Ching, Chapter Five, Interpreted by Terry Chitwood) Eternal values, like the sun, illumine the land. Words as […]
Taoist Pearls, Wisdom for Writers: Moon Tear
white pearl a tear from the moon –Terry Chitwood String of pearls/ string of tears/necklace of words/ necklace of fears. Writing about suffering, sorrow, and sacrifice terrifies writers, evoking agonizing feelings, painful memories, and unpleasant thoughts. For readers, the above topics captivate them, making them cry, thrilling them with dramatic tension, and surprising them with […]
Taoist Pearls, Wisdom for Writers: Effortlessly
the ripple disappears still lake –Terry Chitwood The ripple disappears by itself. Without effort. Just let go. However, letting go isn’t always that easy. In fact, behaving effortlessly can be more difficult than using effort. Can effortlessness be learned? Yes. Set Words Free Effortlessness is a state of mind. As writers, we need to let […]
Write without Writing
“Intuition cannot be produced. It has to be allowed to happen. But that is just what the rational mind cannot endure. It wants to control everything. It is not prepared to be silent, to be still, to allow things to happen . . . . [Active passivity] is what the Chinese call wu wei, action […]