SILVERSMITH WRITING|EDITING

Last night I found out what it means to love networking. Okay, maybe I’m going a little too far. How about, I learned that networking doesn’t deserve the dread I’ve invested in it. In fact, it can be almost fun. I just need to remember a few simple principles. I’m the kind of person who would choose a root canal over a networking event. Seriously. I have a really great oral surgeon who makes me laugh between bouts with instruments, and frankly, I would prefer that experience

Years ago, I belonged to a writer’s group. We had come together after a writing workshop based on the book “Writing Without Teachers,” by Peter Elbow. The book became my go-to inspiration for many years, with its process exercises, writer’s block solutions—and most of all, its respect for all writers. Part of the workshop involved giving feedback to passages of original writing. The leader handed out a list of questions that we were to use for eliciting feedback. The writer w

Sometimes I can be really, really wrong. At a community meeting in the town where I once lived, there was a woman—in her early 50s, I guessed, and new to the community—who was unable to rise from her seat when the meeting was over. I and a couple of others helped her to her feet, brought her to a chair in the vestibule and began asking questions. Are you on medication? Can give us the number of someone to come and drive you home? She struggled to rise, mumbling incoherently,