Have you ever had the experience of spending a lot of time searching for something, only to discover it has been there all along? 

Several years ago, I was experimenting with different writing methods, trying to find one that would combine well with the process of art making and conversation I had been using in my personal practice. I learned a little from each, but was still getting stuck in my own stories, spinning them every which way, and often sinking deeper into the muck with each new paragraph. 

Eventually, I came across a book titled “Writing the Mind Alive” and was stunned to find its author, Linda Trichter Metcalf, had not already come up with precisely the type of thing I had been looking for, but had been sharing her technique since the 1970s, first with her students at Pratt, and later with the public.

She calls it “Proprioceptive Writing” and what drew me in initially was its spiritual quality (candles, music, etc). What got me really hooked though, was an overall match in philosophy (simplicity, questioning, developing a trust in oneself).

As luck would have it, she was holding a class about an hour from our home, and just like that, everything started to click into place for me when writing. 

This image, which I have titled “Linda’s Gaze”, shows how Linda makes me, and I am sure many others, feel when I am participating in her classes. People I have met there have told me her writing method has literally saved their lives. I believe them. 

For me, using it has provided assurance I am on the right track, clarity in how to go about doing what I am trying to do, and an overall feeling of acceptance. Not bad, huh?

I have given her book as a gift to many, and use her as a sort of North Star when thinking about, and creating my workshops. If I can provide others with even a small amount of the feeling Linda creates, well then, I have really accomplished something.