30 Comments
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Jill Swenson's avatar

I'm sorry I missed the salon, but reading Billie's poem vibrates with so much profundity!

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

We missed you but we will see you in a future gathering. I love being in this circle of creatives with you, Jill

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Jill Swenson's avatar

You always elevate and support writers in ways which elicits beautiful creative writing. Looking forward to a future gathering for the spring visceral writers.

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Amy Gross's avatar

Just WOW! I wish I could have been there! This is really amazing.

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Ana Paula Lima's avatar

Oh, how fun! Beautiful and profound. I could feel the giggles and camaraderie in the stitching of the words.

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ej seibert's avatar

Hungry for sunshine and sugar, in the breaking beautiful world. Thank you for this.

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Monika Kosmákova 🇨🇦🏔️'s avatar

The parlor game was so fun! I love what you and Billie made of it. You give out the most generous party favours - I look forward to them every time. 💞

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Lisa Baird's avatar

Simple and innocent in the asking yet intricate in the meaning. Thank you Jeannie and Billie!

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Thank you!!

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TheUltraContemplative's avatar

This is so amazing. The pairing of questions and answers is profound. Once again, Jeannine and Billie I stumbled into a women's book club and I wouldn't have it any other way. Jeannine, you've created a space for love and community here that is precious. Thank you always for this wonderful experience. Looking forward to April and BTW, I've invited another guy to join the fun.

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Yay! Amazing, Steve!

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Andrea Davis's avatar

I’m blown away by what you two did with the “game” results - works of arts became a work of art.... like turning a pile of bones (good ones) into a living thing, whole and, yes, powerful. Thank you, Billie and Jeannine, and the Neil Gaiman quote at the start is the perfect quote.

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Yay. I am so glad the assembly of the beautiful language strikes a chord!

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Jeneane Nicodemus's avatar

Thank you, Billie and Jeannine for compiling this. A beautiful rendition of our game. Such compelling, silly and profound thought pairings. And the skunk that’s been on my mind since he sprayed our dog (twice), almost thrice, even made his mark for laughter. He’s been lurking in our wood pile keeping us all inside!

Thanks for allowing all of us to participate. I had such a nice time and like Monica shared- the spark carried me thru my day. 🌸

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Silly and profound, indeed. Thank you for being there and for your gorgeous reading, which I have loved from the start.

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Jeneane Nicodemus's avatar

Thank you. I refined it a bit since class, but have found your gentle suggestions and instruction has brought something to my writing. I think it’s the permission to explore that opens up avenues unvisited. And Ode to a game? Well, it is how we grieved, but never would I have contemplated this. Thank you, again. I feel if we lived nearer we’d watch birds, trees, and run from skunks together. Thank you!

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Mesa Fama's avatar

So many good nuggets in this!! Thank you ♥️♥️♥️

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Thank you, Mesa!

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Vanessa Foster's avatar

Wowzers! This crackles with invitation. It feels like static electricity. Like it’s dancing on the page and full of possibility.

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Emily Levin's avatar

Right??

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Linda Hoenigsberg's avatar

This was so interesting to read...made my mind work a little harder first thing this morning! Thank you...now I feel a lot more alert!

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

It was interesting to hear in real time too— it’s like a dream!

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Emily Levin's avatar

WOW

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Emily Levin's avatar

We’re using this phenomenon collective power only for good, right?

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

Yes. Only for the good. The other kind is not creative power at all. It’s powerful yes, but it’s destructive not creative. Paul Conti (psychologist) actually talks about that, how humans have this power and we wield it either for good (creative) or bad (destructive).

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Emily Levin's avatar

I wonder when writers are in touch with or aware of that power? Is it in the making or in the alchemy that happens when someone hears, or reads the work. I am sure it is different for everyone, but the collective and distilled nature of this work makes me appreciate it in a very new way. WITD in microcosm.

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

I think the awareness can come in different ways and circumstances, including when writing alone, but it is 100% amplified when in an exchange. This is why, for example, David Sedaris (among others) always reads work out loud to live audiences before publishing. There is an alchemy in the giving/receiving, and that changes the work--I have experienced it over and over and over in the WITD workshop and other collective venues for sure.

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Jeannine Ouellette's avatar

We played around a little— but very little. All the bones are intact.

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Emily Levin's avatar

That’s like saying a cathedral has nice bones. You spun magic out of gold. A million more thanks.

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