Autumn - a Time for Writing

                                                       


I always liked my birthday is in late  October - a time of year when the heat of summer has cooled down, the air crisp and cool, and colors of the earth  change from shades of green to pumpkin orange, muted yellows and apple red..

There's something fresh, a feeling of  newness as we move from one season to another. For some it is  a time of renewal - a time to start a project, pursue a dream, or reflect on nature's autumn beauty. It can  also be  a perfect time for writers  to find the quiet in a   cozy, comfortable spot to write the story of their heart - a story of history, romance, mystery, memoir or biography.

Fred White, author of The Daily Writer 366 meditations to cultivate a productive and meaningful writing life sums it up best in  his mediation for October 25

Autumn Leaves

    Autumn speaks to writers. It is the season most associated with learning because of the beginning of the school year. It marks the "new season" for shows and concerts; it is also a time of fading, but a fading that is rich in paradox. Leaves are suddenly ablaze in color, as if celebrating their summer flourishing just before they fall and whither away.

    In a sense, autumn embodies the other seasons: it is a time of renewal, like spring; its "Indian summers" indeed  are filled with bright sunshine, although such moments diminish steadily; and its evenings and nights usher in the chill of winter, compounded by the winds that denude the trees.

For further refection White suggests:

    Autumn is the ideal season for study and contemplation, and for writing. Memories seem to heighten as the summer light weakens and the shadows lengthen. The intense color of autumn seem an ironic counterpoint to the tamer greens and blues of the summer months.

The  White writes, TRY THIS

     1. Maintain a list of autumnal images and associations. Descriptions of colorful leaves might top your list, but also include changes in weather, in clothes, in light and shadows, in foods, in the rhythm of daily life; perhaps certain changes in mood or personality as well.

      2. Compose a series of autumnal poems. 

After spending the afternoon walking trails on our wooded property, I found my quiet place to sit and reflect, and write about the beauty all about me. Here's what I came up with:

 I  walk through the woods
 as cool, crisp air brushes 
 against my face
I wear a bright  yellow jacket, 
and  fleece hat
to cover my ears and 
keep them warm
The color of the leaves
have changed from
summer green to autumn gold,
and the  smell of nature
is all around me -
those smells so good
this time of year.
I reach the rim and
gaze  at the lake;  dark 
and silent and calm.
Overhead, the  blue
of the sky isn't filtered
with smog or haze, but clear
and beautiful. It seems
close enough to reach
up and touch
Nearby, a  Red Shafted Flicker
rapidly raps  the trunk
of a tree with his pointy
yellow beak , and I'm
reminded it's time
to head for home