Sparky

LuWanda Banks, freelance writer and guardian of the creative spark, writing for Massachusetts Live has advice for writers' groups.

"Fourth, if you wrote what you felt was a humorous piece, and no one chuckles, it wasn't funny. If you wrote what you felt was a sad piece, and people laughed, you need to rewrite it. If you wrote what you felt was clear and concise, and there are lots of questions about what you meant, then you learn that it isn't clear at all."

Um...Right. Moving on....

Writers are often, and rightly, advised to avoid wasting ink and write large and rambling essays. Well, guess writers should learn from A minor history of miniature writing. And, as a sidenote, if you can read this, you need to have your eyes checked.

And here's an interview in the Louisville, Kentucy Courier-Journal with writer Anna Quindlen ( Her accomplishments are listed here - Anna Quindlen - Uber WAHM ). She saves the best for the last.

"You wrote the book "How Reading Changed My Life." What do people really gain from reading?

When you read … you're able to transcend your world and understand better what it's like to be (someone else) in America. And that's just invaluable because our country has become so fragmented by race and class and ethnicity.

And on a purely personal level, given how isolated so many of us are, reading makes you feel less alone. … I can imagine my life without writing. I cannot imagine my life without reading."

She's right. Guard that spark.