I just wrote my first poem in a few months last weekend while hanging out in the country with my family and our dog. Fall is certainly a fine time to be creative. But the key for me was just taking the time to slow down a little, get away from stuff and look around and listen…

That’s true. I have been spending more reflective time lately, now that I’m not bothered by all that pesky anxiety (I love my meds).

Also, for me, being involved in writing groups/workshops helps because, for one, I’m surrounded by other writers and getting feedback and ideas; and two, I feel almost obligated at times to write something, even if it’s not my best work.

Hey, Lis: well, what I've noticed over the past several years is that, yes: the seasons themselves create unique cadences in both the poems' content and my voice as well. Another interesting aspect is how partial lines or season-centered sequences spill over into other times of the year; and sometimes it's here (in the summer, say) that they (dead of winter lines, for instance) find a new, reconstructed life.

But autumn still reigns as the supreme season.

To the extent that certain events occur at specific times of the year, yes. For example, I write fewer poems when I'm bogged down with school work, because all my writing mojo is used for academic writing. So it would seem that I write less in the fall, but has nothing to do with fall itself.

And actually, I'm writing more in the creative poetry/prose department, but I think that can be attributed to a) personal demons and b) taking Terry's class.

Once I start my thesis, though, all bets are off. (Forgive the cliché.)

Yay! My friends are posting comments! (Said while bouncing up and down in seat joyously.) Uh, I mean, excellent points Jim, Clint and Becky.

I do love autumn. There's something about the death of plant life and the crisp but not yet frigid air that appeals to my brain.

It's one of the reasons I go to Masterpiece in a Day. It's the ONE time of year where I know I'm forced to actually do some creative writing. I'm not a journaler and I'm not the type that writes every day for the sake of writing, so I really only write when the mood strikes, or if I see something that, for one reason or another, inspires a creative surge and I absolutely MUST get something on paper. But since life is so hectic, these moments are few and far between. It's those moments when you are slowed down and have the opportunity to really observe life around you (like Jim said) that really allow for the creative juices to start flowing. But all too often I'm too busy living life and rushing through it to stop and smell the roses . . . and then write about it.

Lisa: One of the reasons I'm taking a poetry class at Butler is to kick-start my writing. It's all too easy to blame work, family functions, and personal crises for taking up your time. But being expected to produce every week sure gets the creative juices bleeding all over the page.