Receiving criticism, no matter how constructive it’s meant to be, is difficult. Even when we know that something we wrote (or said or did) didn’t hit quite right, negative feedback can be tough to take, not necessarily because it hurts our egos or reminds us of our flaws, although that might be part of it,Continue reading “The Art of Receiving Criticism”
Author Archives: Denise T. Drapeau
Whose Woods These Are
A poem for Robert Frost These woods are mine. I think I know the path beneath the drifts of snow because my cozy house sits near; the land is someone else’s though. They do not see me walking here on every morning of the year. My little dog, he doesn’t fail, with snout to earthContinue reading “Whose Woods These Are”
January
January Look at you, all photogenic, waltzing in with bells on, draped in your fancy firs, with your fancy words and promises of something new, throwing confetti around like resolutions that get lost in the scuttle as the dust settles on the items that need to be returned cluttering up the kitchen. You put upContinue reading “January”
A Rock, Some Talk, and a Walk
I’m writing the second part to my story, a sequel, a story I never thought I’d write. My first was a standalone; it had been resolved, or so I thought. Sometimes things change. Sometimes new stories, stories inspired by life, beckon to be written, and sometimes stories come together in beautifully unexpected ways. I wasContinue reading “A Rock, Some Talk, and a Walk”
A New Page
If you subscribe to my blog, thank you. Thank you for reading my thoughts and following my writing journey. I hadn’t posted anything in a while, until today. I was updating and tinkering with my website, and I inadvertently reposted an old blog entry that, if you read it for the first time, may haveContinue reading “A New Page”
There She Goes
Sometimes we call our manuscripts our babies. The works in progress we’ve been pecking away at for more than a decade. The novel we’ve spent years trying to perfect, preparing to send out into the world for others to see. Recently, I finished the novel that began as a tiny infant, just a glimmer ofContinue reading “There She Goes”
Discovering My Style
I recently enrolled at Southern New Hampshire University (online) to pursue a Master’s in English and Creative Writing. In my first course, Studying the Craft, I’ve already learned so much, and for someone like me, it has been a lot of fun! For a recent assignment, I was given the task of selecting any fiveContinue reading “Discovering My Style”
Comparisons
Sometimes when I read another’s poem and then I read my own, I think that my writing is too simple, too obvious. I think that I shouldn’t waste my $20 to enter a contest that I’m probably going to lose anyway because my writing isn’t deep enough, or it’s too concrete. It’s not award-worthy. ButContinue reading “Comparisons”
A Novel Outcome
I wrote a novel! Yes, finally, it’s finished. I didn’t feel quite as happy and accomplished as I thought I would. I thought I’d burst with excitement. I thought I would leap in celebration. It was rather anticlimactic actually. It was almost as quiet and peaceful as the announcement of the Presidential election winner, whichContinue reading “A Novel Outcome”
Don’t Make the Time — TAKE It
I started writing a novel about 12 years ago. It was an assignment for a second correspondence course I was taking through the Institute of Children’s Literature. I had three young daughters, a new teaching job, and dwindling confidence in my writing future. So, I took a break, from the course and from writing theContinue reading “Don’t Make the Time — TAKE It”
Denise T. Drapeau 