Now that I’m in my late thirties, it seems like my childhood memories are starting to get a little fuzzy. I think my brain has deleted some of them to make more space for all the tasks of motherhood: what size clothes each of my kids is wearing, who needs new shoes, school schedules, sports schedules, specifics of who likes what on their sandwich, and what I need to remember to add to the grocery list (shredded cheese! milk!).
The other day, my mom mailed me a few things she’d found when going through some old papers—a few old photographs and letters. One of the items was a letter from my grandmother, dated February 1994, when I was in second grade.
I’ve been trying to remember what was happening in second grade, surprising myself with how few specifics I can pin down. These are the things I remember: I adored my second-grade teacher. I liked to play Guess Who in the mornings at school, during early arrivals. I took ballet class, but I wasn’t very good at it (neither rhythm nor coordination is my strong suit). I loved to read, devouring any book I could get my hands on. I broke my collarbone falling out of my desk chair (and didn’t tell anyone for over an hour because I didn’t want to miss library day). And I’d narrowed down my future career goals to three things: writer, teacher, librarian.
This letter from my grandmother, a writer herself, shared some writing advice:
“Write down your feelings, what you like + what you don’t like. Learn to listen to people and write down the funny or sad things they say. Write what you think about things. Learn to look in the dictionary for words you can’t spell.”
I never would have remembered this if my mom hadn’t found the letter, but I think the advice is still pretty sound, almost thirty years later.
Fellow writers, I’d love to know: what’s the best writing advice you’ve ever gotten?
I love her handwriting. What great advice!
Wow, I love this so much! Writing can be such a timeless gift. ♥️