[The Stage is on Fire] is a page-turner in which, much like life, there are no easy answers and yet each step of the journey yields insight and hope. This work of heart must not be missed!
Melanie Faith
Creative Writing Teacher, Essayist & Poet.
Katie Steedly’s first-person piece [The Unspeakable Gift] is a riveting retelling of her participation in a National Institutes of Health study that aided her quest to come to grips with her life of living with a rare genetic disorder. Her writing is superb.
The Society of Professional Journalists
In recognition of receiving the Dateline Award for the Washingtonian Magazine essay, The Unspeakable Gift.
I thank you … It is the authenticity of your “class notes”; and it is the delicacy and skill with which you present the nuances of classroom life and the actuality of your students’ and fellow teachers’ lives.
Maxine Greene
Philosopher and Education Scholar
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MONDAYS ARE FREE EXERCISES 101—105
Fire. Rain. Earth. Air.
EXERCISE 101: COMING UNDONE
Book of Fire
Write the opening paragraph to the Preface for the Book of Fire. The paragraph must consist entirely of incomplete images.
Blossoms are fire. Mornings are fire. Leaves that change color are fire. A chrysalis is fire. Trees are fire. True friends are fire. Rainbows are fire. Raindrops are fire. Magnolias are fire. Bodies are fire. Bees are fire. Frogs are fire. Owls are fire. Cats are fire. Dogs are fire. Rivers are fire. Oceans are fire. Mountains are fire. Passion is fire. Empathy is fire. Integrity is fire. Truth is fire. Courage is fire.
EXERCISE 102: YES, THE WORD COUNT IS EXACT
Book of Rain
Write the opening paragraph to the Preface for the Book of Rain. The paragraph must be 100 words long and one continuous sentence.
Clouds form, sky opens, rain falls, oceans breathe, rivers rise, lakes fill, puddles pool, children dance, soil thrives, flowers bloom, world turns green, poets poet, singers sing, scientists science, writers write, stone wears, mountains move, glaciers freeze, polar bears swim: the story of rain is the story of birth and rebirth, the earth taking a drink, creation and growth, collective connection and circles, where green meets blue meets yellow: songs and poems celebrate rain as life giving proof of the as if, the not yet, the I am: “Purple Rain”, “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head”, “Blame It On The Rain”, “Rainy Days and Sundays Always Get Me Down”.
EXERCISE 103: ABOUT, ABOVE, AFTER, AGAINST, ALONG, AMONG, AROUND…
Book of Earth
Write the opening paragraph to the Preface for the Book of Earth. The paragraph must consist entirely of prepositional phrases.
According to poets and scientists, we are inextricably linked to our earth. Because of molecules and miracles, we are one. In addition to the known and unknown, our interdependence demands deep and vigilant and unwavering stewardship. Instead of choosing profit, we must choose tomorrow. On behalf of future generations, we must see beyond today. In spite of doubt and fear and cynicism and setbacks, we must live boldly and courageously and ethically.
EXERCISE 104: AND WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF YOU COULD?
Book of Air
Write the opening paragraph to the Preface for the Book of Air. The paragraph must consist entirely of questions.
Is air the foundation of life? Does it function alongside water and fire and earth to sustain life? If we breathe the same air, how to we protect our air? If we know that protecting our air creates healthier people, how do we make decisions toward health? If we invent ways to clean air — make machines that make clean air — in what way can those inventions become commonplace? How can the air we breathe be an aspirational call to connection? How can the air we breathe invite unity and interconnection? How can the air we breathe cleanse and center and build?
EXERCISE 105: THE BEST WRITING IS REWRITING
toward strangeness
Revise your favorite opening paragraph toward strangeness. Or, choose any piece of writing you’ve composed recently and work up a radical revision. More on that below.
RAIN
Sitting with rain means sitting with clouds. The Cloud Appreciation Society manifesto explains: “We believe that clouds are for dreamers and their contemplation benefits the soul”. In that way, rain and clouds benefit the soul. Rain is cloud song. Rain is mind juice. Rain is earth blood. Rain is liquid promise. Rain is stone caress.
Clouds form, sky opens, rain falls, oceans breathe, rivers rise, lakes fill, puddles pool, children dance, soil thrives, flowers bloom, world turns green, poets poet, singers sing, scientists science, writers write, stone wears, mountains move, glaciers freeze, polar bears swim: the story of rain is the story of birth and rebirth, the earth taking a drink, creation and growth, collective connection and circles, where green meets blue meets yellow: songs and poems celebrate rain as life giving proof of the as if, the not yet, the I am: “Purple Rain”, “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head”, “Blame It On The Rain”, “Rainy Days and Sundays Always Get Me Down”.
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About Katie
From Louisville. Live in Atlanta. Curious by nature. Researcher by education. Writer by practice. Grateful heart by desire.
Buy the Book!
The Stage Is On Fire, a memoir about hope and change, reasons for voyaging, and dreams burning down can be purchased on Amazon.
