Patricia Harrelson

I know I lucked out in graduate school when I ended up in a seminar lead by Paul Lisicky. The man is not only an exceptional writer, he simply rocks as a teacher. I learned so much from him that I felt it was imperative to note his influence in the acknowledgments when writing my book.

 I religiously read his blog because he takes me places that I’ll never otherwise go . . . especially to the streets of New York City and to a music scene that is simply foreign to my ear (except for when he digresses on Joni Mitchell). Recently, he was in the Bay Area and he did a photo collage on his blog of a bunch of Eichler homes that tickled me to death because I dream of having a atrium like those in the buildings this real estate developer designed in the 1950s. Paul is really into buildings which is pretty obvious by the title of his second book, a memoir called Famous Builder.

But what I really want to share with you is one of his recent blog entries called “Alive with Current” in which he addresses the question: why I write! Please go read it . . .

It’s spectacular writing! It will make you feel alive! It will make you want to sit down and write.