Of all the types of writing I could take on, why creative nonfiction? Here's how I came to it. When, during the second semester of my first year of grad school at IUPUI, I landed in my first ever creative nonfiction writing class, I was only months from having given birth to my first child, …
Why It’s Awesome to Get Older
One of my best friends turned thirty today, and I had this plan all day of writing her a collection of hilarious happy birthday Facebook posts welcoming her to the big 3-0, and then I got in a totally bad mood about Facebook, and I tried to disable my account, and I did, and I …
Fingerbowl Maneuver: A Sonnet
In my last blog post about the most influential teacher I ever had, Mr. Wilson, I recounted a time I was tasked with writing a sonnet and utterly (by perhaps only my own skewed standards) failed. That was, I believe, fall 2000. I did not attempt another sonnet until my second year of grad school--eight …
Unwritten Letters
Think Kit by Smallbox continues throughout the year with a prompt-a-month setup, and I suggested the prompt chosen for February, so I better write it, yeah? Write a letter to someone whom you never got a chance to thank for the role they played in your life. What was it about that person that mattered …
Happy Stuff: Sylvan Esso
I LOVE THIS BAND. No pretense. No games. Just talent. Just passion. Just loving what they do. And one ugly sweater--but Amelia Meath is such a badass she'll wear it anyway because it's about the MUSIC. Respect, sister. *dance it out* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_QAwfzsObo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=224M5jVWpo4
Drug Salesmen
"I'm not a drug salesman. I'm a writer." "What makes you think a writer isn't a drug salesman?" --Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle
Book Reactions: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Stillness. Complete, impractical stillness. I don't really want to move much less type this but I have to put some thoughts down. Heaviness. My heart feels like there's a brick compressing it. Did I ~like~ Oscar Wao? In many ways, no. It's a book of horrifying tragedy and injustice. I didn't LIKE reading about that …
Continue reading "Book Reactions: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao"
You’re a Person, Not a Brand!
Don't be mad cuz I'm doing me better than you doing you. --Childish Gambino, "Sweatpants" ++++ I love that song. I blared it in my car earlier. Even though it kind of makes me sick, because it speaks to something that's really been bothering me the past couple of years--the idea that we're all just …
I’m Looking Forward
It's the last day of Think Kit. Boo! I'm really sad it's over. Think Kit has not only challenged me to write daily, but it has also given me the opportunity to grapple with some complicated ideas and issues. In the end, Think Kit has been like a 31-step program for achieving a more thoughtful life. …
2014 Resolutions
Think Kit wants to know: What's one step you can take to support a goal you have for 2014? First of all, let's talk about a couple of my goals for the year, which I'll present here in the form of the ever-popular resolution. I resolve it! Resolution One: Participate in the #Read26Indy challenge and read …
Jackie Lutzke 