Writing on Empty

April 1, 2024
Writing teacher Goldberg (Three Simple Lines) recalls how she clawed her way out of writer’s block—a term she’s loath to use because of its “long history connected with fear”—during the first two years of the pandemic. Without a writing project in mind for the first time in as long as she could remember, Goldberg found structure in weekly meetups with a writer friend, and even confessed her struggles at Ernest Hemingway’s grave site (“I dried up after fifteen books.... One came out after the other, crowded to get in line. Then nothing...”). She also wryly contemplated a new passion (“race car driving?”) and indulged in good-natured self-pity. Solace came in the form of reading and spending time in nature, though the cure turned out to be more mysterious. After two years with little creative drive, and apropos of nothing in particular—leading workshops energized her, but didn’t provide a creative spark—Goldberg felt “a shift inside me... of inspiration actually breath in me again.” The book concludes with a writing “roadmap” that contains prompts based on each chapter, but much of the author’s wisdom is indirectly conveyed through her anxious musings on the writing process. Though these can slide into self-indulgence (“Shouldn’t I shut up and make way for writing by people of color? What use do I have?”), they often provide a refreshingly honest look at the struggles of the creative mind. Writers waiting for the muse to strike will find comfort and plenty of useful tips.

July 1, 2024

Longtime Zen practitioner and writing teacher Goldberg (Three Simple Lines; Let the Whole Thundering World Come Home) writes a memoir meant to inspire fellow scribes, which chronicles her life during the pandemic, when she could no longer access her preferred writing places (caf�s, libraries, parks), complicated by an inability to write at all, with no ideas for her new book--a first for her. Meeting socially distanced at a park with her friend Eddie gave her much-needed structure during this difficult time, but that ended when he was badly injured in a bike accident. Finally, during a visit to Hemingway's grave on her way to a writer's residency in her beloved Port Townsend, WA, Goldberg decided that the answer is to write anyway, pushing through her lack of inspiration. Other topics in this eclectic book are Goldberg's thoughts on the internet, her enjoyment of the book Dirt by Bill Buford, and her pain when the Abiquiu Lake reservoir was emptied. She also reflects on her childhood and her complicated relationship with her late mother. The book concludes with writing prompts to help establish a writing practice. VERDICT A thoughtful, moving memoir about a writer navigating the pandemic. Suggest to writers who need inspiration and to memoir readers.--Sue O'Brien

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