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Writer's pictureTessa Floreano

Panhandling my way through life




The signature line on my personal email is, Wordsmithing my way through life, one story at a time. However, after reading Elizabeth Berg's article, I might need a slight revision.

In her Medium.com article, What It Takes To Be A Writer, Elizabeth recommends a writer needs to be a panhandler: "You need to collect all you notice and then sift through it for the gold; you need to be discerning. You need a sense of restraint, a sense of timing. You need to know when to hold back and when to put those nuggets in; your writing should be like a river, flowing, changing, bringing the reader along on an unpredictable ride."

Oooh, the nuggets of gold is a terrific image when it comes to finding the rights words for a character to express himself or herself.

And so, thanks to Elizabeth Berg for the inspiration, here's my revised sig line and writerly motto:

Panhandling and wordsmithing my way through life

Hmmm...

It has a nice ring. It flows. It makes sense in my world.

Your turn.

Elizabeth's recommendation works well for writers though I believe any creative professional can assume the mantle of panhandler. Do you see yourself as one?

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