{"id":54717,"date":"2020-09-13T09:01:12","date_gmt":"2020-09-13T15:01:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=54717"},"modified":"2020-09-14T15:56:26","modified_gmt":"2020-09-14T21:56:26","slug":"river-writing-a-space-beyond-perfection-and-comparison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/river-writing-a-space-beyond-perfection-and-comparison\/","title":{"rendered":"River Writing: A Space Beyond Perfection and Comparison"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/h4>\n
\"\"<\/a>

Alex Adams Photography<\/p><\/div>\n

The twenty-first century\u2019s first pandemic is in full swing when I video conference with Nan Seymour. We were scheduled to meet in person but, after possible exposure to Covid-19, I am under self-quarantine while awaiting test results.<\/h4>\n

In 2015, Seymour founded River Writing\u00a0\u2014 a Salt Lake City-based collective committed to writing and sharing without <\/i>criticism.<\/h4>\n

Writing without criticism?<\/h4>\n

What good is that<\/i>?<\/h4>\n

\u201cRiver Writing takes perfectionism out of the process,\u201d says Seymour. \u201cThere\u2019s a delicious freedom available to us when we step out of the realm of comparison.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Seymour speaks about unobstructed flow, an absence of preface or apology, and a space where praise (and its opposite) is withheld. The concept is foreign to me.<\/h4>\n

\u201cOur community is committed to breaking the twin tyrannies of isolation and perfectionism,\u201d says Seymour. \u201cWe shun the correction of spelling and syntax. We encourage an unobstructed flow from the river of inner narrative. We offer no preface, no apology. We listen. There is no praise. There is no criticism.\u201d<\/h4>\n

The only response that River Writing promotes?<\/h4>\n

Thank you<\/i>.<\/h4>\n

River Writing\u2019s philosophy is based on principles of humanitarianism. Its execution is old-school. \u201cWe write by hand. We write in notebooks. We develop a conversation with the mythopoetic.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Seymour relates traditional views of artistic creation to the trope of a despairing painter who disappears into a garret and emerges with a masterpiece. Yes<\/i>, I think. We do tend to think of artistry in terms of isolation and enigma.<\/i>\u00a0\u201cWe write and read together,\u201d says Seymour. \u201cWe write to prompts. We write without stopping. We read without comment.\u201d<\/h4>\n

*<\/h4>\n

River Writing<\/i> respects artistic creation as a spiritual practice. This philosophy is informed by Natalie Goldberg, author of Writing Down the Bones<\/i>: Freeing the Writer Within<\/i>. Goldberg promotes writing as a tool for personal expression, self-exploration, and healing.<\/h4>\n

I listen. Seymour\u2019s voice conveys thoughtfulness. She expounds, reiterates, and, effortlessly develops upon her premise: River Writing excludes apology. Participants agree to not comment, and especially to not praise one another. Seymour describes comparison as \u201cjoy-stealing.\u201d<\/h4>\n

River Writing gives writers permission to fail, opportunity to succeed, and a space to discover without judgement. Gail Weinflash, a long-time participant, describes her experience: \u201c<\/span>I can\u2019t imagine any other environment that so gently encourages both self-discovery and an acute awareness of others. We are inspired by reading. We write in response.\u00a0 <\/span>We share evocations. It\u2019s an incredible opportunity, and one I regard as both fulfilling and therapeutic.\u201d<\/h4>\n

I visit RiverWriting.com<\/a> to read about the Collective\u2019s seven agreements: Non-judgment, Shared Responsibility, Confidentiality and Consent, Self-care, Honesty, Listening with the Heart, and Kindness.<\/h4>\n

Kindness?<\/h4>\n

The pen is mightier than the sword. Literary criticism is less forgiving than politics \u2014\u00a0and politicians lie<\/i>. I was taught the insurmountable value of constructive criticism: name calling, flattery, sycophancy, pedantry. I am suspicious of Seymour\u2019s project; I am also intrigued.<\/h4>\n
\"\"<\/a>

Nan Seymour<\/p><\/div>\n

Seymour: \u201cI think of writing as generative and revisionary. When you get to revision, it\u2019s all about craft. At that point, you\u2019re tuning it up. You need good mentors and good teachers. But generative<\/i> writing is about building a certain muscle. Reading. Listening. Uncensored writing. It\u2019s the moment we find and foster voice<\/i>. River Writing is about discovery. It\u2019s about finding voice, just like a piano player discovers and practices keys.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Seymour believes that good writing requires honesty and specificity. She quotes the poet Robin Morgan: \u201cHate generalizes, love specifies.\u201d Then she says that honest, detailed writing can provide an antidote for hate. Words have capacity to change the world for the better. \u201cWriting this way is anti-capitalist and anti-fascist. There is a world we want, a world that we already love. We hasten this world through language.\u201d<\/h4>\n

The collective is decidedly non-academic. It\u2019s entirely democratic. Everyone is welcome.<\/h4>\n

Maybe even critics (like me) stand to benefit from an exercise in giving and compassion. We will see.<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

River Writing\u2019s public reading, Confluence<\/i>, will feature 12 readers. It\u2019s scheduled on Zoom for Thursday, September 17th 7-8pm MST. And it\u2019s free. Register here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Nan Seymour founded River Writing in 2015. She provides narrative encouragement and facilitates writing and storytelling workshops for hundreds of groups and people of all ages: junior high students, writers experiencing homelessness, survivors of domestic violence, and more. Read more at NanSeymour.com<\/a> or Riverwriting.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The twenty-first century\u2019s first pandemic is in full swing when I video conference with Nan Seymour. We were scheduled to meet in person but, after possible exposure to Covid-19, I am under self-quarantine while awaiting test results. In 2015, Seymour founded River Writing\u00a0\u2014 a Salt Lake City-based collective […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1570,"featured_media":54766,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_piecal_is_event":false,"_piecal_start_date":"","_piecal_end_date":"","_piecal_is_allday":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[3828,3829],"class_list":["post-54717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-literary-arts","tag-nan-seymour","tag-river-writing"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/riverwriting.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-01 09:09:12","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1570"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54717"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54717\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54769,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54717\/revisions\/54769"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54766"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}