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the writing life

Select a Category A. G. Harmon Alissa Wilkinson Allison Backous Art Authors Brad Fruhauff Bradford Winters Bryan Bliss Caroline Langston Chad Thomas Johnston Chris Hoke Christiana N. Peterson Culture D.G. Myers D.L. Mayfield Daniel Bowman Jr. David Griffith Elizabeth Duffy Faith Film Greg Wolfe Guest Contributor Interview Jan Vallone Jeffrey Overstreet Jessica Eddings-Roeser Jessica Mesman Griffith Kelly Foster Lindsey Crittenden Morgan Meis music Natalie Vestin Nick Olson Peggy Rosenthal Personal Reflection Poetry Friday Reflection Relationships Review Richard Chess Richard Cole Sara Zarr Shannon Huffman Polson Sonya Bilocerkowycz Tania Runyan Tony Woodlief Topical Categories Uncategorized Vic Sizemore Writing

Select a Month October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 February 2008

July 2017

July 05, 2017

The Mysteries of Revision

When a former MFA professor asked me to come to her class and speak on...

April 2017

April 19, 2017

Always Becoming

The following is adapted from an address given at the Seattle Pacific University MFA in...

April 10, 2017

Dancing with Words During National Poetry Month

Here’s your assignment. Choose a poem you’ve written (it could be any piece of writing,...

March 2017

March 29, 2017

My Bad Italy Novel

February is offseason in Rome, so today the city is a little gray, a little...

March 07, 2017

An Interview with George Saunders, Part 2

Beloved fiction writer George Saunders just published his first novel, Lincoln in the Bardo, an...

March 06, 2017

An Interview with George Saunders, Part 1

Beloved fiction writer George Saunders has long been known for his daring short stories, collected...

January 2017

January 25, 2017

To Run and Not Grow Weary, Part 1

By Jeffrey Overstreet. So, why Chariots of Fire? Why is that what I chose for...

December 2016

December 12, 2016

Stopping the Press

By Mary Kenagy Mitchell This is the time of year when we work on Image’s...

November 2016

November 23, 2016

The Gift of Interdependence

By Camellia Freeman This story has many beginnings. It begins with the great state of...

September 2016

September 06, 2016

Of Cookbooks and Lynchings

“Men and women in automobiles stood up to watch him die.” That’s the sentence one...

September 01, 2016

My Own Commencement, Part 1: The Birth of an MFA

This post is excerpted from Gregory Wolfe’s final commencement address as director of the Seattle...

June 2016

June 09, 2016

The Best Conditions for Work

For William Carlos Williams I work best alone. In an empty house. When I’m ready...

April 2016

April 18, 2016

Conference Envy: A Survival Guide

Yesterday I was running around the park in a T-shirt with a birthday party full...

January 2016

January 08, 2016

George Scialabba and the Problem of Critical Distance

George Scialabba retired from his job this October. He had worked at Harvard University for...

January 06, 2016

Autistic Lives Matter

When I first met Daniel Bowman Jr. at the Festival of Faith and Writing, we...

October 2015

October 08, 2015

Brush With a Famous Writer

By Ann Conway I was walking down a concourse in the Philly airport when I...

October 07, 2015

Life-Saving Moments of Art

In August, the musical duo Alright Alright, composed of husband and wife Seth and China...

October 06, 2015

Tale of the Lucky and the Star-Crossed

They say that luck is where hard work meets opportunity. But often the ones who...

September 2015

September 25, 2015

The Harboring Silence, Part 2

Continued from yesterday. The following editorial statement from issue 86 of Image is adapted from...

September 24, 2015

The Harboring Silence, Part 1

The following editorial statement from issue 86 of Image is adapted from a commencement address...

June 2015

June 18, 2015

A Holy Habitation for Life’s Story

By Allison Backous Troy May the Lord bless thee out of Zion; and so shalt...

June 04, 2015

A Place Where We Can Talk

By Brian Volck "Somewhere is better than anywhere." —Flannery O'Connor In my sophomore year of college,...

May 2015

May 21, 2015

While My Pen Gently Weeps

My daughter Gracie was helping me prepare dinner one evening. We were doing the bœuf...

March 2015

March 13, 2015

Receiving “What Is”

With gratitude and apologies to Peter Cole I would like to share this poem with...

March 05, 2015

Remembering Phil Levine

By Paul Mariani Note: We asked the author, one of Image’s editorial advisors, to write...

January 2015

January 27, 2015

Kissing Sideways

“I want to write,” people often tell me, eager to talk about the myriad ways...

December 2014

December 23, 2014

The Ardent Whisper of God

Guest post by A.N. Muia The following post is adapted from a talk given at...

August 2014

August 19, 2014

Susan Sontag, Simon Weil, and the Pursuit of Seriousness

I could stare for many hours at that famous 1975 picture of Susan Sontag lying...

October 2013

October 16, 2013

How to Write in a Sick Person’s Body

Guest Post by Paige Eve Chant Not too long ago, just as spring was turning...

August 2013

August 15, 2013

Genius(es) Wanted

Guest Post By Santiago Ramos Where do literary geniuses come from? Or should the question...