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Demons of the Blank Page
From the Author’s Preface:
During the ten years I taught in college, and the numerous writing conferences and workshops I have been a part of since then, I've heard volumes of advice about the technical aspects of writing. …In the conferences especially, there has been a lot of good practical information about finding an agent, attracting a publisher, and marketing a book once it is in print. All this is very good, helpful, and necessary…
But again and again in those classrooms and workshops, I was struck by the fact that very little was being said about what might be called the emotional or psychological aspects of the writing process. Over the course of thirty years in the profession, thirteen book publications, and several hundred articles, reviews and essays…and thanks to countless conversations with writers—some famous, some widely published and admired, some struggling to finish a first book or find an agent, or just earn a good grade on a college assignment—I know how critical that interior dimension of the writing life is.
In this book I hope to shed some light on that dimension of the work, not as a psychiatrist or counselor, but as an author, because I am sure that writing success—however that term is defined for the individual writer—always has its roots in the soil of the psychological/emotional world.
From chapters entitled “Writer’s Block” to “Finding A Mentor” to “Impatience and Rejection”, Merullo covers these topics with the insight, empathy and encouragement of an author who has “been there.” Demons of the Blank Page is a no-nonsense handbook and guide for aspiring and established writers alike.
Merullo’s work has been hailed “happily inventive, precise and musical” by The Boston Globe and “emotionally complex, politically intelligent, [and] beautifully written” by Kirkus Reviews.
During the ten years I taught in college, and the numerous writing conferences and workshops I have been a part of since then, I've heard volumes of advice about the technical aspects of writing. …In the conferences especially, there has been a lot of good practical information about finding an agent, attracting a publisher, and marketing a book once it is in print. All this is very good, helpful, and necessary…
But again and again in those classrooms and workshops, I was struck by the fact that very little was being said about what might be called the emotional or psychological aspects of the writing process. Over the course of thirty years in the profession, thirteen book publications, and several hundred articles, reviews and essays…and thanks to countless conversations with writers—some famous, some widely published and admired, some struggling to finish a first book or find an agent, or just earn a good grade on a college assignment—I know how critical that interior dimension of the writing life is.
In this book I hope to shed some light on that dimension of the work, not as a psychiatrist or counselor, but as an author, because I am sure that writing success—however that term is defined for the individual writer—always has its roots in the soil of the psychological/emotional world.
From chapters entitled “Writer’s Block” to “Finding A Mentor” to “Impatience and Rejection”, Merullo covers these topics with the insight, empathy and encouragement of an author who has “been there.” Demons of the Blank Page is a no-nonsense handbook and guide for aspiring and established writers alike.
Merullo’s work has been hailed “happily inventive, precise and musical” by The Boston Globe and “emotionally complex, politically intelligent, [and] beautifully written” by Kirkus Reviews.
- GenresWriting
140 pages, Nook
First published May 23, 2011
6 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
About the author
Roland Merullo
39 books683 followersROLAND MERULLO is an awarding-winning author of 24 books including 17 works of fiction: Breakfast with Buddha, a nominee for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, now in its 20th printing; The Talk-Funny Girl, a 2012 ALEX Award Winner and named a "Must Read" by the Massachusetts Library Association and the Massachusetts Center for the Book; Vatican Waltz named one of the Best Books of 2013 by Publishers Weekly; Lunch with Buddha selected as one of the Best Books of 2013 by Kirkus Reviews; Revere Beach Boulevard named one of the "Top 100 Essential Books of New England" by the Boston Globe; A Little Love Story chosen as one of "Ten Wonderful Romance Novels" by Good Housekeeping, Revere Beach Elegy winner of the Massachusetts Book Award for nonfiction, and Once Night Falls, selected as a "First Read" by Amazon Editors.
A former writer in residence at North Shore Community College and Miami Dade Colleges, and professor of Creative Writing at Bennington, Amherst and Lesley Colleges, Merullo has been a guest speaker at many literary events and venues and a faculty member at MFA programs and several writers’ conferences. His essays have appeared in numerous publications including the New York Times, Outside Magazine, Yankee Magazine, Newsweek, the Boston Globe, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Magazine, Reader's Digest, Good Housekeeping, and the Chronicle of Higher Education. Merullo's books have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, German, Chinese, Turkish, Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovenian, and Czech.
A former writer in residence at North Shore Community College and Miami Dade Colleges, and professor of Creative Writing at Bennington, Amherst and Lesley Colleges, Merullo has been a guest speaker at many literary events and venues and a faculty member at MFA programs and several writers’ conferences. His essays have appeared in numerous publications including the New York Times, Outside Magazine, Yankee Magazine, Newsweek, the Boston Globe, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Magazine, Reader's Digest, Good Housekeeping, and the Chronicle of Higher Education. Merullo's books have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, German, Chinese, Turkish, Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovenian, and Czech.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 30, 2012
Like most writers, I completely relate to the first demon: Writer’s Block. Mary Oliver wakes up every morning at 6:00 and writes for at least an hour. I have always admired writers who have such discipline. But, I have never been one of them. I tend to be one who is hit by a muse, pump out half of a first draft, and then leave it untouched for six months. Struggling to finish a piece is one of my greatest shortcomings. I have piles of unfinished manuscripts piled in my office that I can never quite find the motivation to complete.
Just as Merullo would stroll through museums, when I’m really feeling as though I have zero inspiration, I will try to surround myself with beautiful things, and a stroll through the Carnegie Museum of Art when I’m in Pittsburgh or a hike through the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia usually do the trick. But, I think that his most valuable piece of advice from that chapter is in the last sentence: “Learning to be at peace with those temporary failures is as important a skill as learning how to struggle against them.” I will begin to beat myself up for not being as disciplined as someone like Anne Lamott or Mary Oliver and I decide that I’m predestined for failure, that I will never finish my story or write a compelling character. Teddy Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy” and it has become my new writing mantra. The more we compare ourselves and our writing to others, the fewer fulfillments we can gain from creating something beautiful. If I expect that every turning of phrase will be as poetic as Margaret Atwood or as clever as David Sedaris, then I’ll never be able to produce anything worthwhile. Instead, I know that I need to be satisfied with my dark humor and combat my reliance on the passive voice.
Other demons like Having to be Perfect, Overconfidence, and Choosing a Mentor didn’t strike a chord as much as How Can They Say That About Me. Learning to accept constructive criticism is a skill that I have been cultivating over the past year or two. Historically, in my writing, I have relied too heavily on the criticism of those who don’t have very good advice and I have ignored the feedback of those who have excellent advice. In undergrad, I had a creative writing workshop course where many of the students had a very different background and ultimately a very different writing style than mine. Their suggestions left the story blank, instead of giving suggestions to help me to create more depth. I hadn’t yet learned that I had to accept feedback, but remain true to my story. I like when Merullo says, “What is valuable about the workshop environment is that it offers an opportunity to learn the necessary skill of filtering,” which is a skill that is essential in accepting feedback.
Demon 7: On Having Nothing to Say really spoke to me. I say 28 billion things a day to my students, so the moment that I sit down to write, my mind goes blank. It’s incredible.
Merullo shares a quote by Walt Whitman that says, “To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.” That reminds me that I ought to be able to write many poetic and clever pieces celebrating the mundane. But usually, I sit down with a cup of coffee in front of a pile of papers to grade and I fall asleep sitting up. Maybe there’s a story idea in there somewhere.
I was reminded of a quote by Flannery O’Connor: “Anybody who has survived childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest of his days.” I guess that since we have all survived thus far, we should have many things to say.
But then, we come to Demon 8: Revision. After the workshop session, this demon has been staring me down. Once I get something out, especially something that isn’t my best work, I really don’t want to have to spend more quality time with it. TS Elliot continued to revise poetry long after it had been published and most excellent writers never truly see a work as “finished.” There always comes a time when you have to kill your darlings, which is never a pleasant experience.
Once you begin to write and realize what you have to revise, then you must actually make time to do it. Again, stacks of student papers, maintaining a household, and too many faculty meetings certainly do not add any more hours to my days. Merullo, like so many other authors, stresses the importance of making writing a priority. I guess that’s what separates those who write occasionally from bonafide writers.
When I got my first teaching job, I had a difficult time realizing that I was actually a teacher. But, then my department head said that in order to be seen as a teacher by the students, you first have to see yourself as one. Writers are professionals who devote their lives to telling stories and celebrating a clever turning of phrase. In order to be at a point where we can battle the Demon of Success, sell novels for $400,000, and develop three year plans, we need to see ourselves as real writers. (“We” meaning “me”).
Just as Merullo would stroll through museums, when I’m really feeling as though I have zero inspiration, I will try to surround myself with beautiful things, and a stroll through the Carnegie Museum of Art when I’m in Pittsburgh or a hike through the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia usually do the trick. But, I think that his most valuable piece of advice from that chapter is in the last sentence: “Learning to be at peace with those temporary failures is as important a skill as learning how to struggle against them.” I will begin to beat myself up for not being as disciplined as someone like Anne Lamott or Mary Oliver and I decide that I’m predestined for failure, that I will never finish my story or write a compelling character. Teddy Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy” and it has become my new writing mantra. The more we compare ourselves and our writing to others, the fewer fulfillments we can gain from creating something beautiful. If I expect that every turning of phrase will be as poetic as Margaret Atwood or as clever as David Sedaris, then I’ll never be able to produce anything worthwhile. Instead, I know that I need to be satisfied with my dark humor and combat my reliance on the passive voice.
Other demons like Having to be Perfect, Overconfidence, and Choosing a Mentor didn’t strike a chord as much as How Can They Say That About Me. Learning to accept constructive criticism is a skill that I have been cultivating over the past year or two. Historically, in my writing, I have relied too heavily on the criticism of those who don’t have very good advice and I have ignored the feedback of those who have excellent advice. In undergrad, I had a creative writing workshop course where many of the students had a very different background and ultimately a very different writing style than mine. Their suggestions left the story blank, instead of giving suggestions to help me to create more depth. I hadn’t yet learned that I had to accept feedback, but remain true to my story. I like when Merullo says, “What is valuable about the workshop environment is that it offers an opportunity to learn the necessary skill of filtering,” which is a skill that is essential in accepting feedback.
Demon 7: On Having Nothing to Say really spoke to me. I say 28 billion things a day to my students, so the moment that I sit down to write, my mind goes blank. It’s incredible.
Merullo shares a quote by Walt Whitman that says, “To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.” That reminds me that I ought to be able to write many poetic and clever pieces celebrating the mundane. But usually, I sit down with a cup of coffee in front of a pile of papers to grade and I fall asleep sitting up. Maybe there’s a story idea in there somewhere.
I was reminded of a quote by Flannery O’Connor: “Anybody who has survived childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest of his days.” I guess that since we have all survived thus far, we should have many things to say.
But then, we come to Demon 8: Revision. After the workshop session, this demon has been staring me down. Once I get something out, especially something that isn’t my best work, I really don’t want to have to spend more quality time with it. TS Elliot continued to revise poetry long after it had been published and most excellent writers never truly see a work as “finished.” There always comes a time when you have to kill your darlings, which is never a pleasant experience.
Once you begin to write and realize what you have to revise, then you must actually make time to do it. Again, stacks of student papers, maintaining a household, and too many faculty meetings certainly do not add any more hours to my days. Merullo, like so many other authors, stresses the importance of making writing a priority. I guess that’s what separates those who write occasionally from bonafide writers.
When I got my first teaching job, I had a difficult time realizing that I was actually a teacher. But, then my department head said that in order to be seen as a teacher by the students, you first have to see yourself as one. Writers are professionals who devote their lives to telling stories and celebrating a clever turning of phrase. In order to be at a point where we can battle the Demon of Success, sell novels for $400,000, and develop three year plans, we need to see ourselves as real writers. (“We” meaning “me”).
July 1, 2013
Thank you Sterling Watson (again) for suggesting I read this wonderful book. If you are a writer or think you might be one, then you should read this book and probably keep it nearby when one of the demons strikes.
Roland Merullo has written the kind of book which can be just the right medicine for what ever ails you in your writing life. It's organized by lists of possible demons from writer's block through envy to success (yes, success has done a few writers in sometimes for a while, sometimes forever). You can read the book straight through or just jump to the section dealing with your particular demon du jour much as you might go to the pharmacy section and look for decongestants when you have a cold, and quickly find the remedy you need to send that demon packing so you can get back to work.
Thank you Roland!
Roland Merullo has written the kind of book which can be just the right medicine for what ever ails you in your writing life. It's organized by lists of possible demons from writer's block through envy to success (yes, success has done a few writers in sometimes for a while, sometimes forever). You can read the book straight through or just jump to the section dealing with your particular demon du jour much as you might go to the pharmacy section and look for decongestants when you have a cold, and quickly find the remedy you need to send that demon packing so you can get back to work.
Thank you Roland!
July 21, 2013
I chose to read this because I loved the author's book, "Breakfast With the Buddha." It's thoughtful and wise as I expected. The chapter that details the care a writer needs to take when soliciting feedback makes perfect sense and will save relationships, if heeded.
It's a book I'm certain to re-read over the years of my writing life.
It's a book I'm certain to re-read over the years of my writing life.
February 9, 2016
This book is an excellent read for anyone who is involved in creative, skill based activity. Were I a writer, I would probably read it often. It is similar to another of his books, Passion for Golf, in that the spiritual journey that occurs as one pursues a passion, avocation, or loved vocation is ultimately more important than anything else. Wise thoughts from a wise man.
September 26, 2014
Roland Merullo is my newest favorite author. This is great. About writing. If you write, read it. If you read, read it.
March 20, 2015
Great advice and encouragement for writers who are stalled.
May 3, 2017
Demons of the Blank Page deserves a permanent place on a writer's nightstand. The author is encouraging, candid and engaging. I will return to his thoughtful essays in times when I need to be reminded that most writers are haunted by some if not all of the demons Merullo addresses. While the author does teach creative writing this book is more about navigation and mindfulness than craft. Having enjoyed his fiction, I found this to be a perfect companion.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews