Writing from the Body

A book about spirit, creativity, and the inner life of the writer Certain writing books go beyond questions of craft and art to explore the deepest sources of the creative impulse. Writing from the Body is not a "head book"; it is a heart book, a shoulder book, a hand book, a back book, and a soul book that liberates writers from the shackles of self-consciousness and doubt. Developed from John Lee's popular workshops that have helped thousands of writers, this book offers meditative techniques, physical exercises, and candid counseling--all designed to combat the fears, self-imposed standards, and suppressed feelings that block creative potential. Inspirational qutoes from poems and prose develop John Lee's central message: in order to write from the truth of our total experience, we most return to our bodies. As Lee notes, "The call to write is a call that's received in the body first. If we are to answer this call, we have to feel every part of our lives. In this book you'll learn the grammar of the gut, the syntax of the sinews, the launage of the legs. For everyone who is tired of living life in the little closet between the ears, get ready." Any writer, artist, teacher, or psychologist interested in the creative process will find this book invaluable, a lasting source of hope and power.

John Lee teacher Writing for Body workshops throughout the U.S. and Canada. He has taught literature at the University of Alabama, University of Texas, and Austin College before turning to lecturing, writing, and training therapists and the general public in emotional release techniques that he developed. He is the author of several books, including Facing the Fire, At My Father's Wedding, and The Flying Boy. He lives in Austin, Texas.

Ceci Miller-Kritbserg, a graduate of the Iowa Writers Workshop, lives in Olympia, Washington.