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Journal Writing and the Art of Simple Living Date Recorded: Mar 18th, 2003 |
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Topic Background |
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| As writers Anais Nin and Virginia Woolf recognised, journal writing is a powerful tool of creative expression, and provides an opportunity to explore feelings, perceptions, and regularly suppressed ideas.
When Marlene Schiwy decided to simplify her life she started by simply paying attention to what mattered most to her-to what filled a real need and what was just clutter. She kept a journal where she explored questions like – How do you balance career, family, and self? – How do you nourish body and soul and still find time for creative expression? – Can you live simply while earning a living? – Can you reconcile the complexities of modern life with your yearning for serenity? – What role does money play? Marlene Schiwy discusses how keeping a personal journal on what matters most to us from one day to the next can be a valuable way to track what is worth our time and creative energy. Once we discover where our own treasure lies, Schiwy explains, many extraneous things fall away, leaving us with time and space for what is essential. Simple living and journal writing both aim to expand awareness and deepen experience. In this programme, Marlene Schiwy articulately explores the relationship between the two, with wisdom and humour. |
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Speaker Biography |
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| Marlene Schiwy received a Master’s Degree in Comparative Literature from the University of British Columbia and a Ph.D. in German Literature from University College London. She taught English, Creative Writing, and Womens Studies in London and at the City University of New York for fifteen years before returning to Vancouver in 2000.
She teaches courses in Journal, Autobiography, and Non-Fiction Book Writing for UBCs Writing Centre . Marlene is the author of two books: A Voice of Her Own: Women and the Journal Writing Journey (Simon & Schuster, 1996), and Simple Days: A Journal on What Really Matters (Sorin Books, 2002) . Currently she is at work on a new book, and has recently completed a Leadership Training Program with Jungian analyst Marion Woodman and her team. Schiwy and her husband live in Vancouver, British Columbia. |
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