Category Archives: non-fiction

“Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves…”

Posted on January 14, 2022 by Kate Stover

“Be curious” is the advice that I am hearing nearly every day. It’s coming from a wide range of sources:  Judson Brewer (in Unwinding Anxiety), Ollie Dreon (in his blog for college instructors), Kristin Neff (in Self-Compassion), and Ted Lasso … Continue reading →

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Best of 2021: Book Prescriptions

Posted on December 29, 2021 by Kate Stover

As we finish this difficult year, I’m wondering how I can thank my readers for sticking with me. Blogs can’t offer hugs, a place to go scream, a few extra hours of sleep, or stiff drinks. However, I can prescribe … Continue reading →

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“And then learn to be more compassionate company, as if you were somebody you are fond of and wish to encourage.”

Posted on December 8, 2021 by Kate Stover

When you are writing, do you think “This is great!” or do you think, “I shouldn’t have put this off. It’s a mess. I’ll never get it right.” Too often, I find it easy to be with the large number … Continue reading →

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“The island where I live is peopled with cranks like myself.”

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Kate Stover

The essay “Teaching a Stone to Talk” opens with a description of cranky man named Larry who does, in fact, try to teach a stone to talk. Several times a day, he takes a certain stone off his shelf, removes … Continue reading →

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“To cause paralyzing anxiety, is the dream of power. . .”

Posted on November 5, 2021 by Kate Stover

Is this true?  To have power, do you need to make everyone feel anxious?  According to the author of this essay about Shakespeare’s The Tempest, the answer is “Absolutely.”  The play is about an exiled Duke who wants to return … Continue reading →

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“I’m more interested in the intangibles that produce good writing – confidence, enjoyment, intention, integrity.”

Posted on October 29, 2021 by Kate Stover

In the 30th Anniversary Edition of this classic book on writing nonfiction, William Zinsser describes how his priorities have evolved over the decades. Known as an advocate for clear, “uncluttered” writing, in his later years, he grew to value “humanity … Continue reading →

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“You don’t have to rely on reason.”

Posted on September 30, 2021 by Kate Stover

More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle said that logical arguments are always less effective than moving stories. So, if you want to persuade someone to do something, appeal to their heart, not to their brain.  I thought of this when … Continue reading →

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“But then Shakespeare had a thought: What if a character had a conversation – with himself.”

Posted on August 30, 2021 by Kate Stover

Before Shakespeare invented the soliloquy, actors spoke in monologues and dialogues.  Soliloquys are a radical combination of the uninterrupted speech of one person (in monologues) with the tension created by expressing two different perspectives (in dialogues). Soliloquys demonstrate how a … Continue reading →

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“I believe large numbers of people have at least some talent as writers and storytellers, and that those talents can be strengthened and sharpened.”

Posted on July 22, 2021 by Kate Stover

I nearly fell off my chair when I read this statement in Stephen King’s book On Writing. It provides such a sharp contrast to the 20 other books I’ve been reading on the subject of writing memoirs. Because I’m working … Continue reading →

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“Vocation does not mean a goal that I pursue. It means a calling that I hear.”

Posted on July 8, 2021 by Kate Stover

We’re in the middle of the summer, and I’m still in the process of “righting the ship.”  After feeling off-balance for a year, I am turning once again to my wise friend, Parker Palmer. This is the book that I … Continue reading →

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“Resistance is not about laziness, lack of will power, or the failure of intellect and imagination.”

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Kate Stover

Instead, it’s about neurology and psychology, Rosanne Bane argues in her book about the resistance that nearly all writers experience at some point. She explains what happens in our brains when we have trouble writing. As a writing teacher, I … Continue reading →

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“It occurred to me how curious it was that books are so often written about as if they were toasters.”

Posted on May 11, 2021 by Kate Stover

Toasters? In Anne Fadiman’s world, there is a difference between useful objects such as toasters and important things that you want to maintain a connection with, such as books. She loves books. As a writer, and the daughter of parents … Continue reading →

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“I may just be the owner of a small bookstore in the middle of the country trying to argue against the world’s richest man …”

Posted on April 20, 2021 by Kate Stover

Danny Caine continues, “but that doesn’t mean I’m going to quietly watch the world’s richest man relentlessly collect money, influence, and power.”  In 128 pages, he argues for “resisting” Amazon.  Much of what he says about fighting for local economies, … Continue reading →

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“But no less than the daily food we eat, the daily literature we consume can have significant benefits.”

Posted on March 31, 2021 by Kate Stover

Can reading a great book be therapeutic? Every English teacher I know would say yes. Some of us, in fact, prescribe books to our friends who might want help in delicate situations. What’s new here is the idea that neuroscientists … Continue reading →

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“But I slowly came to realize that self-criticism – despite being socially sanctioned – was not at all helpful, and in fact only made things worse.”

Posted on February 26, 2021 by Kate Stover

One of my English 1 students recently said, “I hate myself when I write essays.” Another student turned to her and said, “I thought I was the only one who did that.” Negative self-talk is very common among my students, … Continue reading →

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