Jump Start: How to Write From Everyday Life

In many writing circles, talking about works-in-progress is taboo, as if doing so will somehow suck the life out of them. Hogwash, says Robert Wolf, whose book Jump Start was born out of 20 years of teaching writing as part of an oral tradition. Wolf encourages his students to talk through their pieces before writing them; he urges them to rewrite traditional texts afresh; he is keen on noncompetitive group writing. Anyone, says Wolf, "can produce good and meaningful work." He should know. His Free River Press was established to publish writings by the homeless. He then took it upon himself to teach workshops to and collect writings from people of varying regions and socio-economic backgrounds. The result was An American Mosaic, "America's collective autobiography, written primarily by people without literary ambition." Jump Start's many suggested exercises involve eavesdropping, "sketching" (with words), listening for patterns of speech, imitation, and learning to observe without judging. --Jane Steinberg