Great Writing Place

I’ve just returned from another great writing week at Rhinelander, the land of lakes and loons and north woods aplenty.   My wife and I, and for many years the entire family, have been trekking to Rhinelander since 1971, when I began teaching writing at the School of the Arts.  I stopped teaching in 2003; 32 years seemed a goodly number.  But we still go there, to a cabin on Lake George, where I write every morning and have fun with the grandkids who come from near and far (three from Colorado), (and a great grandchild from Minneapolis) to swim, boat and enjoy the sunshine in the afternoon.

I’m often asked where I write—well in the past I have written in airports, coffee shops, many hotel rooms and even dentist offices.  But my preference is a quiet place that is special—a cabin on Lake George near Rhinelander, a condo overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, a campsite deep in the Boundary Waters of Northern Minnesota, and of course my farm where I can watch deer and wild turkeys and sand hill cranes and where there is no TV, or telephone, or internet to interfere with my writing.

My first book was published in 1970 (43 years ago), and I’ve been writing fulltime since 1993—twenty years.  Although I can still write almost anywhere, the creative juices seem to flow best when it is quiet, the disturbances are few, the view is great, and I have several days in a row to mull over what I am thinking and writing about.

So last week was a great week. 

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: About the only way to get some writing done, is to sit down and do it.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

 August 3-4. Kansas City, Missouri Public TV. A Farm Story.

August 6-7, Nebraska Public TV, Lincoln, Nebraska.  A Farm Story.

August 8, Environmental Educator’s Conference, Noon. Keynote, UW-LaCrosse

August 10, 1:00 p.m., Presentation Villa Louis, Prairie du Chein.  Horse Drawn Days.

August 18, Chicago Public TV. A Farm Story.

August 24, Egg Harbor Historical Society (details to follow)

September 7, Milwaukee Public TV.  A Farm Story

September 9, Byron Historical Society, Eden Town Hall. (details to follow)

September 10, DTS Banquet talk, Deer Valley Lodge, Barneveld

September 14, Mineral Point Book Festival.

 FOR THOSE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING “JERRY APPS: A FARM STORY” DVD

DVD Jerry Apps: A Farm Story List $16.95 The Patterson’s price only $15.00 ($20.00 shipped)
Special Bundle Offer exclusively by the Patterson:
Tamarack River Ghost & Jerry Apps: A Farm Story – List $43.90
The Patterson’s Price Only $35.00 ($43.00 shipped)

Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division St. PO Box 305
Wild Rose, WI 54984

(All items are sold by the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library. They will accept checks or cash, they’re sorry but they don’t have any way to accept credit or debit cards, checks should be made out to the Friends of Patterson Memorial Library.