The Six-Word Memoir Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Not Quite What I Was Planning’

Dear SMITH: Six-Words from San Ramon Second Graders

Friday, November 7th, 2008

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: nothing brings us more pride and joy when a teacher tells us how a class has taken six words and run with them. Jane Ware teaches second grade in San Ramon, CA and writes: “My second grade class has been writing their 6-Word Memoirs each week and [...]

Six-Word Memoirs: Amazon Editors’ Top 100 Books of the Year!

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

What a year it’s been. First our little paperback book, Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure, became what Time called “a surprise hit of the year,” landing on the New York Times bestseller list and in The New Yorker. Now the six book has been hailed as one [...]

“Urban Hippie Loves Sunshine and Rain”—Six Words in My Old High School

Saturday, October 25th, 2008

After a trip back to my hometown this spring, where I worked with three classes of sixth graders and Mrs. Nixon’s third graders, which created this amazing six-word memoir book of their own, I was asked to talk to students at my high school in Moorestown, NJ. It’s slightly surreal to return to the place [...]

“Mexican and Jewish: I love carnitas.” (A Litquake Report)

Tuesday, October 21st, 2008

“Remember to masturbate before meeting ex.”
“The psychic said I’d be richer.”
“Mexican and Jewish: I love carnitas.”
These were the sweet six-word sounds from the crowd of more than 100 people who crammed into Clarion Alley in San Francisco for SMITH Magazine’s six-word memoir slam during the world-famous Litcrawl earlier this month. We even had our [...]

“Fall hard. Get up. Try Again”—a DIY Six-Word Book

Sunday, October 19th, 2008

As excited as we are bout our forthcoming Teen book and Love book, there are some things we just can’t do—like your very own, full color, fully illustrated six-word memoir not-so-secret diary. Check out this amazing livejournal spread!

Six-Word Video: “When all else fails, just dance.”

Thursday, October 16th, 2008

A lovely and amazing video response to my own Bob Dylan-inspired six-word memoir video from YouTuber missxloverly.

Six-Word Slam at Litquake!

Friday, October 10th, 2008

SMITH is in San Francisco for Litquake, a week-long festival of readings, panels, and parties. We’re thrilled to be a part of Litquake with a Six-Word Memoir Reading & Slam this Saturday, October 11 at 8:30 in Clarion Alley, between 17th & 18th Streets, Mission and Valencia Streets. On hand will be some famous [...]

“Fat man eats pie then farts”—Six-Words in Hospitals

Wednesday, October 8th, 2008

I talk a lot about how the concept of Six-Word Memoirs takes on a life bigger than Hemingway or SMITH Magazine could have imagined. From classrooms to funerals, sports sites to spinning classes, theater groups and churches across the land, six-word memoirs have served as a powerful form of personal expression. Anyone can write one. [...]

“Despair is a funny, beautiful thing” — Six-Word Memoirs from the Amazing Kids at Writopia

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

Across the world, students, teachers, churches, and nonprofits organizations with names like the Hypoparathyroidism Association (devoted to helping folks with a rare medical disorder) have used the six-word memoir to inspire, encourage, and even help heal. We love hearing how six-word memoirs find their way into lives and organizations.
We just heard from the [...]

Haiku Nation–SMITH Mag in Time

Thursday, August 21st, 2008

SMITH Mag and the Six-Word Memoir project lead a story in Time magazine called “Haiku Nation.” “Like traditional Japanese poetry, the new pop-culture haiku says a lot with few words,” writes Jeremy Caplan. “These days digital eloquence is defined by pithiness. … In the book world, a surprise hit this year has been Not Quite [...]

 
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