Really listen to people’s stories. Get the hell out of your own way and listen. Take down every word, everything that’s “messed up” or “doesn’t sound right”. Let there be awkward silence and open spaces. Let the person speak. You just write. Then step back. You’ll have something amazing and the piece will have, more or less, written itself. It’s the Shake-n-Bake of writing exercises and I stand by it every time. Tonight I interviewed my Dad.
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