Table of Contents
Introduction: The Personal Essay, Here and Now 1
Part 1 Writing The Essay
1 The Gentle Art of the Personal Essay 4
2 The Personal (Not Private) Essay 7
3 Writing the Memoir Essay 26
4 The Woolf and the Moth 38
5 Writing the Contemplative Essay 51
6 A Closer Look: "Leisure," by Agnes Repplier 59
7 Pursuing Mental Rabbits 75
8 Writing the Lyric Essay 92
9 Of Conflict 99
10 A Closer Look: "Ah Wilderness!" Dinty W. Moore 113
11 Writing the Spiritual Essay 132
12 Who Am I Today? 139
13 Writing the Gastronomical Essay 152
14 Writing the Humorous Essay 159
15 A Closer Look: "Pulling Teeth," Dinty W. Moore 166
16 Write What you Wish you Knew 172
17 Writing the Nature Essay 186
18 Writing the Travel Essay 193
Part 2 Reaching Readers
19 On a Regular Writing Routine 200
20 Blogging and the Essay 208
21 Red Light, Green Light: Tips for Conquering Writer's Block 214
22 On Becoming an Excellent Rewriter 219
23 On Publication, Rejection, and Being Stubborn 226
Appendix A "Of Idle People who Rove About" Dinty W. Moore 234
Appendix B Recommended Readings for Writers 245
Appendix C Web Sites for Essay Writers 251
Permissions 256
Index 258