Breaking A Pledge

http://reflectionsfromthebellcurve.blogspot.com/2013/08/memoir-moratorium.html

Though sincere when I wrote the post above, when my oldest niece strongly recommended "Ghost Light" (2000) by Frank Rich, I decided to temporarily suspend my one year old memoir moratorium. An additional factor convinced me to lift the freeze - Rich has been a favorite columnist for years.

Aside from the supple writing and ample humor ("The persistent though never consummated daily struggle of her huge breasts to escape the captivity of her tight bathing suit was more dramatic than most of our rehearsals"), when Rich describes how his passion for theater took hold at seven years old, I found myself nodding, having been similarly possessed by music almost that young. If you've had a lifelong love affair with an art form, this is a memoir to savor.

Now, back to that August 2013 pledge. What did I learn reading this? Mostly, how to be a better long form writer - no small thing.