What am I supposed to give Anthony as a wedding gift? I asked Kristin, my bridesmaid and person-who-was-married. I mean, what kinds of things do brides give their grooms? I was thinking of hiring someone to clean the house before we left for the honeymoon so wed come back to a spotless house. Is that a good wedding gift?
Um, no, she said gently, so as not to make me feel like an idiot. It should be something personal. Like, you could paint him a picture, or make a scrapbook, or write him a poem...
A poem? Why, I had at least a dozen poems Id written about him that hed never seen. And if I wrote a few more, Id have a whole chapbook!
Thats exactly what I did. Over the next couple of months, I wrote more poems. I wrote the final one the day before our wedding, capturing my feelings on the eve of our marriage. Then I printed them out, three-hole-punched them, made a cardstock cover, and tied the pages together with ribbon.
On our wedding day, I took him aside after our ceremony and read him the last poem. It was a perfect gift.
But you dont have to wait for such a monumental occasion to use writing as a gift. One of my friends writes childrens books and illustrates them, then gives them to her grandkids on their birthdays. A successful greeting card publisher started out her business because she used to write original cards for all of her family and friendsthey loved them so much that they encouraged her to offer her sentiments to the masses.
Ive also donated personal essays to anthologies, just so I could give the book as a gift to the person the essay was about. I wrote a love letter to Anthony and sent it off to be published in the anthology Love Letters of a Lifetime, then gave it to him for Valentines Day.
A poem I wrote for my grandmother was made into a plaque by the James Lawrence Company. A poem to my mother was made into a plaque as well, which I gave her for Mothers Day.
For my bridal shower, a family friend gave me two journals: one for Anthony, one for me. On the card, she wrote her instructions: We were to write in our journals every day, and exchange them on our first anniversary.
Your words dont have to be published to be gifts. You can design your own prints, cards, banners, and books on your computer, or go truly hand-made and pick up a pack of construction paper and markers.
If you want to get fancy, you can hire an artist to make you a cover or design your work for you. Finding them couldnt be simpler: try Googling illustrators, graphic designers, or artists and see for yourself!
You may write and self-publish your family history as a gift for all your relatives and future generations. Print-on-demand companies make this an affordable option if you shop around and do away with the extras.
You may use a program like Greetings Workshop to design a calendar. You can insert your own photos and poems or short sentiments, and even write in your own imaginative holidays.
Write your own romance, starring you and your significant other, as an anniversary gift. (Could be a short story, or a novella if youre feeling ambitious!)
Write a story to be read every Christmas as a new family tradition.
Write an inspirational poem for a relative whos in the hospital.
Write a limerick to stick in your daughters lunchbox.
At the local printer, a personalization shop, or several places online, you can have your words made up into a t-shirt, mug, poster, bumper sticker, magnet, or plaque. Its wonderful to find that strangers enjoy your published words, but it can be even nicer to find that your words can light up your childrens eyes, or your spouses, or your parents. A gift of your talent and your heart is generous, and more meaningful than anything you could get at the local mega-mall. Spend some time today writing for someone you love.
About The Author
Jenna Glatzer is the editor-in-chief of Absolute Write (www.absolutewrite.com). She has written for hundreds of national and online magazines, and her latest book is MAKE A REAL LIVING AS A FREELANCE WRITER, which you can find at www.jennaglatzer.com. Find out how to get a FREE editors' cheat sheet with this book!
Copyright 2004 Jenna Glatzer. All rights reserved.
This article may be freely reprinted as long as my bio and copyright remain in tact.
Sit back, and imagine what it feels like to be... Read More
1. What Is A Premise?A premise is the point you... Read More
No matter what you are writing, the first priority is... Read More
I went to school to be a teacher. In fact,... Read More
At some point along the way, most of us have... Read More
You wrote a tips booklet. Maybe more than one. Oh... Read More
Recently I was watching the Oprah show and it was... Read More
Clustering, also called Mind Mapping, is a great way to... Read More
What is a prologue? When should you use one? Should... Read More
[When I was a nineteen-year-old high school student and budding... Read More
Joanne Kathleen Rowling was born in Chipping Sodbury,England in 1965.... Read More
Whenever you sit down to plot a story (or even... Read More
"If you want to change your life," Harry Beckwith wrote... Read More
Wired Online has recently announced its plans to drop capitalization... Read More
Ever wondered how the most successful children's book writers get... Read More
Write Right - You have an all important business letter... Read More
A few days ago, I critiqued a chapter for a... Read More
What am I going to write about?Which topic is the... Read More
Is your book nearly finished, finished, published, or even in... Read More
At first, I noticed that I could have written many... Read More
During the years that I've been teaching writing and participating... Read More
As you set out to create your first niche non-fiction... Read More
Are you ready to abandon your short stories? Before you... Read More
Self-examination is brutally honest. Self-indulgence is brutally maudlin.Writing requires the... Read More
Paulo Coelho was born on August 24th 1947 in Rio... Read More
Do you have a problem creating a focus in your... Read More
Creating written documents reveals so much about you and your... Read More
Griselda spent hours polishing up her resume. No detail was... Read More
During the past few months I have received many questions... Read More
Q: How do I expand on an idea without getting... Read More
(Skip directly to ten for the fastest shortcut!)Like any field,... Read More
One of the most common weaknesses I see in day-to-day... Read More
When you write for international audiences, mainly directly in English,... Read More
In the words of Aristotle, "happiness is self contentedness helping... Read More
I am sure that at in some era, at some... Read More
You know, I really hate it when someone catches me... Read More
In most aspects of business, we will be expected to... Read More
You have just completed a draft of an article. It... Read More
Dr. Phil's Life Strategies, #1 New York Times Bestseller catches... Read More
9 out of 10 professionals and small business owners have... Read More
When you run an online agency for freelance writers, editors... Read More
And a dreadful thing from the cliff did spring, and... Read More
PASSED, PASTPassed is the past tense of pass. Past means... Read More
Want to write your book? But, need a blueprint on... Read More
Balance your life ... Read More
Interesting characters that readers care about are the most important... Read More
Plotting a book can seem an overwhelming task when you're... Read More
Writers are notorious collectors of slips of paper. They tear... Read More
1. Become an EavesdropperListen carefully to the way people REALLY... Read More
Writer's forums are bustling with debate over whether or not... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?How we usually begin the preparation stage... Read More
First drafts are for getting down the ideas. Anna Jacobs... Read More
Dave, I just got a contract for a book... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?Writing is a creative process and how... Read More
Human beings seem to be born with a gene for... Read More
If you are like most writers, you're constantly searching for... Read More
If you are a serious writer who wants to publish... Read More
Lately I've been noticing an odd trend amongst the freelance... Read More
Have you ever had a student write to tell you... Read More
As writers, we initially tend to be either more cerebral... Read More
Connectors -- conjunctions, punctuation, and transitional phrases -- allow readers... Read More
The urge to write fiction seems God given for some,... Read More
It turns out that "tips and templates on how to... Read More
In large publishing houses, many manuscripts penned by first-time authors,... Read More
In my ten years as an advertiser, I've encountered plenty... Read More
Some writers complain that writing is arduous work requiring long... Read More
Writing |