A Walk Between Heaven and Earth: A Personal Journal on Writing and the Creative Process [Paperback]

Burghild Nina Holzer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 31, 1994

Talking to paper is talking to the divine. Paper is infinitely patient. Each time you scratch on it, you trace part Of yourself, and thus part of the world, and thus part of the grammar of the universe. It is a huge language, but each of us tracks his or her particular understanding of it."

From A Walk Between Heaven and Earth

Unlike any other guide to journal writing, A Walk Between Heaven and Earth is itself written as a personal journal and as a meditation on the flow of creation. Burghild Nina Holzer demonstrates that the creative process is in fact a large, ongoing movement in our lives and that we may gradually discover the pattern and direction of it by trusting whatever it is we choose to confide to the page. She helps would-be writers recognize the power and importance of opening themselves to the present moment and recording whatever they find there. Holzer's book is both inspiration and model. It will appeal not only to those who wish to explore the creative process as a mystical path, but to all who desire to express themselves through writing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Holzer's first book, a personal journal on writing and the creative process, is a dreamtime meditation on inner and outer journeying--a walk on a landscape of metaphor, on a spiritual path to self-discovery. "Talking to paper is talking to the divine . . . each time you scratch on it, you trace part of yourself, and thus part of the world, and part of the grammar of the universe." Jewelled with keen-eyed observations, reflective musings and prescriptive insights, this is a passionately companionable guide for those who wish to explore the process of writing. In her journal, Holzer chronicles her experiences as a student of the journal form and as a teacher of creative writing interweaving meditations, exercises and travelogue. She addresses her brother who died tragically, her dying father and a child never born. Unbridled and strewn with New Age locution, the journal entries are often fanciful veering into far-fetched and anthropomorphic terrain. But by and large Holzer's prose has a lovely lyricism, resonance and quiet power. Holzer agrees with Joseph Campbell: "I don't think we are looking for meaning. I think we are looking for the experience of being alive." And at the heart of her narrative is this search for the intensity of aliveness, for the tools and writerly craft necessary "to ride the thunderbolt of the moment and feel that it is real." For fellow questers, Holzer's journalistic walk will sound a clarion call to write.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

How else to write a book on journals except to keep a journal? That is just what Holzer has done, exploring in journal form her ideas on how diaries can be used artistically, psychologically, and creatively. The tragic death of her brother during the year she kept this journal adds dramatic tension and depth to her research as she intertwines dreams, fantasies, and everyday life with theoretical and philosophical musings. An innovative, interesting approach to a popular subject. Pat Monaghan

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1 edition (May 31, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517880962
• ISBN-13: 978-0517880968
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,083,862 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book made my writing more exciting and my life more fun, May 21, 1999

By 

[e-mail] David Merritt (Sacramento, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Walk Between Heaven and Earth: A Personal Journal on Writing and the Creative Process (Paperback)

A Walk Between Heaven and Earth is a great book not only for creative writers, but for everyone who wants to lead a more satisfying life. Holzer's journal entries transmit a deep understanding of what it means to be a writer and what it means to be fully alive. I felt gently and powerfully guided by her personal life experiences to break away from the analytical rules that have kept me from writing what really moves me. And my own writing process has become ten times more exciting than it ever was in years of college classes and work as a magazine editor. This book has helped me embrace my own pain and joy in a way I had never considered.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read and you will sigh..., September 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Walk Between Heaven and Earth: A Personal Journal on Writing and the Creative Process (Paperback)

Who would've thought to write a book about the journaling process in a journal format? Duh! Full of epiphany after epiphany and lovely contemplation.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read for Everyone Wanting a Creative Life, June 7, 2007

By 

Julie F. Maloney - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Walk Between Heaven and Earth: A Personal Journal on Writing and the Creative Process (Paperback)

Nina Holzer writes a beautiful day-by-day story in this journal. She is inspiring, honest, and provocative. It's hard not to underline every other line because her words cut to the truth and invite remembering. "A Walk Between Heaven and Earth" is a must read for everyone engaged in a creative life. It will keep you going.
Julie Maloney, Director
WOMEN READING ALOUD
New Jersey