Do you ever draw? Today I was thinking about how drawing is a kind of writing and writing is a kind of drawing and both are ways of seeing and telling. Storytelling is one of the most life-giving things we humans do for each other. When I draw I see more deeply into things and people. I notice more. I like to follow contours with a pen or pencil, imagining that I am touching what I am looking at while not looking at the paper on which I am drawing. The result is an unrealistic image where a certain vivid emotional truth or mood shines through. Same for writing. Both are exercises in patience, concentration, and observation. It was the great playwright and person, Lisa Schlesinger, who suggested I draw Lucy’s story before I wrote it. A map was the result. A fascinating map through amazing terrain, on and off the page, leading to you, the reader.
–creating writing, translation, and conversation around the world–
Marianne Maili 