Author Archives: virginiazimmerman

This is the computer I’ve had since 2010. It’s traveled the world–Catalunya, the Oregon Coast, Orkney–and it’s been my companion as I’ve traveled deep into my imagination. On this unassuming machine, I wrote three novels and began a fourth. This … Continue reading →

As I write this post, I am at the Highlights Foundation Whole Novel Workshop — Writing the Unreal. This is a week-long workshop involving delicious stretches of time for writing, presentations from amazing faculty, workshops of participant work, and lots … Continue reading →

In William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 55, the speaker describes the poem as “the living record of your memory.” That is, a person lives on forever because the memory of him or her is inscribed on the page. And not just any … Continue reading →

“These fragments I have shored against my ruin” T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land I have a large single-volume encyclopedia in which I pressed assorted flowers and fall leaves over the years. My grandfather gave me the book, and it matters … Continue reading →

I have just started writing a new novel. I’ve written one experimental chapter and have an outline. It doesn’t really seem right to call it a “novel” at this stage, or even to talk about it as a real thing … Continue reading →

The university where I teach has a wonderful program they offer every January and March called Writer’s Boot Camp. It’s a full week during which we are given space and time to write with no distractions–no e-mail, no phones, no … Continue reading →

A couple of weeks ago, I had the great good fortune to meet Neil Gaiman. He came to my university to talk about reading and writing and technology, and he also generously answered a wide range of questions from students … Continue reading →

Place matters. It matters a lot. What would Harry be without Hogwarts? What would Mary be without the secret garden? From Wonderland to Panem, places in books for young people matter to the characters who must find their way through … Continue reading →

When I was young, I was obsessed with the film Chariots of Fire. I don’t really know why. I wasn’t a runner, though I briefly flirted with sprinting during the heady days of my love affair with the movie. Perhaps … Continue reading →

A couple of weeks ago, on February 15, I visited a middle school in Northern Virginia and met with two groups of 7th and 8th graders who are students in a creative writing elective. First, I just want to say … Continue reading →