Maggie Smith is a New York Times bestselling author and award-winning poet known for her deeply resonant explorations of loss, resilience, and creativity. Her books include You Could Make This Place Beautiful, Goldenrod, Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity, and Change, and the viral poem Good Bones, which was named the “official poem of 2016” by PRI and has been translated into nearly a dozen languages. A recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Ohio Arts Council, Smith’s work has appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Poetry, Ploughshares, and Best American Poetry. Her forthcoming book, Dear Writer: Pep Talks & Practical Advice for the Creative Life, will be published by Atria/Simon & Schuster in April 2025.

Dear Writer is structured as a series of letters—gentle encouragement and guidance for writers. What inspired you to write this book in this format?

With Dear Writer, I wanted to offer tools that writers and artists could use but also necessary encouragement—hence the “pep talks and practical advice” in the book’s subtitle. When I decided to structure the book around what I see as ten essential elements of creativity, or the ingredients in the “secret sauce,” I knew that I wanted to begin each of the ten sections with a letter to the reader (the pep talk), and then follow it with craft-focused essays, prompts, and suggestions for further reading (the practical advice).

You’ve often shared affirmations and reflections for writers on social media. Did those insights naturally evolve into Dear Writer, or was there a distinct moment that sparked the idea?

I love craft books and books about creativity, and my shelves are full of them. I return to them again and again, teach from them, and refer students to them, so it’s long been a dream to write a practical, accessible, inspiring guide of my own. I knew I wanted to write a book about writing, but I needed to find the container—the form—before the project really clicked into place. As I brainstormed ways to organize all of the information I wanted to share with readers form my years of writing, teaching, and editing, it struck me that I could come up with overarching principles to help me organize the material. Once I had the idea to break down creativity into ten essential elements—attention, wonder, vision, play, surprise, vulnerability, restlessness, tenacity, connection, and hope—then I was off and running.

The creative life can be both fulfilling and lonely. How do you hope Dear Writer will serve as a companion to writers who are struggling with self-doubt?

At the core of Dear Writer is a belief that creativity is our birthright as human beings. Yes, all of us, regardless of age or profession. Dear Writer is the kind of book that opens doors and invites people inside. I also believe that taking care of yourself as a human being is taking care of the artist inside you. Dear Writer is encouraging, because I think encouragement helps. We’re all stumbling around in the dark as we write (or paint, or dance, or compose), and it helps to be reminded that we’re not alone, and that no amount of experience or success exempts us from the messiness of the creative process. That’s not a bug—it’s a feature.

In Dear Writer, you touch on both the emotional and practical aspects of writing. How do you personally balance inspiration with discipline in your own work?

As I mention in the book, I don’t write every day (unless I’m under a tight deadline) but I do things in service of my writing every day. This way, if I’m not feeling particularly inspired or dialed in, I can still be disciplined enough to tackle writing-related tasks: emails, submissions, revisions, research, etc. my life is not conducive to writing for long stretches every day and really never has been. I’m a solo parent of two children, I juggle multiple professional commitments, and frankly, I’m not always in the mood. I’m not a machine, I’m a person, and sometimes I’d rather go for a run or meet a friend for coffee. But if I’m doing something that day in service of my work, I feel good.

What’s one piece of advice from Dear Writer that you wish you could have given yourself when you were first starting out?

I wish I’d been a little less defeated by rejection when I was first starting out. I wish I’d realized that editors and judges are just people, and that a no to a poem or a manuscript isn’t a no to my writing overall. I wish I knew, too, that every no makes room for a yes. You might not know it at the time, and the no might feel terrible, and you might not be able to imagine the yes it’s made space for, but it’s coming.

You’ve written poetry, essays, and now books of encouragement for writers. How do you approach shifting between these different forms of writing?

Each idea requires its own form. I call poetry my “home genre,” because it’s what I started out writing and it’s what I’m trained in, but not every idea that comes to me wants to be a poem; some want to be essays, or picture books, or novels. It’s been freeing to know that I can listen to the language that comes to me and then keep listening to find the form that will allow it to do its work. It’s also been incredibly fun to challenge myself to write outside of poetry, and yet to write everything as a poet.

You’ve been an advocate for embracing imperfection in art. What advice do you have for writers who feel paralyzed by the fear of not getting it “right”?

“Right” is subjective, just like “good” is subjective. Some of the most interesting breakthroughs I’ve made in my own work happened because something went wrong—or, at least not as I’d expected. No one wants cookie cutter, safe, predictable art, even if it’s technically “good.” I truly believe the only way to make things that matter to you and to others is by taking risks and letting the work surprise you.

You’ve built a strong community of writers and readers who look to you for encouragement. How has engaging with that community influenced your own writing journey?

I feel very lucky to be in constant contact with other artists—writers, musicians, actors, painters, photographers—and also to be in contact via social media and my Substack, For Dear Life, with people who are just starting out in their art. We’re all in this together. The abundance mindset vs. the scarcity mindset is key: We’re not each other’s competition; we’re each other’s support. All of us benefit from there being more art in the world.

Do you believe writing is something we can truly do alone, or is it inherently a communal act?

We talk about writing being solitary, and in a way it is, but it doesn’t feel lonely to me because I don’t create alone. I’m inspired by others’ work, and by the world, and by the people in it, so even if I’m alone when I’m working, I’m not creating in isolation. I’m collaborating. Also, a poem isn’t finished until it has a reader—that is collaborative, too.

What books or writers have been the most influential in shaping your approach to writing and creativity?

I’m happy to share some of the books that have meant the most to me: The Poet, The Lion, Talking Pictures, El Farolito, A Wedding in St. Roch, The Big Box Store, The Warp in the Mirror, Spring, Midnights, Fire & All by C.D. Wright; Break Every Rule by Carole Maso; Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert; The Art of Recklessness by Dean Young; Body Work by Melissa Febos, and many, many others.

Dear Writer

Dear Writer: Pep Talks & Practical Advice for the Creative Life by Maggie Smith

In Dear Writer, New York Times bestselling author and poet Maggie Smith offers a practical and inspiring guide to creativity, perfect for fans of Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic and Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird. Drawing from her two decades of teaching and her popular Substack newsletter For Dear Life, Smith explores ten essential elements of creativity—such as wonder, play, vulnerability, and tenacity—through insightful essays and generative writing prompts. This book provides writers and artists of all levels with tools to deepen their craft and infuse creativity into every aspect of life.

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