Journey from the Center to the Page: Yoga Philosophies and Practices as Muse for Authentic Writing » (Revised)

A writing coach, poet, freelance writer and editor, Jeff Davis founded the Yoga as Muse for Authentic Writing workshops and has been teaching writing for twenty years.

Jeff Davis artfully illustrates how yoga philosophies and practices can be an invaluable ally to the writing life.

Introduction Remember Your Body

The Four Preparations: Intention, Time, Perseverance, Concentration 1

1 Put on the Robe: What are You Writing For? 3

2 Show Up & Shape Time 11

3 Stoke Your Writer's Fire 24

4 Ride the Wave of Concentration 33

Setting Out: Consciousness & Craft 51

5 From Pea to Garden: Consciousness & Craft 53

6 The Art of First Drafts 62

7 Unspoken Words, Unstruck Sounds: To Throw an Authentic Voice 75

8 Presence & the Writer's Reservoir of Images 85

9 The Genius of Wonder in Waking Dream 95

10 Rain & the Brain: Embodied Metaphors & Symbols 105

11 Bliss in a Toothbrush: Writing Into Things 118

12 Listening to the Sunrise: Music in Poetry & Prose 127

13 The Kiss of Syntax, Rhythm, and Kirtan 138

14 Non-Violence & the Art of Dialogue as Revelation 153

Navigating Emotional Crags for Complexity 163

15 When the Inner Heckler Calls 165

16 Dogs, Lovers, and Other Things that Bite: Writing the Truth 179

17 A Web of Contradictions: Writing the Self in Memoir, Poetry, & Fiction 192

18 Stories of Scars and Deep Memories: Writing Beyond Trauma 205

19 Compassion for the Good, the Bad, & the Downright Depraved 217

20 Be Careful What You Hate: From Anger to Satire 230

Looking Back and Looking Forward 245

21 Eating Leaves and Other Ways to Re-vision for Form 247

22 Letting Go of Delusion and Control: Revise! 262

23 Friendly Warnings of Inauthenticity 273

24 For Writers Who Already PracticeYoga 279

25 A Writers' Sat-sanga 288

26 A Call to Teachers of Creative Writing 295

27 Yoga As Muse Lab: Muses of the Other Arts 305

Glossary of Key Terms 317

Endnotes 323