This episode explores the art of flash writing with author Jane Hertenstein, who shares how short, meaningful stories can capture powerful moments from our lives. She discusses how flash writing is accessible to writers of all experience levels and encourages listeners to find inspiration in everyday experiences. The conversation celebrates personal storytelling and the impact of sharing our unique voices.

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Lansing Community College Library

You are listening to Written in the Stars: Books and Beyond, where hosts from the LCC Library sit down with writers, publishers, entrepreneurs and literary enthusiasts of all types. Join us, as we explore the very heart of the written word.

Welcome to Written in the Stars Books and Beyond. I'm John Szilagyi, and beside me is my co host, Robin Moore.

Hello, everyone.

Today we are talking with Jane Hertenstein. Jane is an author of many genres. She has written novels, middle grade book, YA book, short stories, nonfiction, memoirs, and more.

Today we will talk with Jane about her work, but especially about the flash memoir writing process. Jane, thank you very much for being here.

Thank you. It's a very hot day, so this is a great place to be. Yes, it is.

So, as I mentioned in the intro, you've written a lot of different types of writing. Fiction, nonfiction, short stories, novels. But you have written a lot about flash memoirs. Can you tell us what is a flash memoir?

Well, let's first talk about flash. It might be familiar to a lot of your listeners, but for flash is a form. It can be applied to any genre. But it's short.

Just think of it as like haiku almost, and the length just depends. But, you know, the flash is just an approach to, you know, different ways of writing.

And if people just want to take it in small bites, then flash is a way to approach that page.

Hey, so about these workshops. I'm curious about the workshops you offer. What should folks expect from the workshop? And where can people learn about your workshops?

They're really informal. I would like to be booked for them. So sometimes I'll approach a library or a senior center. I just did something at the Kalamazoo library. Very nice.

And I had maybe like 30 participants. But it's not something like I go out and organize too much. If people are interested, I mean, they can just google me.

I have different platforms at different sites and just contact me via email and we can set something up. But generally, do they have to be for people who are intentionally writers?

No, it can be for people who want to just get down their family story, their family secrets. It can be for people who are very intentional about writing and publishing their particular story. It's just a way to, you know, help facilitate that.

Yeah.

And we do have some writing that's part of it. And I can make it an hour. I can make it, you know, half a day. It just sort of depends on the group.

So is this a form of journaling?

Possibly, yes, I talk about that.

You know, Janet Cameron, she does the morning pages, and so she you know, let's say you wake up first thing in the morning before you even get all your thoughts in your head. Just putting them down on paper is a way of maybe waking up, having your coffee. Just a morning routine.

That's a nice way to do it, you know, keeping things small.

Yeah, yeah. And I say that because I journal and it sounded like a form of journaling, John.

So, yeah, kind of a follow up question about journaling, but just about like flash writing as well.

And you were talking about the flash, the workshops not necessarily being for people who are professional or highly intentional writers, but folks who might be writing for fun or maybe never even written at all. It seems like flash would work very well for writers of that level of experience.

Is that what you found or like, what audience does it work well with?

Well, definitely. Another thing I just want to point out with flash is because you approach it in bite sized pieces, you don't have to have that epic story.

Like a lot of people want to stand up and tell this big story that has a big turn. And this is why I am who I am today. You know, because of that promotion. You know, I met that celebrity on the street corner. This is more ordinary.

It's. It's almost like you're laundry, you know, or, or your grocery list. Yeah, it's. It's working more organically with things.

One of the books, and I didn't bring it. I had started something called Hot Flash Friday, maybe because I'm a woman Hot Flash.

But I wanted to throw out prompts and also work with people on prompts just to get them thinking.

Yeah.

I used to do this at a homeless shelter in Chicago that I worked at and volunteered. At one time I had a prompt and it went over very well in a lot of psychological ways with people. And they talked about what's under the stairs.

So like literally or metaphorically, I don't know.

You take it. You take it.

Yeah, right. I love that.

And sometimes it doesn't matter, you know, if it's, it's. It's still there and in your psyche and you're putting it out on paper.

But anyway, it's just these prompts, they're not again, supposed to be, you know, about getting all the trauma out or anything like that. It could just even be, you know, that's where my dad kept the Christmas presents, you know.

Yeah. So what are some examples of prompts that can get folks writing?

I worked with a group in Winnetka and we did Christmas and a lot of my participants and this is Winnetka, Illinois, were Jewish, but still they had memories associated with Christmas. So that was one that we talked about. And for some people, it brings up a lot of good memories. But then there's also a lot of sadness and stuff.

Maybe missing family members or something like that. So that's a good one, because you want to hit. Oh, driving, Learning to drive. That brought up a lot, too.

Yeah.

An interesting book.

But see, there's other things that sort of fold into that.

Like he was with his aunt and they were going into a department store and just all the other things, the grandeur, the newness of the experience, the modern ness of the escalator. So there's just different things that play into these ordinary experiences that can lend themselves to a short, short piece.

Wow.

Yeah.

I wanted to go back and actually talk about another piece that you mentioned, especially when you were in Chicago and that was working at a homeless shelter and with that population. And you even wrote a book called Orphan Girl that was about, I believe, a woman who was homeless.

Yeah, I didn't meet her at the shelter. She actually would pass in front of our gate, the fence, and we'd invite her into the yard and we'd sit and chat.

And from there we probably knew each other a decade. And she'd always say to me, I have a story to tell you. I have a story to tell you.

And just like today being a hot day, this was considered one of those infamous hot days in Chicago. Come to find out, about 800 people would pass because of the heat, but it was just stifling hot. But I didn't know that at the time.

We had set up an appointment to meet and talk, and I had a recorder. And she comes in with her cart, because she always had her cart. She was never homeless per se, as I knew her, but more of a bag lady.

And she came in and she had this gray washcloth. It wasn't originally gray. And she'd wipe her neck and she had, like, bugs crawling in and out of this stuff on her cart.

And I just thought, oh, let's just get this. Let's get going. And so I can get done with this.

And as soon as I turned on the tape recorder and she began, she transported me to another place, another time. And we continued our recordings for 12 months. And at the end of that time, she said, jane, I'm going to die.

And by that time, she had me eating out of her hand. And I said, win, Marie, when are you going to die? She said, I don't know, but soon. And within a couple months, she did pass.

Wow.

But she used to play the piano at the homeless shelter during our feeding time. So. Yeah.

Wow.

Well, that's a. It's a. It's a really great story. And it was great that you were able to capture her story as well, and.

But I almost dismissed it.

Yeah, you know, I heard that in your. What you were saying. You almost did, but I'm glad you were able to capture her story.

Right, right. And in a way, the flash method is also part of this because of.

And maybe it's her oral, the way she delivered it, but there was just, you know, we would get down this snippet, then this snippet, and they really did sort of correlate, sort of like beads and a lady's necklace. You could go from one to the other almost seamlessly and get the whole story.

That kind of goes to what my next question was going to be, too.

We talked about, you know, other writers using flash, but I wanted to ask, too, about you using it in your writing and how you use flash in your writing.

I'm a terrible writer. I mean, I don't know. I think if you think you're great, sometimes that's good, too.

But I just feel like I need help a lot or a push or little tips or some way just to get pushed, you know, into doing it. So it's a way to trick myself. I can sit down and I'll just say, well, here's another reference here, Montaigne.

I forget the time period, but he was a Frenchman. His parents had this vineyard. He grew up in luxury and wealth, and he really didn't have to work.

And he would go up to, you know, the Garret or whatever and just write. And he wrote. Even if he didn't have children, he would write about parenting. He would write about anything that crossed his mind.

And the French word for this is essay attempts. So that's another thing I just say, all I have to do is try. And I'll even with my file go, try one, try two. So it's a way to trick yourself.

You just say, I'm just going to attempt. I'm just going to assay. And with him, he just got all of his thoughts out. That's great. He'd go down and have his. Someone would prepare his lunch.

So it's not like you have to put it all out there, the heart, the soul, the greatness. You can sort of be bad, you can be terrible. You can write about the laundry.

I've written about my tea kettle because it's a nice teakettle and I love it. These are.

And if you think about even how, you know, the Japanese approached haiku, you know, what is this, like a frog on a lily pad in the spring rain or something like that.

And you're like, these are not epic moments, moments, but they center you and they really show a perspective and people keep coming back to them hundreds of years later.

It, it seems like a lot of the flash writing can be like capturing the small moments in life. And although, you know, you were saying they're not necessarily epic, like that's kind of what makes life makes up life.

So I was wondering if that's what you found too, that, you know, capturing these small moments has helped you reflect in any way or has helped you center yourself in some way. Have you found that as you kind of write or focus on the small moments in life?

Well, they're connections.

I'm sitting across from Robin and as soon as I said learning to drive, she was like, yes, we can all remember, you know, either you had a parent in the car who was just, you know, heavy handed, telling you what to do, making you cry, or it was just terrifying, you know, or you are the parent. Yes. So it creates connections with your reader.

Yes.

If everything is open, over the top, and let me just say exotic, that's interesting. But after a while, the reader doesn't have an anchor with that story because they don't exactly know where to put themselves.

They're more just observing words on a page.

I mean, I come to writing for so many different reasons, but even historic fiction, there are moments in that historic fiction that feel like you got me, you know, you understand my heart. So I think with the flash in the ordinaryness of it, we can also think about making connections with our readers or, you know, our family, ourselves.

Yes.

So I have a follow up question that you kind of asked, so I'll just kind of rephrase your question. You, you said you come to writing for lots of different reasons or why you come to writing is for many different reasons.

So what are some of the reasons that you do come to Writing. What makes you want to be a writer? What makes you want to write?

Now, this is a personal question, right?

Yes. This is a personal question for you.

I actually don't know. I remember as a child, I really wanted to read, and I was a slow reader and I loved books and I loved writing.

And even the intro to Written in the Stars, it's about that part, and that is my personality. Words, writing books. I have different books that are signposts for my life. I can think back to an age, like I was just thinking this morning.

Again, flash memoir that summers were meant for Nancy Drews.

Yes.

Sitting on the back porch, that glass of tea, sweating right there, and just reading them one after another. And you even knew you could skip chapter two because it was a recap. But just those books.

And then there's other times where you stepped out of the Nancy Drew and you discovered the Outsiders and other books or.

Yeah. Judy Blum. For me.

Yes. I was about to say, hey, got it. It's me, Margaret. So it's about these moments also for me that made me want to put down words, too.

Again, I don't know if I'm doing the best job. I keep doing it, though.

I just came out with this book, Woman of a Certain Age, which is sort of a euphemism, but people think it's about just older women, but it's. Every woman is of a certain age, and it's short stories about women.

And I also include a bit of Flash in that, too, so that people can get a sense of how the shorty can also have impact.

I love that. I just want to. I'm thinking about your motto, your. Your life motto. You want me to read it? I can.

Okay.

Do everything with your one wild and precious life. How has this fun philosophy influenced your writing and career? You've kind of expounded on that. But I love that motto.

Well, you know, that's Mary Oliver from A Summer Day.

Didn't know that.

Yes, yes. Go back and read the whole poem. But I feel that's also Summer Day a perfect encapsulation for this life we're living.

You know, if you think about it, in this whole. You got all this. You got to take the kids to summer camp. There's this.

Then school's going to start and you've missed that summer day, you know, or it's supposed to be super hot. I got to stay inside. It's AC Time. I'm going to. You know, we can miss so much, but if we just break it down, take A moment.

This is going to be a little Zen, but. And just live in that summer day, this one wild and precious life.

I actually took that as my motto during the pandemic because, you know, I was of a certain age, title of my book, and I thought, okay, I'm going to die. I meet all those qualifications. I'm older. I work in a congregant setting at the shelter. If I'm going to die, I want to do something first.

And once lockdown restrictions lifted, I got on my bicycle and I rode across the country. It took me like 41 days, and I made it to the Pacific Ocean. And I did think about that. What are you going to do with your one wild and precious life?

Am I going to stay in Chicago, wash my groceries, stay inside? I mean, those were all good things. Wear a mask, social distance. Or am I going to just sort of step outside and maybe risk a little something?

You know, And I keep thinking about that as I go along. And also with the writing. Writing is a risk. You know, you're like, this could be. I could be ridiculous doing what I'm doing. You know, I'm 67.

What have I got to show for this life of writing? Materialistically, not a lot.

But I feel like, again, it has opened up doors to be on this podcast, you know, meet people, you know, present at a senior center and make real connections with special friends.

Yeah. Yeah. This interview has been extremely fulfilling for me. So I appreciate you, Ms. Jane. I truly do. And your.

Your motto, I'm going to take that model for myself. Yeah.

So as we start to wrap up here, what are you currently working on?

Oh, I gotta tell you again, I gotta. I gotta trick myself. Well, my one wild and precious life took a turn. I just got back. I like to keep riding my bike.

I just got back from riding the Pacific Coast. I started in Florence, Oregon, and I went to San Francisco.

Wow.

Did I have adventures along the way? Yes, I did. Now, I don't know if that's a book or how that can work. It could be a short story.

And then the reason it was a bit of an adventure is I had this winter. You know how it was all snowy and then overcast and I kept snow saying it's all snowy and overcast. I had cataracts, so I just had my left eye done.

And so I've been a little bit away from the writing for the past month because of the bike ride and all that. I do have some ideas, a summer story I want to write. You know, all of Them are about exploring and a saying, making attempts.

So I'll probably go home and make some attempts. Important thing, John, I want to add, is as we make connections, I also do check ins with other writers. How are you doing? Are you working on stuff?

And they can challenge me too, like, oh, Jane, I haven't heard that you've been submitting, which is something I always do if I'm submitting my work. It's also making me wanting to go back and revise that work and keep writing.

It's great to have that kind of community of support to do that, especially for something like writing, for sure. So if individuals would like to buy your book or learn more about what you've written, what's the best way for them to do that?

Wherever you get books, I mean, you can go into any bookstore these days and they'll order. Order it for you.

Yes, they will. Yeah.

I mean, you don't have to use that big, you know, thing and have it delivered. You can use your local bookstore and they'll just get it for you. Google me. Jane Hertenstein. Like I said, I have a sub stack. I have a blog.

I have different things. I keep. I have a dot com, so I also do a lot of that. And some of my morning pages turn into, you know, little things that I put on those pages. But.

Okay.

Yeah.

All right.

Well, thank you so much for being here today, Jane.

It was really great to hear about your writing and your process and I think how we and other writers can use the process as well and try flash writing it. It sounds like a lot of fun, I think. Rabinon.

Yeah, yeah, I journal. So I'm gonna start. First of all, I gotta read your book. I want to read a couple of your books. So I'm excited about that. Yeah.

Yeah. So once again, thank you for being here today, Jane.

Yes,

Thanks, Jane.

Nice to meet you.

Yes, thank you so much.

You have been listening to Written in the Stars: Books and Beyond. Visit lcc.edu/library to find the titles discussed in this episode. You can find previous episodes of Written in the Stars and other LCC Connect shows at lccconnect.com and in the words of Miguel de Unamuno, "I hope, reader, we shall meet again and we shall recognize each other."