On Ritual: ASF Contributors on Their Writing/Artistic Routines (Today: Eugene Cross)

Today, as part of a five-day series, we present our findings, from the silly to the sublime: the routines and rituals—or lack of them—of ASF Winter ’09 contributors. . .

* Eugene Cross * Leigh Gallagher * Karen S. Ingram * Michael Noll * Laura C. J. Owen *

Eugene Cross (“Rosaleen, If You Know What I Mean,” Winter ’09) on ritual:

“I believe what Ron Carlson says. The writer is the one who stays in the room. The challenge for me, for many of us, is how to pull that off. Here’s what I do. Before I start writing in the morning I think of the hands-down, honest-to-god, without-a-doubt worst thing I have to do that day. A trip to the DMV to renew my license. A four-mile jog, which in Northwest Pennsylvania includes potholes, inclement weather, and the risky practice of hurdling roadkill. Helping my brother-in-law clean out the basement after a heavy rain backed up his sewer. Or worse, a stack of comp essays begging for some red ink. Once I have the task in mind, I simply remind myself that that’s the next item on my to-do list. That’s what’s waiting for me when I leave the room. This mind game is the closest thing to a ritual I have, and somehow, it always seems to keep me in my chair a little bit longer.”

Eugene Cross did not mention here that he writes in silence. He also teaches creative writing in the Bachelor of Fine Arts program at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College. His stories have appeared or are forthcoming in Narrative, Story Quarterly, The Pinch, Callaloo, Hobart, and Guernica, among others. He received an MFA in fiction from the University of Pittsburgh. More.

*If there’s an ASF (or other) author whose rituals you’d like to hear about, comment below. We’ll report back soon.