Member Spotlight: Molly Roden Winter

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? Writing is how we communicate our deepest truths to one another. We all have access to truth from different vantage points. When we write and share our writing, our collective understanding of Truth (capital T) grows.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? When I’m stuck writing, I like to read. As a writer, reading is great because it still feels like you’re working. In truth, you are. Stephen King (and others) have talked about this. It’s vital for writers to spend much of their time reading others’ work.

What is your favorite time to write? I don’t think this is typical, but I like to write in the early afternoon, from around noon to 4pm.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? See above re. writer’s block and reading. Along these lines, build community with other writers. Writing can feel like an individual, solitary pursuit, but at heart, it’s a communal enterprise.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? I’m excited by the opportunities for connection. The Author’s Guild is part of this. So is Substack. And writing conferences. And readings in bookstores. And podcasts. There are so many ways to find other people who care about language and ideas as much as you do!

Molly Roden Winter’s More: A Memoir of Open Marriage is out now with Doubleday Books.