A Talk with Bill Plotkin about Wild Mind

What does it mean to have a wild mind?

As author Gary Snyder notes, “To speak of wilderness is to speak of wholeness.” To have a wild mind is to have a whole mind. People with wild minds are those who have cultivated and embodied their innate human wholeness — the full rainbow spectrum of capacities, talents, and sensibilities that constellate our evolutionary birthright. My new book, Wild Mind, is a field guide to the cultivation of this astonishing medley of wholeness. It introduces what I call the Nature-Based Map of the Human Psyche, which identifies and describes the four facets of indigenous human wholeness.

Collectively, these four facets of wholeness make up what I call the human Self...

A Talk with Barbara Abercrombie, author of KICKING IN THE WALL

What inspired you to write this book?
My students. I do a lot of five minute writing exercises when I teach and my students have done so well with them that I decided to create a whole book of exercises along with inspirational quotes from famous writers and artists. I also included examples of what  some of my students came up with for the exercises.

Who is this book for?
Both beginning writers as well as working writers who feel in a rut. Or people who just want to keep a journal and need some ideas and inspiration for what to write about.  And also for teachers of creative writing.

Where did the title come from?
When Patti Smith got stuck with her writing, (“I would go as far as I could and hit a wall, my own...