Category Archives: Personal Essay

Personal Essay: The Pursuit of Lifelong Learning

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Dave Hood

By Dave Hood “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”—Dr.Seuss, “I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!” Unfortunately, many people stop learning once they graduate from … Continue reading →

Breaking the Routine

Posted on March 10, 2014 by Dave Hood

By Dave Hood Life is filled with routine. I live in Toronto, a cosmopolitan city of a few million people. It is the most multicultural city in the world. People come from all over the world to live here. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Breaking the Routine, Personal Essay | Tagged boredom, Breaking the Routine, Career, creativity, Dave Hood, Doing New Thinkgs, fitness, friendship, Meeting New People, travel, writing | Leave a comment

Personal Essay: The Art of Taking Still Life Photographs

Posted on January 9, 2014 by Dave Hood

Thursday, January-09-14 Dave Hood Still life is one of the popular genres of photography, and involves taking pictures of “inanimate objects,” including vegetables, toys, knick knacks, vintage things, like a pin-up calendar from the 50s. The photographer can take images … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Nonfiction, Memoir Essay, Personal Essay | Tagged Advice, arrangement, Backdrop, black, course, Creative Nonfiction, creative writing, Dave Hood, Digital Photography, high-key, idea, Irving Penn, learning, Lighting, Low-key, Master of still life, notebook, objects, Off-camera flash, paper, personal essay, personal experience, personal reflection, Photographer, photography, Recommendation, Ryerson University, Scene, sketch out, soft box, Still Life, Still Life Photography, summary, Surface, theme, things, Tips, Toronto, Umbrella, white, writer | Leave a comment

Making S.M.A.R.T New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on December 31, 2013 by Dave Hood

Tuesday, December-31-13 By Dave Hood “Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” – Abraham Lincoln In the winter of 1977, when I was eighteen years old, I decided to take up … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Nonfiction, Creative Writing, Goals, New Year's Resolutions, Personal Essay | Tagged 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, Becoming an excellent photographer, Becoming and Excellent writer, Bucket List, Creative Nonfiction, creative writing, Dave Hood, deadline, Digital Photography, dreams, Goal setting, Goals, learning, Life List, meaningful goals, measurable goals, New Year's, New Year's Resolutions, New Year's Resolutions for 2014, personal essay, Photographer, photography, plan of action, resolutions, S.M.A.R.T Goals, Setting and achieving personal goals, specific goals, strategy, time-based, writer, writing | Leave a comment

Theme Essay: To Error is Failure

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Dave Hood

Tuesday, December-03-13 By Dave Hood “The chief enemy of creativity is good sense.”—Pablo Picasso “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.”—Albert Einstein “Have no fear of perfection – you’ll never reach it.” —Salvador Dali Many … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Nonfiction, Mistakes, Personal Essay, Theme Essay | Tagged Author, Creative Nonfiction, creative writing, creativity, Dave Hood, error, essay, failure, life lesson, mistakes, success, theme, writer | Leave a comment

Segmented Essay: On Love

Posted on October 17, 2013 by Dave Hood

By Dave Hood What is love? According to Webster’s dictionary, love has several definitions: First, love is a strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties, such as maternal love for a child. Love can also be … Continue reading →

Posted in Collage Essay, Creative Nonfiction, Love, Personal Essay, Segmented Essay | Tagged Collage Essay, Creative Nonfiction, creative writing, Dave Hood, divorce, emotion, love, love languages, marriage, romantic love, Segmented Essay, triangular theory of love, writer | Leave a comment

On Sex

Posted on August 22, 2013 by Dave Hood

By Dave Hood What is sex? Sex means different things to different people. Hunter Thompson said, “Sex without love is as hollow and ridiculous as love without sex.” Mae West said, “Sex is an emotion in motion.” Woody Allen said, “Sex is … Continue reading →

Posted in Collage Essay, Creative Nonfiction, Personal Essay, Segmented Essay, Sex | Tagged Collage Essay, Creative Nonfiction, creative writing, Dave Hood, Debra Spencer, Hooking up, how do we learn about sex, Kinsey, men, Personal essa, personal essay, Poem, Public Sex, Segmented, Segmented Essay, Sex, Sex Drive, Sexting, the New York magazine, when to have sex, Where to have sex, why do people have sex, women | Leave a comment