Breathing In, Breathing Out is a book for the writer in each of us, however lost, however buried. Ralph Fletcher takes a probing look into the nature of a writer's notebook, examining what it is, how writers use it, what makes it tick. You will discover why writers like Naomi Shihab Nye and Dorothy Allison consider their notebooks so important to the work they create. You will also read snippets from Fletcher's notebook, where he reveals the "displayed self" of the writer whose innermost workings he knows best. This book is for new writers as well as those who may once have loved to write but have lost the spark along the way. It will help you find a natural rhythm for using a notebook and, in the process, start living the life of a writer.