Write a poem about something in your closet.
Post it here under comments.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Here's a Writer to Watch!
Today I came across an announcement of a forthcoming book by someone I know! What a lovely surprise. I attended a UNBC summer creative writing course about 10 years ago when we both were students. The writing that she shared during that course was stunning.
She went on to complete her PhD and currently teaches at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) in the Northern Medical Program. Rob McLennan's blog tells me she's a "cultural-historical geographer and creative writer." Along the way, she won the CBC Literary Award for creative non-fiction in 2008 for "Columbus Burning" and placed second in 2009 for "Quick-Quick. Slow. Slow."
Last year, her poetry appeared in Unfurled: Collected Poetry from Northern BC Women. I heard her read at the Prince George launch of this anthology.
Now she has a new book coming out from Creekstone Press. The title is Front Lines: Portraits of Caregivers in Northern BC.
She is a rising star! Watch for her name in literary lights. That name: Sarah de Leeuw.
She went on to complete her PhD and currently teaches at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) in the Northern Medical Program. Rob McLennan's blog tells me she's a "cultural-historical geographer and creative writer." Along the way, she won the CBC Literary Award for creative non-fiction in 2008 for "Columbus Burning" and placed second in 2009 for "Quick-Quick. Slow. Slow."
Last year, her poetry appeared in Unfurled: Collected Poetry from Northern BC Women. I heard her read at the Prince George launch of this anthology.
Now she has a new book coming out from Creekstone Press. The title is Front Lines: Portraits of Caregivers in Northern BC.
She is a rising star! Watch for her name in literary lights. That name: Sarah de Leeuw.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
The Saga of the Manuscript
I have a children's book manuscript that I'm preparing to send out. The book is written, and now I'm in the research stage, finding the best fit of publisher to my manuscript. While checking out the whys, wherefores, and how-to's, I came across a very funny but sad story by Tappan King about a manuscript sent out into the world by its author.
It will take you about 12-15 minutes to read, but the time will be well spent. The article will open your eyes as to what goes on behind the doors of editors' offices in publishing houses.
Here's the link; read it if you dare! It's from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America web site (lots of other great information on that site, as well!)
The Sobering Saga of Myrtle the Manuscript: A Cautionary Tale
Post your comments here at northern-night-writer.blogspot.com!
It will take you about 12-15 minutes to read, but the time will be well spent. The article will open your eyes as to what goes on behind the doors of editors' offices in publishing houses.
Here's the link; read it if you dare! It's from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America web site (lots of other great information on that site, as well!)
The Sobering Saga of Myrtle the Manuscript: A Cautionary Tale
Post your comments here at northern-night-writer.blogspot.com!
Monday, May 23, 2011
From Literature into Real Life
I'm in trouble, and it's too late to do anything about it.
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post [see Sunday, May 8] extolling the virtues of a juvenile fiction book, Where the Red Fern Grows. It's about a boy and his two coon hounds back in the Ozark Mountains. I wrote about it, and I talked about it. I told my grandkids what an exciting and gripping story it was. I brought the book to their house, and for the past two weeks, when I'd to their house, I'd read them a chapter or two.
Now they've turned literature into life. They live out in the country on five acres. Not too much land, but for a ten-year-old boy, his eight-year-old brother (nicknamed in our family Mr. Outdoors), and their six-year-old sister, it's become the river bottoms back in the Ozark Mountains.
They pooled their hard-earned money and they've bought a live-animal trap. This was no small feat. One of them contributed $30 and the other, $25, and off to the local hardware-sporting goods store they trooped. The youngest admitted that she wasn't really part of the purchasing plan. The trap looks something like a hamster cage, but the "door" is a one-way ticket to the inside. The animal steps in; the door springs shut, et voila!
They want to catch a rabbit and sell its pelt for six dollars (once, at a leather-craft store, they saw a rabbit skin for $6, hence the supposed market value for the pelt).
Into the trap, they put some lettuce and a carrot. "That's going to feed 10 rabbits!" Dad said. They placed the trap near the bottom of a tree where they found some rabbit poop. When I asked how they knew it was rabbit poop, the eight-year-old told me, "Dad said, and we looked it up on the Internet."
The other day, I was on the phone with my daughter, when all of a sudden, I heard the kids' voices yelling in the background, "We caught something in the trap!!"
"Uh-oh, gotta go," my daughter said.
It turned out they hadn't caught a rabbit, but a squirrel. They hadn't noticed the squirrel den in the bottom of the tree near the rabbit poop. The squirrel was hopping mad! He was poking his nose through the bars, not quite understanding why he couldn't get to where he wanted to be.
Their dad sprang the trap and the squirrel raced up the tree. The dog, who had been held in check by my daughter, yanked away and sniffed back and forth and all around, later sitting sentinel at the base of the tree.
The trap has been reset and placed in a new location. If they catch a female, they're going to let it go. If it's a male, there'll be rabbit stew.
As the kids' great-grandfather used to say: "First you catch the rabbit; then you make the hasenpfeffer."
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post [see Sunday, May 8] extolling the virtues of a juvenile fiction book, Where the Red Fern Grows. It's about a boy and his two coon hounds back in the Ozark Mountains. I wrote about it, and I talked about it. I told my grandkids what an exciting and gripping story it was. I brought the book to their house, and for the past two weeks, when I'd to their house, I'd read them a chapter or two.
Now they've turned literature into life. They live out in the country on five acres. Not too much land, but for a ten-year-old boy, his eight-year-old brother (nicknamed in our family Mr. Outdoors), and their six-year-old sister, it's become the river bottoms back in the Ozark Mountains.
They pooled their hard-earned money and they've bought a live-animal trap. This was no small feat. One of them contributed $30 and the other, $25, and off to the local hardware-sporting goods store they trooped. The youngest admitted that she wasn't really part of the purchasing plan. The trap looks something like a hamster cage, but the "door" is a one-way ticket to the inside. The animal steps in; the door springs shut, et voila!
They want to catch a rabbit and sell its pelt for six dollars (once, at a leather-craft store, they saw a rabbit skin for $6, hence the supposed market value for the pelt).
Into the trap, they put some lettuce and a carrot. "That's going to feed 10 rabbits!" Dad said. They placed the trap near the bottom of a tree where they found some rabbit poop. When I asked how they knew it was rabbit poop, the eight-year-old told me, "Dad said, and we looked it up on the Internet."
The other day, I was on the phone with my daughter, when all of a sudden, I heard the kids' voices yelling in the background, "We caught something in the trap!!"
"Uh-oh, gotta go," my daughter said.
It turned out they hadn't caught a rabbit, but a squirrel. They hadn't noticed the squirrel den in the bottom of the tree near the rabbit poop. The squirrel was hopping mad! He was poking his nose through the bars, not quite understanding why he couldn't get to where he wanted to be.
Their dad sprang the trap and the squirrel raced up the tree. The dog, who had been held in check by my daughter, yanked away and sniffed back and forth and all around, later sitting sentinel at the base of the tree.
The trap has been reset and placed in a new location. If they catch a female, they're going to let it go. If it's a male, there'll be rabbit stew.
As the kids' great-grandfather used to say: "First you catch the rabbit; then you make the hasenpfeffer."
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Love Not the Word
I’m learning to not love the words I write. Not all of them, of course. Just the ones that aren’t necessary.
Many neophyte writers (and I was one of these) are so in love with every word they write they don’t want to make any revisions. To a suggestion about a possible change that would improve the piece, they declare, “But that’s not the way it happened!” or “That’s my favourite part!”
That may not be the way it happened, but that’s no reason for leaving it there if removing or changing it would make the writing stronger. Life (as it happened, or as close as you can remember) is not art. Art is life arranged. And rearranged.
To make this plain, think back to a recent conversation you've had, in person or on the phone. There are usually a lot of “um-m-s,” “ah-h-h-s,” and “uh-huhs” that, face it, don’t move the plot forward, as it were. Real-life conversations also zig and zag all over the place. Ever been waiting with a great comment to inject into a conversation, but by the time there’s a pause as someone comes up for air, the topic has changed completely and your comment is way out-of-whack?
Now, have a look at a portion of dialogue in a novel or short story. See the difference? It’s been cleaned up; there’s no loose gravel to trip over. Everything has a point. Every comment is moving the plot forward.
So back to learning not love every word you write. Look this square in the eye: some of your words are not art. They gotta go! Toss ’em out! Strike out a whole line, maybe even a whole paragraph. The earth will not spin out of orbit without the weight of those few words holding it down.
Write and rewrite. Don’t be in love with your words. Use the Delete and Backspace keys. Select and Cut.
When I was at the newspaper—and this was before the day of fancy computer compositing programs—my boss-teacher-editor-publisher-mentor used to say, always kindly and with a smile, “There’s nothing here a little knife can’t fix.”
That was a good lesson to learn.
Many neophyte writers (and I was one of these) are so in love with every word they write they don’t want to make any revisions. To a suggestion about a possible change that would improve the piece, they declare, “But that’s not the way it happened!” or “That’s my favourite part!”
That may not be the way it happened, but that’s no reason for leaving it there if removing or changing it would make the writing stronger. Life (as it happened, or as close as you can remember) is not art. Art is life arranged. And rearranged.
To make this plain, think back to a recent conversation you've had, in person or on the phone. There are usually a lot of “um-m-s,” “ah-h-h-s,” and “uh-huhs” that, face it, don’t move the plot forward, as it were. Real-life conversations also zig and zag all over the place. Ever been waiting with a great comment to inject into a conversation, but by the time there’s a pause as someone comes up for air, the topic has changed completely and your comment is way out-of-whack?
Now, have a look at a portion of dialogue in a novel or short story. See the difference? It’s been cleaned up; there’s no loose gravel to trip over. Everything has a point. Every comment is moving the plot forward.
So back to learning not love every word you write. Look this square in the eye: some of your words are not art. They gotta go! Toss ’em out! Strike out a whole line, maybe even a whole paragraph. The earth will not spin out of orbit without the weight of those few words holding it down.
Write and rewrite. Don’t be in love with your words. Use the Delete and Backspace keys. Select and Cut.
When I was at the newspaper—and this was before the day of fancy computer compositing programs—my boss-teacher-editor-publisher-mentor used to say, always kindly and with a smile, “There’s nothing here a little knife can’t fix.”
That was a good lesson to learn.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Reading Poetry . . . Lots of It
Right now, I'm in love with Billy Collins. I just read his poem, "Canada." You can read it by following this link because it's probably not legal for me to reproduce it here without written permission: Billy Collin's poem, "Canada."
This poem whooshed me back, back to Camp Oolawan in the Eastern Townships when I was 11 and my mother helped in the kitchen so my sisters and I could go to camp even when we couldn't afford it. To the smell of pine and campfire and wet green. Back to Girl Guide camp at Morin Heights, Quebec, with groups named for birds like in Atwood's "Death by Landscape."
Back to hours of reading Cherry Ames' nursing adventures. I remember blue-grey hard-cover books, uninteresting library editions, but oh, how they swallowed me whole.
Although I never had the pack of Sweet Caps on the table, I have heard that train whistle in the night. I've written a letter on a piece of birchbark, mailing it home from camp to my friend, Anne Marie, her mother mad when pieces of bark and pine needles fell out on the carpet, previously immaculate.
That's what poetry does. It lifts and carries. It supports and transports.
Thank you, Billy Collins.
This poem whooshed me back, back to Camp Oolawan in the Eastern Townships when I was 11 and my mother helped in the kitchen so my sisters and I could go to camp even when we couldn't afford it. To the smell of pine and campfire and wet green. Back to Girl Guide camp at Morin Heights, Quebec, with groups named for birds like in Atwood's "Death by Landscape."
Back to hours of reading Cherry Ames' nursing adventures. I remember blue-grey hard-cover books, uninteresting library editions, but oh, how they swallowed me whole.
Although I never had the pack of Sweet Caps on the table, I have heard that train whistle in the night. I've written a letter on a piece of birchbark, mailing it home from camp to my friend, Anne Marie, her mother mad when pieces of bark and pine needles fell out on the carpet, previously immaculate.
That's what poetry does. It lifts and carries. It supports and transports.
Thank you, Billy Collins.
Monday, May 16, 2011
So Many Books . . . So Little Time!
It seems as if I've been doing nothing but reading lately. Well, that and going to work, cleaning my house, making meals, and the hundred and one other things that I do daily. I mean in my spare time, which has encroached on my other time.
Yesterday and today it was The Paris Wife, by Paula McLain. It was strange to be reading a novel based on a real person's life, especially since I had already read a scholarly biography of this woman and her husband, who happened to be Ernest Hemingway.
I almost didn't want to read it because I already knew the ending. They couldn't keep it together. It wasn't in him or them. He strayed, which is a nice way of saying that he ditched his wife for another woman.
As I was getting to the place in the story where the Other Woman makes her appearance, I didn't want to read on. I wanted to be spared that unhappiness. I made excuses for not reading. I got up and refilled my glass of iced tea. Then I came back and read, dreading the inevitable.
Hadley Richardson was the "Paris wife," Hemingway's first of four wives, and according to this novel, many other women besides.
I wanted the story to be like one of those juvenile novels where the reader gets to choose the ending. If you want such-and-such a thing to happen, turn to page 56. If you want some other thing to happen, turn to page 72.
Only it wasn't like that. The events of the novel, told in the first person through the voice of Hadley Richardson, closely followed the events of her and her husband's life as it is recorded in Hemingway's novels, autobiography, and the scholarly biography by the late Michael Reynolds.
No amount of wishing or stalling could change it.
It was sad, but I loved to hear the story from Hadley's point of view.
Even if you're not a Hemingway aficionado, this is a good read.
Yesterday and today it was The Paris Wife, by Paula McLain. It was strange to be reading a novel based on a real person's life, especially since I had already read a scholarly biography of this woman and her husband, who happened to be Ernest Hemingway.
I almost didn't want to read it because I already knew the ending. They couldn't keep it together. It wasn't in him or them. He strayed, which is a nice way of saying that he ditched his wife for another woman.
As I was getting to the place in the story where the Other Woman makes her appearance, I didn't want to read on. I wanted to be spared that unhappiness. I made excuses for not reading. I got up and refilled my glass of iced tea. Then I came back and read, dreading the inevitable.
Hadley Richardson was the "Paris wife," Hemingway's first of four wives, and according to this novel, many other women besides.
I wanted the story to be like one of those juvenile novels where the reader gets to choose the ending. If you want such-and-such a thing to happen, turn to page 56. If you want some other thing to happen, turn to page 72.
Only it wasn't like that. The events of the novel, told in the first person through the voice of Hadley Richardson, closely followed the events of her and her husband's life as it is recorded in Hemingway's novels, autobiography, and the scholarly biography by the late Michael Reynolds.
No amount of wishing or stalling could change it.
It was sad, but I loved to hear the story from Hadley's point of view.
Even if you're not a Hemingway aficionado, this is a good read.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
A Fantastic Book!
I've been doing a lot of different reading for a research project that I've undertaken. My reading has taken me into the realm of juvenile fiction. These are the kinds of stories that middle-schoolers (grade 4-8) read or have read to them.
One title that kept popping up is Where the Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls. He spent his youth in the Oklahoma Ozarks and never encountered a book till he went to high school. I don't know if he wrote anything else besides this novel. When I was roaming the stacks at the public library yesterday, I spotted this book and took it out. It's a boy-and-his-dogs story.
At around six o'clock last night, I sat down on the couch and started reading this book. I was absolutely hooked from the first page. Six hours later, I finished the book. It's not a long book--249 pages--nor a large book--4.25 inches by 7 inches--but it pulled me into what Nancie Atwell calls "the reading zone." I was gone. I was living in that story and through that story.
When I was growing up, I was a reader, especially of dog and horse stories. I don't remember encountering this book. I'm sure I would have remembered it if I had read it back then.
The characters are believable (though the good are very good and the bad are very bad) and the plot moves along at a brisk pace. There are many twists and turns in the story. I couldn't put it down! I give it a 10++ out of 10.
I took six hours of my life to read a book that grade schoolers read. I'm glad I did.
Good writing is good writing, no matter where we find it.
One title that kept popping up is Where the Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls. He spent his youth in the Oklahoma Ozarks and never encountered a book till he went to high school. I don't know if he wrote anything else besides this novel. When I was roaming the stacks at the public library yesterday, I spotted this book and took it out. It's a boy-and-his-dogs story.
At around six o'clock last night, I sat down on the couch and started reading this book. I was absolutely hooked from the first page. Six hours later, I finished the book. It's not a long book--249 pages--nor a large book--4.25 inches by 7 inches--but it pulled me into what Nancie Atwell calls "the reading zone." I was gone. I was living in that story and through that story.
When I was growing up, I was a reader, especially of dog and horse stories. I don't remember encountering this book. I'm sure I would have remembered it if I had read it back then.
The characters are believable (though the good are very good and the bad are very bad) and the plot moves along at a brisk pace. There are many twists and turns in the story. I couldn't put it down! I give it a 10++ out of 10.
I took six hours of my life to read a book that grade schoolers read. I'm glad I did.
Good writing is good writing, no matter where we find it.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Celebrate! It's Children's Book Week!
This week has been designated as Children's Book Week. There is a theme for celebration: Global Citizenship - Changing the World, One Child at a Time. Throughout every province and territory, authors will be presenting readings in schools.
Teachers and parents - anyone, really - can access the Theme Guide, which is packed full of information and activities. The guide describes many books, categorized according to age groups, that deal with the theme of global citizenship. There are Internet links to other pages that extend the activities and provide more information about various organizations, some started by children, that are changing our world for the better.
There was a writing contest, the winners of which were announced today. The deadline was Feb. 18, so we'll have to put that on the calendar of events for next year, for the 2012 Children's Book Week.
Writers, take note: the Theme Guide, along with descriptions of umpteen children's and Young Adult books, lists the publishers of all these books. Do you have a children's book waiting in the wings to be published? Here's a ready list of Canadian children's book publishers! The legwork's already done for you!!
Children's Book Week is sponsored by TD Canada Trust and the Children's Book Centre.
Teachers and parents - anyone, really - can access the Theme Guide, which is packed full of information and activities. The guide describes many books, categorized according to age groups, that deal with the theme of global citizenship. There are Internet links to other pages that extend the activities and provide more information about various organizations, some started by children, that are changing our world for the better.
There was a writing contest, the winners of which were announced today. The deadline was Feb. 18, so we'll have to put that on the calendar of events for next year, for the 2012 Children's Book Week.
Writers, take note: the Theme Guide, along with descriptions of umpteen children's and Young Adult books, lists the publishers of all these books. Do you have a children's book waiting in the wings to be published? Here's a ready list of Canadian children's book publishers! The legwork's already done for you!!
Children's Book Week is sponsored by TD Canada Trust and the Children's Book Centre.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Hurray! When the Chips are Down, I Managed my Cookies!
I'm back, after a few frustrating days of not being able to sign in and making one post from a friend's computer. It was a cookie problem, apparently, and now, I'm not quite sure what I did to fix it, but things are in working order again.
Today's thought: what's a suitable subject for a poem? The eternal question that faces poets on a daily basis. Anything, really. Anything large and deep, frustating, unfair, good, evil, great . . . anything. There are thousands, maybe millions of poems about these things.
At the other end of the scale, is there anything too small to be the subject of a poem? A speck of dust? A flea? A noiseless patient spider? A piece of gum that sticks to the bottom of your shoe on a hot day?
I haven't really researched the speck of dust or the piece of gum, but the flea and the noiseless patient spider have certaintly been the subject of poems, and famous poems, at that!
Here's today's challenge: choose something small, even very small, and write a poem about it. Maybe it will be a small poem--that's okay. But use powerful words, compact them, make them ring and make them sing!
Post yours as a comment to this blog post, and I'll post mine . . . as soon as I've written it.
Today's thought: what's a suitable subject for a poem? The eternal question that faces poets on a daily basis. Anything, really. Anything large and deep, frustating, unfair, good, evil, great . . . anything. There are thousands, maybe millions of poems about these things.
At the other end of the scale, is there anything too small to be the subject of a poem? A speck of dust? A flea? A noiseless patient spider? A piece of gum that sticks to the bottom of your shoe on a hot day?
I haven't really researched the speck of dust or the piece of gum, but the flea and the noiseless patient spider have certaintly been the subject of poems, and famous poems, at that!
Here's today's challenge: choose something small, even very small, and write a poem about it. Maybe it will be a small poem--that's okay. But use powerful words, compact them, make them ring and make them sing!
Post yours as a comment to this blog post, and I'll post mine . . . as soon as I've written it.
Friday, April 22, 2011
BC Book Prizes . . . and the Winners Are . . .
The following is from the bcbookprizes.ca web site:
Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
Supported by Friesens and Webcom
Winner! Everything Was Good-Bye
by Gurjinder Basran
Publisher: Mother Tongue Publishing
Hubert Evans Non-Fiction Prize
Supported by Abebooks
Winner! The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival
by John Vaillant
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize
Supported by the BC Teachers’ Federation
Winner! On the Material
by Stephen Collis
Publisher: Talonbooks
Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize
Supported by Transcontinental Printing
Winner! Images from the Likeness House
by Dan Savard
Publisher: Royal BC Museum
Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by the BC Library Association
Winner! Hunger Journeys
by Maggie de Vries
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada
Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by Kate Walker and Company
Winner! Owls See Clearly at Night: A Michif Alphabet / Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L’alfabet di Michif
by Julie Flett
Publisher: Simply Read Books
Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award
Supported by The BC Booksellers’ Association
Winner! Adventures in Solitude: What Not to Wear to a Nude Potluck and Other Stories from Desolation Sound
by Grant Lawrence
Publisher: Harbour Publishing
Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence
Winner! George Bowering
Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
Supported by Friesens and Webcom
Winner! Everything Was Good-Bye
by Gurjinder Basran
Publisher: Mother Tongue Publishing
Hubert Evans Non-Fiction Prize
Supported by Abebooks
Winner! The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival
by John Vaillant
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize
Supported by the BC Teachers’ Federation
Winner! On the Material
by Stephen Collis
Publisher: Talonbooks
Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize
Supported by Transcontinental Printing
Winner! Images from the Likeness House
by Dan Savard
Publisher: Royal BC Museum
Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by the BC Library Association
Winner! Hunger Journeys
by Maggie de Vries
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada
Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize
Supported by Kate Walker and Company
Winner! Owls See Clearly at Night: A Michif Alphabet / Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L’alfabet di Michif
by Julie Flett
Publisher: Simply Read Books
Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award
Supported by The BC Booksellers’ Association
Winner! Adventures in Solitude: What Not to Wear to a Nude Potluck and Other Stories from Desolation Sound
by Grant Lawrence
Publisher: Harbour Publishing
Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence
Winner! George Bowering
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
The Indirect Method
I read an essay today about how teachers teach. It wasn't any new revelation but rather a good reminder that no matter what we're doing, we are teaching. Either by good example or bad example, we are teaching. Either directly or indirectly, we're teaching.
I learned something really important in the creative writing course that I was in this semester. It had nothing to do with syntax, anapests, or synecdoche. It wasn't something on the syllabus, nor was it something that was taught directly.
Here's what it comes down to: excellence matters, but not to the exclusion of everything else. Like encouragement. Like self-expression. Like getting hidden hurts down on paper once and for all. Maybe even for the first time.
It was something I saw in action: such generous responses to everyone's work. For some people, it might have been the first time they ventured to write what they knew from their life and what they felt in their heart and then the agony of having to share it with the whole class. And be "marked" on it--have some value assigned to it.
The value for most of us was being able to say what we had to say. Getting it out. It's liberating, and to have such tentative steps met with uplifting hands and encouraging words is something that can't be measured.
It is, in fact, invaluable.
So thanks to our fearless instructor, Donna Kane, and to all those who shared some secret part of their souls in both the writing and in the comments on others' writing. It was a humbling experience.
I learned something really important in the creative writing course that I was in this semester. It had nothing to do with syntax, anapests, or synecdoche. It wasn't something on the syllabus, nor was it something that was taught directly.
Here's what it comes down to: excellence matters, but not to the exclusion of everything else. Like encouragement. Like self-expression. Like getting hidden hurts down on paper once and for all. Maybe even for the first time.
It was something I saw in action: such generous responses to everyone's work. For some people, it might have been the first time they ventured to write what they knew from their life and what they felt in their heart and then the agony of having to share it with the whole class. And be "marked" on it--have some value assigned to it.
The value for most of us was being able to say what we had to say. Getting it out. It's liberating, and to have such tentative steps met with uplifting hands and encouraging words is something that can't be measured.
It is, in fact, invaluable.
So thanks to our fearless instructor, Donna Kane, and to all those who shared some secret part of their souls in both the writing and in the comments on others' writing. It was a humbling experience.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
More Poetry . . . Please!
I recently got a new book of poetry. It's an anthology that's sometimes used in college or university literature courses, and so presents a through-the-centuries and an across-the-board sweep of the genre. The subtitle is "A Pocket Anthology," though I dare say it will fit in no pocket of mine. However, it's small enough to carry in my purse or schoolbag, and certainly great for a bus- or train-ride read.
The first 55 pages are very textbookish, with short articles on types of poetry, the language of poetry, figurative language, stanza forms, and other arcana such as meter, feminine endings, and synechdoche. This, of course, would be enough for many to relegate the book to the shelf or worse, but once past this formidable section, we get to the poems themselves.
It starts off with ballads and lyrics from Scotland and England from around 1500. This is not the earliest English poetry there is, but it's pretty close to the start of what we have. Poetry by these "old dead white guys" is often disparaged, but it's pretty amazing. The words and lines are beautiful. The succinctness of the sonnets takes my breath away.
Some of my favourites are here: "Pied Beauty" by Gerard Manley Hopkins; "Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold; "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost; and "A Noiseless Patient Spider" by Walt Whitman.
More--so many more--there's not time enough to read them all. But I think I shall make a resolution: more poetry. I am going to read more poetry. More of the favourites and more of the new.
Even if it's just one a day, like the multi-vitamin, my life will be enriched.
What are your favourites? Where will you start? How will you enrich your life with poetry?
The first 55 pages are very textbookish, with short articles on types of poetry, the language of poetry, figurative language, stanza forms, and other arcana such as meter, feminine endings, and synechdoche. This, of course, would be enough for many to relegate the book to the shelf or worse, but once past this formidable section, we get to the poems themselves.
It starts off with ballads and lyrics from Scotland and England from around 1500. This is not the earliest English poetry there is, but it's pretty close to the start of what we have. Poetry by these "old dead white guys" is often disparaged, but it's pretty amazing. The words and lines are beautiful. The succinctness of the sonnets takes my breath away.
Some of my favourites are here: "Pied Beauty" by Gerard Manley Hopkins; "Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold; "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost; and "A Noiseless Patient Spider" by Walt Whitman.
More--so many more--there's not time enough to read them all. But I think I shall make a resolution: more poetry. I am going to read more poetry. More of the favourites and more of the new.
Even if it's just one a day, like the multi-vitamin, my life will be enriched.
What are your favourites? Where will you start? How will you enrich your life with poetry?
Monday, April 18, 2011
More about Public Libraries
Thanks, patb, for your comment on your public libraries in Toronto. I loved the image of writing tools spread out on the large table, surrounded by inspiration and knowledge.
Two years ago, when I was in Charlotte, North Carolina, taking a course, I used the public library, in particular the Internet access in V2, the Virtual Village. It was down in the basement, but there were snazzy neon lights and a great purple and green decor. I got a visitor's card and could check my e-mail and send home the good report about what all I was doing.
One thing I really liked was actually outside the library. Along the walkway, posted on cement pillars were black and white square signs with quotes by famous people, some of them writers, about writing. (Charlotte is a city that is really into public art.)
Here's a sampling of the quotes:
Irving Stone: It's not macho to read a book? Nonsense. Reading is a stouthearted activity, disporting courage, keenness, stick-to-it-ness.
A.A. Milne: "I just like to know," said Pooh, humbly.
Groucho Marx: I find television very educational. Every time someone switiches it on, I go into another room and read a good book.
Emily Dickinson: A word is dead,
when it is said,
Some say.
I say
It just begins
To live that day.
Ernest Hemingway: We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.
Post us a comment telling about your favourite library or a favourite feature of your library, past or present.
Alternatively, post your favourite quote about writing.
Or do both!
Two years ago, when I was in Charlotte, North Carolina, taking a course, I used the public library, in particular the Internet access in V2, the Virtual Village. It was down in the basement, but there were snazzy neon lights and a great purple and green decor. I got a visitor's card and could check my e-mail and send home the good report about what all I was doing.
One thing I really liked was actually outside the library. Along the walkway, posted on cement pillars were black and white square signs with quotes by famous people, some of them writers, about writing. (Charlotte is a city that is really into public art.)
Here's a sampling of the quotes:
Irving Stone: It's not macho to read a book? Nonsense. Reading is a stouthearted activity, disporting courage, keenness, stick-to-it-ness.
A.A. Milne: "I just like to know," said Pooh, humbly.
Groucho Marx: I find television very educational. Every time someone switiches it on, I go into another room and read a good book.
Emily Dickinson: A word is dead,
when it is said,
Some say.
I say
It just begins
To live that day.
Ernest Hemingway: We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.
Post us a comment telling about your favourite library or a favourite feature of your library, past or present.
Alternatively, post your favourite quote about writing.
Or do both!
Friday, April 15, 2011
What Do These Poetry Books Have in Common?
Here's the list.
Forage by Rita Wong
Nox by Anne Carson
Inventory by Dionne Brand
Selected Poems by Alden Nowlan
Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person by Erin Mouré
What's the commonality? I mean besides that the titles are unfamiliar to about 99% of Canadians and about 153% of people elsewhere. Some people somewhere might recognize some of the authors, but I'm not placing any bets.
These five books of poetry are the five books that CBC's Canada Reads event will consider. Other poets (at least as well known as the authors themselves) will "defend" the books. Here's the line-up with defense counsel:
Forage defended by Sonnet L'Abbé.
Nox defended by Anne Simpson.
Inventory defended by George Murray.
Selected Poems defended by Susan Musgrave.
Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person defended by Jacob McArthur Mooney
Tune in. Turn on (the radio). Find out!
Forage by Rita Wong
Nox by Anne Carson
Inventory by Dionne Brand
Selected Poems by Alden Nowlan
Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person by Erin Mouré
What's the commonality? I mean besides that the titles are unfamiliar to about 99% of Canadians and about 153% of people elsewhere. Some people somewhere might recognize some of the authors, but I'm not placing any bets.
These five books of poetry are the five books that CBC's Canada Reads event will consider. Other poets (at least as well known as the authors themselves) will "defend" the books. Here's the line-up with defense counsel:
Forage defended by Sonnet L'Abbé.
Nox defended by Anne Simpson.
Inventory defended by George Murray.
Selected Poems defended by Susan Musgrave.
Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person defended by Jacob McArthur Mooney
Tune in. Turn on (the radio). Find out!
Friday, April 8, 2011
My Public Library
I love my public library. I love the helpful librarians and library clerks. Despite the fact that they have reorganized the stacks and I'm still not sure where everything is now, I love to go and wander among the rows, scanning the shelves for something interesting or useful.This week, I took out 17 books about dogs. Why this sudden interest in canine companions? It was a reading project for one of my ESL classes. The books were from the juvenile non-fiction section, and they had lots of coloured photos, quirky facts, and helpful hints. All the books belonged to a series, so they all looked the same and had the same layout, but each one dealt with a specific breed. This similarity was beneficial: students would find out the same categories of information for the breed that they chose. In class, they chose a book and just read. I noticed some of them copying down new vocabulary, which assured me that the reading time was well-spent.
While I was at the circulation desk checking out my books, I picked up the April edition of the Library newsletter, an 8 1/2 x 11 double-sided colour photocopied sheet with lots of tidbits about what's going on at the library: new books, services, hours, board members, and reading recommendations.
The Library to Go information was particularly interesting to me as an ESL teacher. Free audiobook and eBook downloads are available from the library web site. Wide selection for youth, children, and adults! No late fees!! Many of these selections are iPod compatible: The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel, Minding Frankie by Maeve Binchy, Year of the Tiger by Jack Higgins, and Breach of Trust by David Ellis are just four of these new choices. My students, most of whom have iPods, can listen to audiobooks and improve their listening skills and pronunciation.
Big cities have big libraries, with branches throughout the city in various neighbourhoods. Small towns have smaller libraries but can probably access any book a patron wants through the interlibrary loan system.
Whether you're walking, jogging, driving, or relaxing in an armchair at home (soon out on the deck in the sunshine . . . as soon as it stops snowing, that is), grab a book and read.
It's what writers do when they're not writing.
Monday, April 4, 2011
B.C. Bookworld
The new edition of B.C. Bookworld was delivered into my mailbox at work today--not a virtual mailbox, but you can "have" it electronically if you wish.
I'm always amazed at the vibrancy of the publishing industry in British Columbia. There are so many publishers and so many writers doing so many great things. There are writers winning prizes and writers handing out prizes. There are books for old, young, and in-between. There are fiction books and series; there are non-fiction books and guide books and hiking books and boating books. There are independent bookstores and big chain bookstores and online bookstores.
It all adds up to something quite wonderful. News snippets of who's doing what, who's moved to what publishing house, and who has won what award keep us up on what's going on out there. For northern writers, we can scope out what's going on in the rest of the province. It ties us in.
This broadsheet newspaper has a world of information. If you want to be in the know, scope it out!
I'm always amazed at the vibrancy of the publishing industry in British Columbia. There are so many publishers and so many writers doing so many great things. There are writers winning prizes and writers handing out prizes. There are books for old, young, and in-between. There are fiction books and series; there are non-fiction books and guide books and hiking books and boating books. There are independent bookstores and big chain bookstores and online bookstores.
It all adds up to something quite wonderful. News snippets of who's doing what, who's moved to what publishing house, and who has won what award keep us up on what's going on out there. For northern writers, we can scope out what's going on in the rest of the province. It ties us in.
This broadsheet newspaper has a world of information. If you want to be in the know, scope it out!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Haiku as Doggerel
I read a child's picture storybook today. The title was Dogku. The author is Andrew Clements, and the illustrator is Tim Bowers.
From looking at the cover of the book, I couldn't make any sense of the title. It's not even an easy word to say, with the hard "g" sound followed by the hard "k" sound. Go ahead! Try to say it out loud!
When I opened the book and read the inside cover flap, it became clearer, though it was still a bit muddy. The word "dogku" was related to the word "haiku." Okay, that made more sense.
Ah! On to the story itself, a story about a litle lost dog, a theme repeated, I'm sure, in many children's picture books.
What was unique about this book was that the whole story was told in haiku poems, one or two on each page, with a large coloured picture to carry the plot along.
Nothing too fancy, just your average 5-7-5 (syllables per line) three-line haikus.
Here's today's challenge: take a simple child's story (e.g., Cinderella, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Hansel and Gretel, etc.) and rewrite it in haikus.
Post your creations as a comment to this post! You show me yours; I'll show you mine!
From looking at the cover of the book, I couldn't make any sense of the title. It's not even an easy word to say, with the hard "g" sound followed by the hard "k" sound. Go ahead! Try to say it out loud!
When I opened the book and read the inside cover flap, it became clearer, though it was still a bit muddy. The word "dogku" was related to the word "haiku." Okay, that made more sense.
Ah! On to the story itself, a story about a litle lost dog, a theme repeated, I'm sure, in many children's picture books.
What was unique about this book was that the whole story was told in haiku poems, one or two on each page, with a large coloured picture to carry the plot along.
Nothing too fancy, just your average 5-7-5 (syllables per line) three-line haikus.
Here's today's challenge: take a simple child's story (e.g., Cinderella, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Hansel and Gretel, etc.) and rewrite it in haikus.
Post your creations as a comment to this post! You show me yours; I'll show you mine!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Mark Thursday, April 7 on Your Calendar!
DATE: Thursday, April 7
TIME: 6-9 p.m.
EVENT: Reading by members of the Creative Writing 209 class
WHERE: Northern Lights College, Room 2-115 (Industry Training Centre)
WHO: You all! It's going to be special (extra-special if you're there!)
Here's your chance to find out what a Creative Writing class is like. What it could do for you. Why you should enrol the next time it's offered.
There will be short fiction and poetry readings. Everyone's been working very hard and our class has written some wonderful stories and poems.
Be encouraged about your own writing. Get inspired! Hope to see you there!
TIME: 6-9 p.m.
EVENT: Reading by members of the Creative Writing 209 class
WHERE: Northern Lights College, Room 2-115 (Industry Training Centre)
WHO: You all! It's going to be special (extra-special if you're there!)
Here's your chance to find out what a Creative Writing class is like. What it could do for you. Why you should enrol the next time it's offered.
There will be short fiction and poetry readings. Everyone's been working very hard and our class has written some wonderful stories and poems.
Be encouraged about your own writing. Get inspired! Hope to see you there!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Do You Tweet?
I don't. Really. I don't think I have time to tweet. I'm not sure I know how to tweet. Maybe I need a Tweeting for Dummies guide (I see Amazon.ca currently has a 50% off sale on Dummies guides but I didn't look at their ad to see if tweeting is among them).
Anyway, for all you tweeters out there, there is list of some incredible resources for writers (tools, specialty information collections, etc.) on twitter. Just check the at WriterThesaurus feed--Angela Ackerman (see my blog post from yesterday) posts all kinds of amazing links, all of them perfect for writers. She says that the Internet is so big, she tries to save other people time by sharing what she finds.
After checking my blog, her blog, other writing blogs, and twitter, if you have any time left, get writing!
Anyway, for all you tweeters out there, there is list of some incredible resources for writers (tools, specialty information collections, etc.) on twitter. Just check the at WriterThesaurus feed--Angela Ackerman (see my blog post from yesterday) posts all kinds of amazing links, all of them perfect for writers. She says that the Internet is so big, she tries to save other people time by sharing what she finds.
After checking my blog, her blog, other writing blogs, and twitter, if you have any time left, get writing!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Read this Blog!
The Bookshelf Muse
Have you ever been stuck for a word? You're writing a scene in your short story, novel, or play. Your vocabulary soup is a little thin. Want to beef it up? Check out The Bookshelf Muse.
This is the thesaurus grandparent! Every situation, every emotion, every setting, every scene--they are all there. Vocabulary to play with, to mix in with what you've already got.
Not only that, The Bookshelf Muse is a valuable resource for other resources. Have a look at the list of blogs that one of the co-creators follows: it's a veritable who's who of writing blogs.
So many blogs, so little time. We're going to have to get up earlier and go to bed later. In between those two times, we're going to have to be reading. When we're not reading, we'll have to be writing.
So make a plan and get to it!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
DEADLINE APPROACHING!!! March 31!
Call for Submissions DiVerseCities 2
(from Northern Groove . . . )
The Peace has many fine writers but few places to showcase their writing. Retro Relics/The Rabbit Hole, as part of its monthly Spread the Word open mike for poets and writers, is hoping to change that unfortunate fact. We are looking for submissions for DiVerseCities 2, an anthology of writing from the Peace. Submissions can include poetry, short stories, memoirs, or any other form of short writing. Well, except ransom notes and bomb threats.
The first DiVerseCities, published in November 2009, was widely acclaimed. The Guardian Books (UK) said "Astonishing!". The New York Review of Books called it a "trenchant voice from the gritty underbelly of the oil patch." The Globe & Mail commented "Who knew they could write in northern BC?"
Entries will be selected by a group of editors comprised of regulars of the Spread the Word open mike.
Entries should be submitted in electronic form by email to retrofsj@telus.net
by March 31, 2011.
For more information, contact Henry See at (250) 787-8822.
Future dates for the Spread the Word open mike are Tuesday, March 15, April 12, and May 17 at 7:00 pm.
(from Northern Groove . . . )
The Peace has many fine writers but few places to showcase their writing. Retro Relics/The Rabbit Hole, as part of its monthly Spread the Word open mike for poets and writers, is hoping to change that unfortunate fact. We are looking for submissions for DiVerseCities 2, an anthology of writing from the Peace. Submissions can include poetry, short stories, memoirs, or any other form of short writing. Well, except ransom notes and bomb threats.
The first DiVerseCities, published in November 2009, was widely acclaimed. The Guardian Books (UK) said "Astonishing!". The New York Review of Books called it a "trenchant voice from the gritty underbelly of the oil patch." The Globe & Mail commented "Who knew they could write in northern BC?"
Entries will be selected by a group of editors comprised of regulars of the Spread the Word open mike.
Entries should be submitted in electronic form by email to retrofsj@telus.net
by March 31, 2011.
For more information, contact Henry See at (250) 787-8822.
Future dates for the Spread the Word open mike are Tuesday, March 15, April 12, and May 17 at 7:00 pm.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Greg Lainsbury on YouTube
Here is the link to the YouTube video of Greg Lainsbury as he creates poetry! [See yesterday's post for the full story!]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnqlKytV1qU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnqlKytV1qU
Thursday, March 24, 2011
The Landscape of Contemporary Poetry
What's the last book of poetry you've read? What is a poet? What is a poem?
These were some of the questions that our guest speaker asked our Creative Writing class tonight. Greg Lainsbury, a long-time resident of the north, gave us the low-down on what's happening in the world of contemporary verse.
From post-World War One Dadaism to the underground samizdat movement in Russia to the up-to-the-minute poetry news and events on Ron Silliman's blog (www.ronsilliman.blogspot.com), Lainsbury took the class on a whirlwind tour of the contemporary poetry landscape.
This is not your father's poetry. It may not even be your poetry. But for sure, today's poets are doing interesting (if not always understandable) work. Some is a mixture of art and poetry, what I refer to a visual poetry.
Lainsbury explained that such visual or collage poetry is really just one stage in the composition of his poems. Via YouTube, we watched him at work constructing a poem. He said his method consists of gathering interesting phrases, sentences, and words throughout the year. Once he has his raw material--scooped from many sources--he lays out the individual pieces of paper on which the words and phrases have been typed and somehow, through the magic of the creative process, it all comes together into lines of poetry. He compared himself to a farmer gathering and sowing seeds, then reaping a harvest.
In addition to gathering words and phrases, Lainsbury also has his eye out for interesting images that add to the story he's building. It's an eclectic collection--a gallimaufry of colours and lines and images from science, popular culture, news, and other sources--that enhances or brings out the meaning of the words.
This was all new to me. I'm more on the lyrical and narrative end of the poetry scale myself, but I was intrigued by the difference in approach. Poetry has a bad rep, beset by the whiff of the school room and the church basement.
Maybe it's time for spring cleaning.
These were some of the questions that our guest speaker asked our Creative Writing class tonight. Greg Lainsbury, a long-time resident of the north, gave us the low-down on what's happening in the world of contemporary verse.
From post-World War One Dadaism to the underground samizdat movement in Russia to the up-to-the-minute poetry news and events on Ron Silliman's blog (www.ronsilliman.blogspot.com), Lainsbury took the class on a whirlwind tour of the contemporary poetry landscape.
This is not your father's poetry. It may not even be your poetry. But for sure, today's poets are doing interesting (if not always understandable) work. Some is a mixture of art and poetry, what I refer to a visual poetry.
Lainsbury explained that such visual or collage poetry is really just one stage in the composition of his poems. Via YouTube, we watched him at work constructing a poem. He said his method consists of gathering interesting phrases, sentences, and words throughout the year. Once he has his raw material--scooped from many sources--he lays out the individual pieces of paper on which the words and phrases have been typed and somehow, through the magic of the creative process, it all comes together into lines of poetry. He compared himself to a farmer gathering and sowing seeds, then reaping a harvest.
In addition to gathering words and phrases, Lainsbury also has his eye out for interesting images that add to the story he's building. It's an eclectic collection--a gallimaufry of colours and lines and images from science, popular culture, news, and other sources--that enhances or brings out the meaning of the words.
This was all new to me. I'm more on the lyrical and narrative end of the poetry scale myself, but I was intrigued by the difference in approach. Poetry has a bad rep, beset by the whiff of the school room and the church basement.
Maybe it's time for spring cleaning.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Preciseness is a Blessing
Most of us have heard about the group M.A.D.D., which stands for Mothers Against Drunk Drivers. It was started by a mother whose child was killed by a drunk driver. This high-profile self-help group raises awareness of this important issue, lobbies governments, and helps those who have experienced similar tragedy. The acronym sounds like the word "mad," which is what these mothers must be when their children are senselessly killed.
Yesterday, I saw a sign posted at my workplace. The poster announced a fundraising effort by a local group, "Doctors for Cancer."
Now if any group knows the difficulties and suffering associated with this disease, it's the doctors who care for their patients. I am sure this group raises awareness and funds to fight cancer.
Why aren't they "Doctors Against Cancer"?
Another sign from the work place, this time a hand-written poster announcing the availabilty of a skating rink on the property: "Bring your skates or borrow one and come on out for some exercise."
One? Hmm. It might be easier with a skate on each foot.
Yesterday, I saw a sign posted at my workplace. The poster announced a fundraising effort by a local group, "Doctors for Cancer."
Now if any group knows the difficulties and suffering associated with this disease, it's the doctors who care for their patients. I am sure this group raises awareness and funds to fight cancer.
Why aren't they "Doctors Against Cancer"?
Another sign from the work place, this time a hand-written poster announcing the availabilty of a skating rink on the property: "Bring your skates or borrow one and come on out for some exercise."
One? Hmm. It might be easier with a skate on each foot.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The Men's
I have it on good authority that there are no papers with a similar message (you are handsome/strong/aggressive/macho/tender/loving/committed, etc.) with tear-off strips that say "I am handsome/strong/aggressive/macho/tender/loving/committed, etc.") in the men's washroom. [See previous post, from 7:39 this morning, for further explanation.]
Only one kind of paper there with tear-off strips.
Only one kind of paper there with tear-off strips.
Using Words to Make the World a Better Place
Last week and again yesterday, I had a very wonderful surprise at work. I used the washroom. Nothing too unusual in that, but as I closed the door to the stall, I saw a notice had been taped to the back of the door. An eight-and-a-half by eleven sheet of white paper, landscape orientation. Along the bottom two inches of the paper, there were words written vertically, with cuts made between the words so that the little tab could easily be torn off and taken away, like an ad on a grocery store bulletin board advertising puppies to give away or a motorcycle for sale and having the seller's phone number along the bottom on tear-off strips.
Only the sign in the washroom wasn't about puppies or motorcycles.
Three words were centred on the page:
You are beautiful.
Along the bottom, on the vertical "tabs": I am beautiful.
I noticed that several of the tabs had already been torn off and taken away, maybe popped into someone's wallet or stuck on a computer monitor (that's where I put mine).
I asked around. No one claimed responsibility for this bold social experiment and happy-making. No one knew or was telling who had posted the signs (every stall had one).
That little sign is still taped to the bottom of my computer monitor. I look at it. I like it.
Thank you to whoever used their words to make this world a better place.
(Should I get someone to check out the men's?)
Only the sign in the washroom wasn't about puppies or motorcycles.
Three words were centred on the page:
You are beautiful.
Along the bottom, on the vertical "tabs": I am beautiful.
I noticed that several of the tabs had already been torn off and taken away, maybe popped into someone's wallet or stuck on a computer monitor (that's where I put mine).
I asked around. No one claimed responsibility for this bold social experiment and happy-making. No one knew or was telling who had posted the signs (every stall had one).
That little sign is still taped to the bottom of my computer monitor. I look at it. I like it.
Thank you to whoever used their words to make this world a better place.
(Should I get someone to check out the men's?)
Sunday, March 20, 2011
An Enchanted Poem
My mother was a poet. She had a way with words. Her specialty was haiku. She had many hundreds of haiku poems published.
The following poem was not written by her. It was written by Marguerite B. Palmer. I don't know who she was or if she wrote anything else, but my mother loved this poem. It articulates many of the same sentiments evident in my mother's haikus. I present it here for your enjoyment.
The Enchanted Wood
By Marguerite B. Palmer
There was a strange enchantment on the wood:
A transient rain had beaded Queen Anne's lace
And pearled the matted grasses where we stood.
There was a jeweled look about the place.
Translucent amber glistened on the pines
Whose branches hid unnumbered singing birds;
Diamonds were caught in spiderwebs and vines.
There was a magic that eluded words.
So we were silent from the moment when
We found a jade-touched stone on which to sit
And memorize it all, for even then
We knew that we could not go back to it.
* * * *
One of my favourite poems is "Pied Beauty" by Gerard Manley Hopkins.
Do you have a favourite poem? One perhaps that you've memorized? Or just one that, when you read it, it speaks to your heart and you know that it's true.
Leave a comment to let us know your favourite poem!
The following poem was not written by her. It was written by Marguerite B. Palmer. I don't know who she was or if she wrote anything else, but my mother loved this poem. It articulates many of the same sentiments evident in my mother's haikus. I present it here for your enjoyment.
The Enchanted Wood
By Marguerite B. Palmer
There was a strange enchantment on the wood:
A transient rain had beaded Queen Anne's lace
And pearled the matted grasses where we stood.
There was a jeweled look about the place.
Translucent amber glistened on the pines
Whose branches hid unnumbered singing birds;
Diamonds were caught in spiderwebs and vines.
There was a magic that eluded words.
So we were silent from the moment when
We found a jade-touched stone on which to sit
And memorize it all, for even then
We knew that we could not go back to it.
* * * *
One of my favourite poems is "Pied Beauty" by Gerard Manley Hopkins.
Do you have a favourite poem? One perhaps that you've memorized? Or just one that, when you read it, it speaks to your heart and you know that it's true.
Leave a comment to let us know your favourite poem!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Getting Down to Business!
Some people write for a living. I used to be one of them. Every day, I went to the office and I wrote. First I interviewed and took photos, and then I wrote. Then I attended city council meetings, school board meetings, this and that meetings and took photos, and then I wrote. Dream job? Not exactly. Ask my kids.
Anyway, writing--whether you do it at an office and are paid a wage or sit in front of your own computer at home writing a novel--is a business. The sooner we look at it this way, the better our chances of success.
At Thursday night's creative writing class, Ruth Hill, a writer from Chetwynd, spoke to us about the business and record-keeping aspects of writing. She had many good suggestions and has done lots of research on this topic.
I came home from class excited about the possibilities ahead of me! Ruth had several different information-gathering-and-tracking pages loaded with tons of questions and blank spaces for the answers. I wasn't sure I was that organized!
What I did was create an Excel spreadsheet for upcoming writing contests. The columns across detail things like name of contest, deadline date, entry fee, prizes, when winners will be announced, word or line limit, genre, web site, etc., etc. Ah, now we're cooking with gas, as my father used to say!
I'm working on filling it all in. This is where the research comes in, and I'll probably lean on some of what Ruth has done.
Another tool that I thought some people might think is handy is BirthdayAlarm.com (no, I'm not asking you to remember my birthday!) As an event, you could enter the deadline date of the contests, and then automatically, BirthdayAlarm.com would send you a reminder two weeks ahead and one week ahead! What a system!
Then I'm going to make another spreadsheet to keep track of pieces that I submit to journals or magazines.
Okay, gotta get writing so I'll have something to submit.
Anyway, writing--whether you do it at an office and are paid a wage or sit in front of your own computer at home writing a novel--is a business. The sooner we look at it this way, the better our chances of success.
At Thursday night's creative writing class, Ruth Hill, a writer from Chetwynd, spoke to us about the business and record-keeping aspects of writing. She had many good suggestions and has done lots of research on this topic.
I came home from class excited about the possibilities ahead of me! Ruth had several different information-gathering-and-tracking pages loaded with tons of questions and blank spaces for the answers. I wasn't sure I was that organized!
What I did was create an Excel spreadsheet for upcoming writing contests. The columns across detail things like name of contest, deadline date, entry fee, prizes, when winners will be announced, word or line limit, genre, web site, etc., etc. Ah, now we're cooking with gas, as my father used to say!
I'm working on filling it all in. This is where the research comes in, and I'll probably lean on some of what Ruth has done.
Another tool that I thought some people might think is handy is BirthdayAlarm.com (no, I'm not asking you to remember my birthday!) As an event, you could enter the deadline date of the contests, and then automatically, BirthdayAlarm.com would send you a reminder two weeks ahead and one week ahead! What a system!
Then I'm going to make another spreadsheet to keep track of pieces that I submit to journals or magazines.
Okay, gotta get writing so I'll have something to submit.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
A Limerick, for St. Patrick's Day
There once was a young man from Cork
Who had trouble using a fork
He never could learn
How to make the thing turn
Without giving way too much torque.
Probably not a prize winner, but by the time I sat down to write my blog today, I had only three minutes before the stroke of midnight, and I wanted this entry dated on March 17, and those lines are the first things that popped into my head! It is what it is!
Show your Irish and write a limerick! (Please remember this is a family publication!)
Have some fun! Leave your limerick as a comment under this entry!
Who had trouble using a fork
He never could learn
How to make the thing turn
Without giving way too much torque.
Probably not a prize winner, but by the time I sat down to write my blog today, I had only three minutes before the stroke of midnight, and I wanted this entry dated on March 17, and those lines are the first things that popped into my head! It is what it is!
Show your Irish and write a limerick! (Please remember this is a family publication!)
Have some fun! Leave your limerick as a comment under this entry!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
The Wearing of the Green
Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day. People will wear green and drink green beer. Cities will hold parades and put green dye into a nearby river or lake. So in honour of all that's St. Pat, let's consider Irish literature.
It's one of the oldest modern European literatures, arising in the 5th century. Poets were respected; those from the bardic schools attended at the royal courts. Oral storytelling was an art form. Stories told the history and they were the entertainment and the crux of the Irish cultural identity.
Who but the Irish have the Blarney Stone, which, if you kiss it, upsidedown (?), it makes you wise with words. Or is it lucky in love? Perhaps those two are connected.
That was then. What about today? Whose out there? Who are the rising stars?
There are the supernovas, the big names: Oscar Wilde, James Joyce, Richard Brinsley Sheridan (one of my favourites!), Roddy Doyle, Seamus Heaney, Maeve Binchy (see? something for everyone!) Claire Keegan, Gerard Byrne, who is currently writer-in-residence at the University of New Brunswick, and Kevin Barry.
Make a list! Spread your wings! Read something green!
It's one of the oldest modern European literatures, arising in the 5th century. Poets were respected; those from the bardic schools attended at the royal courts. Oral storytelling was an art form. Stories told the history and they were the entertainment and the crux of the Irish cultural identity.
Who but the Irish have the Blarney Stone, which, if you kiss it, upsidedown (?), it makes you wise with words. Or is it lucky in love? Perhaps those two are connected.
That was then. What about today? Whose out there? Who are the rising stars?
There are the supernovas, the big names: Oscar Wilde, James Joyce, Richard Brinsley Sheridan (one of my favourites!), Roddy Doyle, Seamus Heaney, Maeve Binchy (see? something for everyone!) Claire Keegan, Gerard Byrne, who is currently writer-in-residence at the University of New Brunswick, and Kevin Barry.
Make a list! Spread your wings! Read something green!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Your Autobiography as a Reader
How would you characterize your life as a reader?
I asked my students today what memories they had of reading or being read to as a child. Many of them had no specific memories of this. One said she remembered her mother singing to her but not reading to her.
I have lots of memories regarding books. When I was five, I was in the hospital, and my mother brought me a Little Golden Book. It was the story of the Largest Turnip. She read it to me, and when I was older, I read it many times over. Even today, I can still see the picture in my mind--all the village people lined up one behind the other, trying to pull the giant turnip from the ground.
A few years ago, I found a copy of this book at a garage sale. I've since passed it on to some little folks.
When I was nine or ten or thereabouts, I was in the "horse story" and "dog story" phase of my reading life. I can picture the low shelves in the children's section at the Fraser-Hickson Library on Grand Avenue in Montreal, where I spent many happy hours. Jim Kjelgaard's Big Red, Irish Red, and Outlaw Red were among my favourite dog stories. Those books were my friends.
From the same library a few years later, I remember a book with a bright pink cover: Put Your Best Foot Forward. It was a book about how to be a teenaged girl: how to put on lipstick, how to act around boys, how to kiss. I can see the line drawings that were sprinkled throughout the book. I guess I needed some help.
Then for a few years, there was a large Black Hole in my life as a reader. I stopped reading for a few years. Fiction anyway. I thought it didn't have anything to do with me. It was made up stuff that wasn't true.
That wasn't true. One day a friend recommended a book to me. It was by Robertson Davies. The title was Rebel Angels. I saw myself on every page. Every character was me. Every incident was my life. I came back to fiction.
Then in university, I kept putting books on my To Read list and kept telling myself as soon as I was finished reading everything I was supposed to read for my courses, I'd read the things I wanted to read. I think I'm still working on that list!
Now, I'm an eclectic reader. Something here, something there, and I'm talking about my house--there's a book here and a book there--by the bed, on the coffee table, in the kitchen, and yes, next to the throne.
Currently, I'm working on:
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (more on this anon)
The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky - it's slow going
Les Dimanches de Julie by Sylvain Trudel (a French-language young adult novel)
Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper
The Christian Faith by Michael Horton
Easy Spanish Reader
PLUS a variety of other language learning books (Spanish, Latin, and French) from which I am working on numerous chapters, exercises, and translations.
What about you? What's your autobiography as a reader? What precious memories do you have about books?
I asked my students today what memories they had of reading or being read to as a child. Many of them had no specific memories of this. One said she remembered her mother singing to her but not reading to her.
I have lots of memories regarding books. When I was five, I was in the hospital, and my mother brought me a Little Golden Book. It was the story of the Largest Turnip. She read it to me, and when I was older, I read it many times over. Even today, I can still see the picture in my mind--all the village people lined up one behind the other, trying to pull the giant turnip from the ground.
A few years ago, I found a copy of this book at a garage sale. I've since passed it on to some little folks.
When I was nine or ten or thereabouts, I was in the "horse story" and "dog story" phase of my reading life. I can picture the low shelves in the children's section at the Fraser-Hickson Library on Grand Avenue in Montreal, where I spent many happy hours. Jim Kjelgaard's Big Red, Irish Red, and Outlaw Red were among my favourite dog stories. Those books were my friends.
From the same library a few years later, I remember a book with a bright pink cover: Put Your Best Foot Forward. It was a book about how to be a teenaged girl: how to put on lipstick, how to act around boys, how to kiss. I can see the line drawings that were sprinkled throughout the book. I guess I needed some help.
Then for a few years, there was a large Black Hole in my life as a reader. I stopped reading for a few years. Fiction anyway. I thought it didn't have anything to do with me. It was made up stuff that wasn't true.
That wasn't true. One day a friend recommended a book to me. It was by Robertson Davies. The title was Rebel Angels. I saw myself on every page. Every character was me. Every incident was my life. I came back to fiction.
Then in university, I kept putting books on my To Read list and kept telling myself as soon as I was finished reading everything I was supposed to read for my courses, I'd read the things I wanted to read. I think I'm still working on that list!
Now, I'm an eclectic reader. Something here, something there, and I'm talking about my house--there's a book here and a book there--by the bed, on the coffee table, in the kitchen, and yes, next to the throne.
Currently, I'm working on:
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (more on this anon)
The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky - it's slow going
Les Dimanches de Julie by Sylvain Trudel (a French-language young adult novel)
Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper
The Christian Faith by Michael Horton
Easy Spanish Reader
PLUS a variety of other language learning books (Spanish, Latin, and French) from which I am working on numerous chapters, exercises, and translations.
What about you? What's your autobiography as a reader? What precious memories do you have about books?
Monday, March 14, 2011
Call Sentence 9-1-1!
Leave the other person at home. That's my advice.
Not always, of course. It's fun to go out with a friend to the coffee shop or to a movie, or maybe go shopping together. I'm talking about a different case.
The objective case, actually. I can see the question mark above your heads. Take this sentence that I heard on this past weekend:
He did it for you and I.
Now's the time to leave the other person at home. What I mean by this is get the other person out of your sentence. So in the example above, we would take out "you" and what would we have left?
He did it for . . . I.
Ah-h-h-h-h!!!! We would never say that. We know better. We know that the correct way to say this is: He did it for me.
Okay, now that we have the correct form, let's invite the other person back into the sentence:
He did it for you and me. (The convention in English is that we mention ourselves last.)
That's all there is to it. You never have to make this mistake again!
I have my own theory about why this mistake is so prevalent. It appears regularly in news reports, love songs, and movie scripts. I hear it from the platform, from the pulpit, and from the podium.
It comes from a generation of mothers correcting the grammar of their children. That in itself is a good thing. It went something like this:
Johnny: "Mommy, can Billy and me go to the store?"
Mother: "It's 'Billy and I.'"
Johnny: "Okay, okay, can Billy and I go to the store?"
Mother: "That's better. Yes, you may."
So after millions of mothers reminding little Johnny and little Janey that it was "Billy and I," not "Billy and me," this set phrase crept into daily usage as the ONLY way of connecting these two people in a sentence.
The mothers were right. Check it out. Leave the other person at home:
"Mommy, can . . . I go to the store?"
But what about case of the first example: He did it for you and me.
It all hinges on case. The subjective case or the objective case. If it's the subject of the sentence (Can Billy and I go to the store?), then you need "I."
If it's the object of the verb or the object of a preposition (e.g., for), then you need the objective case, and that word is "me."
He did it for me.
Get it right . . . for you and me.
Not always, of course. It's fun to go out with a friend to the coffee shop or to a movie, or maybe go shopping together. I'm talking about a different case.
The objective case, actually. I can see the question mark above your heads. Take this sentence that I heard on this past weekend:
He did it for you and I.
Now's the time to leave the other person at home. What I mean by this is get the other person out of your sentence. So in the example above, we would take out "you" and what would we have left?
He did it for . . . I.
Ah-h-h-h-h!!!! We would never say that. We know better. We know that the correct way to say this is: He did it for me.
Okay, now that we have the correct form, let's invite the other person back into the sentence:
He did it for you and me. (The convention in English is that we mention ourselves last.)
That's all there is to it. You never have to make this mistake again!
I have my own theory about why this mistake is so prevalent. It appears regularly in news reports, love songs, and movie scripts. I hear it from the platform, from the pulpit, and from the podium.
It comes from a generation of mothers correcting the grammar of their children. That in itself is a good thing. It went something like this:
Johnny: "Mommy, can Billy and me go to the store?"
Mother: "It's 'Billy and I.'"
Johnny: "Okay, okay, can Billy and I go to the store?"
Mother: "That's better. Yes, you may."
So after millions of mothers reminding little Johnny and little Janey that it was "Billy and I," not "Billy and me," this set phrase crept into daily usage as the ONLY way of connecting these two people in a sentence.
The mothers were right. Check it out. Leave the other person at home:
"Mommy, can . . . I go to the store?"
But what about case of the first example: He did it for you and me.
It all hinges on case. The subjective case or the objective case. If it's the subject of the sentence (Can Billy and I go to the store?), then you need "I."
If it's the object of the verb or the object of a preposition (e.g., for), then you need the objective case, and that word is "me."
He did it for me.
Get it right . . . for you and me.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Something Very Exciting!
I went to the public library on Saturday to find some of the books that have been nominated for the B.C. Book Prizes. I found the list on the B.C. Book Prizes web site. What I didn't find in the library was most of the books that had been nominated! That was a bit disappointing, especially since there were none of the poetry books, the group I was especially interested in.
However, I was delighted to find that one of the young adult books that has been nominated was written by someone who lives right here in Fort St. John!
The name of the book is Fatty Legs. It tells the true story of a young girl who was sent to residential school. It's not a long book. It is illustrated by both paintings and photographs.
The book is written by Christy Jordan-Fenton and her mother, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, whose story is told.
The artwork is by Liz Amini-Holmes.
Simply put, this book deserves to win.
However, I was delighted to find that one of the young adult books that has been nominated was written by someone who lives right here in Fort St. John!
The name of the book is Fatty Legs. It tells the true story of a young girl who was sent to residential school. It's not a long book. It is illustrated by both paintings and photographs.
The book is written by Christy Jordan-Fenton and her mother, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, whose story is told.
The artwork is by Liz Amini-Holmes.
Simply put, this book deserves to win.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Trying Out Different Voices
Different poems use different voices. Finding the right one for your poem is an important step in writing.
A lyrical voice is used to tell about the feelings or emotions of the poet in relation to some object or experience. We can identify the lyrical voice by personal pronouns--I, me, my, we, our, us, mine. ours. Personal experience is in the foreground here. Originally, this type of poem was accompanied by music from a lyre, hence the word "lyrical."
This sort of poem has been around a long time and is often easy to identify with. We can picture what the poet saw; we can feel the same feelings. It is a humanizing kind of poem, reminding us that we are all in this world together as humans, with similar feelings, desires, worries, and hopes.
Another voice is the dramatic mask, where the poet speaks as if he or she is an inanimate or non-human object.
A third voice, the narrative voice, is used to simply tell about something else, without reference to the poet.
Of course, the use of each of these voice is undergirded by the poet's particular way of speaking, the poet's own voice. These voices, working together, give an individual, fresh quality to the poet's work.
Have you explored the various characteristics of lyrical, dramatic, and narrative poetry? Have you matched what you're saying to the voice best suited to say it?
Have you found your own voice?
A lyrical voice is used to tell about the feelings or emotions of the poet in relation to some object or experience. We can identify the lyrical voice by personal pronouns--I, me, my, we, our, us, mine. ours. Personal experience is in the foreground here. Originally, this type of poem was accompanied by music from a lyre, hence the word "lyrical."
This sort of poem has been around a long time and is often easy to identify with. We can picture what the poet saw; we can feel the same feelings. It is a humanizing kind of poem, reminding us that we are all in this world together as humans, with similar feelings, desires, worries, and hopes.
Another voice is the dramatic mask, where the poet speaks as if he or she is an inanimate or non-human object.
A third voice, the narrative voice, is used to simply tell about something else, without reference to the poet.
Of course, the use of each of these voice is undergirded by the poet's particular way of speaking, the poet's own voice. These voices, working together, give an individual, fresh quality to the poet's work.
Have you explored the various characteristics of lyrical, dramatic, and narrative poetry? Have you matched what you're saying to the voice best suited to say it?
Have you found your own voice?
Friday, March 11, 2011
Becoming Entitled
What about titles? Where do they come from? How does a poet decide on a title for a poem? How does an author of a book decide on a title that will have shelf appeal? What about blogs? What makes an intriguing name for a blog?
I'll go first and let you in on how this blog was named. It was inspired primarily by my night-owl life-style. Social media might be of particular help to northern writers, as we are far removed from the publishing centres of the country and networking with other writers is perhaps more difficult for us. So thinking of “northern” and “night,” I thought of “Knight Rider,” (the 1980s television series), and that morphed into “night writer” and the blog was named. In about 43 seconds.
About 150 years ago, many non-fiction books carried very long titles. The title was, in fact, a whole description in a very straight-forward way of what the book was about. I'm glad to say that has changed.
Fiction titles have more often been shorter and some have even been catchy. I won't hesitate to mention two of my favourite right here: Pamela by Samuel Richardson and Middlemarch by George Eliot. The first one takes its name from the protagonist and the second, from the community in which the story takes place (although the protagonist in this one spends time in other locations).
What about poetry books? Well, it's a dog's breakfast out there. Some titles are enigmatic, to say the least. Others are symbolic; some take their name from one of the poems in the book.
I'd like to hear from you. How do you pick a title for a poem? If you have a book of poems, or a novel, how did you pick the title?
It's easy to make a comment. All you need is a Google profile, which takes only minutes to set up. Maybe you already have one, and so you have no excuse for not leaving a comment and keeping the conversation going.
I'll go first and let you in on how this blog was named. It was inspired primarily by my night-owl life-style. Social media might be of particular help to northern writers, as we are far removed from the publishing centres of the country and networking with other writers is perhaps more difficult for us. So thinking of “northern” and “night,” I thought of “Knight Rider,” (the 1980s television series), and that morphed into “night writer” and the blog was named. In about 43 seconds.
About 150 years ago, many non-fiction books carried very long titles. The title was, in fact, a whole description in a very straight-forward way of what the book was about. I'm glad to say that has changed.
Fiction titles have more often been shorter and some have even been catchy. I won't hesitate to mention two of my favourite right here: Pamela by Samuel Richardson and Middlemarch by George Eliot. The first one takes its name from the protagonist and the second, from the community in which the story takes place (although the protagonist in this one spends time in other locations).
What about poetry books? Well, it's a dog's breakfast out there. Some titles are enigmatic, to say the least. Others are symbolic; some take their name from one of the poems in the book.
I'd like to hear from you. How do you pick a title for a poem? If you have a book of poems, or a novel, how did you pick the title?
It's easy to make a comment. All you need is a Google profile, which takes only minutes to set up. Maybe you already have one, and so you have no excuse for not leaving a comment and keeping the conversation going.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
It's a Hard Job, but Somebody's Got to Do It, Please!
I'm taking a gander at one of the local weekly newspapers, at the section entitled, "Saluting Women in Business." This section appears this week because yesterday, March 8, was International Women's Day.
The banner above the section pages shows half a woman (from the waist down--I'll comment on that in a moment) relaxing in an office chair, a laptop balanced easily on her lap, her long legs, crossed sexily, and very nice black shoes with 3-inch heels and ankle straps. The only other item in the photo is . . . please tell me I'm wrong . . . a waste basket. No, it must be something else. The words SALUTING WOMEN in BUSINESS are stacked in four lines, and, with a briefcase handle poised above them, form the shape of a briefcase. Take a look for yourself; click on page 18-19: Women in Business ad.
Now I know many women who run their own businesses and none of them ever look like this. They probably have two or three kids clinging to those legs, and if they are reclined in their chairs, it's from exhaustion.
Two things strike me here: half a woman. How is this possible in 2011? I ask myself. So much ink has been spilled in the last 35-40 years (can it have been that long already?) about how women appear in advertising--what they wear; how they hold their faces, legs, hands, mouths, and other body parts; where they look; who they are looking good for, etc., etc. Has nothing changed? Does no one speak up any more?
Okay, next point: the garbage can. Perhaps this is where the other half of the woman is. Need I say more?
Anyway, none of that is what first attracted my attention to the section, which includes (probably paid) advertorials on nine local businesses owned by women. What originally caught my eye was the cutline beside a photo of a woman who owns an organic and natural foods store: "Owner & Health Couch."
Hmm . . . it's one thing to be a couch potato, but to be a couch?!
On the same page, in an advertorial for a new lounge in town (maybe they need a couch?), Tuesday is "Amature Comedy Night." Another business owner states that owning her own business "has been a huge dream I've been bulding to my whole life." This same business stays open late till 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays "just so male workers can make her hours flexable for them." I have no idea what the previous sentence means.
Now I know what you're thinking.
- It's just a small town newspaper, so what do you expect?
- It's fine to point out the mistakes of others, but do you think you're perfect?
Which brings me to my point: it's a hard job, but somebody's got to do it. Please, somebody do it!
Read over everything. Once. Out loud. Slowly. Word by word. Read it again! Don't hit that SEND button yet! Think about it. Read it again.
Why? Because as difficult as writing is, proofreading is even more difficult. But somebody's got to do it.
The banner above the section pages shows half a woman (from the waist down--I'll comment on that in a moment) relaxing in an office chair, a laptop balanced easily on her lap, her long legs, crossed sexily, and very nice black shoes with 3-inch heels and ankle straps. The only other item in the photo is . . . please tell me I'm wrong . . . a waste basket. No, it must be something else. The words SALUTING WOMEN in BUSINESS are stacked in four lines, and, with a briefcase handle poised above them, form the shape of a briefcase. Take a look for yourself; click on page 18-19: Women in Business ad.
Now I know many women who run their own businesses and none of them ever look like this. They probably have two or three kids clinging to those legs, and if they are reclined in their chairs, it's from exhaustion.
Two things strike me here: half a woman. How is this possible in 2011? I ask myself. So much ink has been spilled in the last 35-40 years (can it have been that long already?) about how women appear in advertising--what they wear; how they hold their faces, legs, hands, mouths, and other body parts; where they look; who they are looking good for, etc., etc. Has nothing changed? Does no one speak up any more?
Okay, next point: the garbage can. Perhaps this is where the other half of the woman is. Need I say more?
Anyway, none of that is what first attracted my attention to the section, which includes (probably paid) advertorials on nine local businesses owned by women. What originally caught my eye was the cutline beside a photo of a woman who owns an organic and natural foods store: "Owner & Health Couch."
Hmm . . . it's one thing to be a couch potato, but to be a couch?!
On the same page, in an advertorial for a new lounge in town (maybe they need a couch?), Tuesday is "Amature Comedy Night." Another business owner states that owning her own business "has been a huge dream I've been bulding to my whole life." This same business stays open late till 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays "just so male workers can make her hours flexable for them." I have no idea what the previous sentence means.
Now I know what you're thinking.
- It's just a small town newspaper, so what do you expect?
- It's fine to point out the mistakes of others, but do you think you're perfect?
Which brings me to my point: it's a hard job, but somebody's got to do it. Please, somebody do it!
Read over everything. Once. Out loud. Slowly. Word by word. Read it again! Don't hit that SEND button yet! Think about it. Read it again.
Why? Because as difficult as writing is, proofreading is even more difficult. But somebody's got to do it.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Writers and their Personal Demons
What do the names Percy Shelley, Lord Byron, and Sylvia Plath have in common? Or Hunter S. Thompson and William S. Burroughs? Or for a Canadian twist, Milton Acorn and Elizabeth Smart?
For one, they were all writers. For another, they were narcissistic and depressed. Please understand that this is not my personal opinion, but historians and biographers tell us that these writers were -- dare I say "haunted" by their personal demons. Some of them acted and lived outrageously (I haven't mentioned them all here, but perhaps Oscar Wilde as another example might come to mind) and as in Lord Byron's case, was refused burial services at both St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Cathedral because of his, um, shall we say, "flamboyance"?
Others had what have been referred to as public meltdowns.
Among movie stars and sports personalities, a "Three Mile Island" is perhaps not totally unexpected. Apparently, from recent news reports, Charlie Sheen has been under pressure, so much so that, according to today's interview with Jen Sookfong Lee on CBC Radio's All Points West, hosted by Jo Ann Roberts, Sheen's last name has become a verb, as in "We went to Las Vegas and went sheening down the Strip."
(But didn't we always know he was a meltdown waiting to happen?) I imagine "sheening" to be some kind of wild cavorting with friends of questionable reputation. There, I've just used the present participle as a noun. But maybe I'm wrong about Charlie.
What does this all have to do with us? Well, we need to be careful. Be careful of what photos we throw on Facebook. Our future fans could see them. Speak kindly to those around us. Share our knowledge and expertise even though publishing is a competitive world. Yes, all those things we learned in kindergarten are still important.
Most of all, if we feel a meltdown coming, let's decompress by getting our angst out of our system through writing.
We'll produce some fabulous fiction and poetry!
For one, they were all writers. For another, they were narcissistic and depressed. Please understand that this is not my personal opinion, but historians and biographers tell us that these writers were -- dare I say "haunted" by their personal demons. Some of them acted and lived outrageously (I haven't mentioned them all here, but perhaps Oscar Wilde as another example might come to mind) and as in Lord Byron's case, was refused burial services at both St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Cathedral because of his, um, shall we say, "flamboyance"?
Others had what have been referred to as public meltdowns.
Among movie stars and sports personalities, a "Three Mile Island" is perhaps not totally unexpected. Apparently, from recent news reports, Charlie Sheen has been under pressure, so much so that, according to today's interview with Jen Sookfong Lee on CBC Radio's All Points West, hosted by Jo Ann Roberts, Sheen's last name has become a verb, as in "We went to Las Vegas and went sheening down the Strip."
(But didn't we always know he was a meltdown waiting to happen?) I imagine "sheening" to be some kind of wild cavorting with friends of questionable reputation. There, I've just used the present participle as a noun. But maybe I'm wrong about Charlie.
What does this all have to do with us? Well, we need to be careful. Be careful of what photos we throw on Facebook. Our future fans could see them. Speak kindly to those around us. Share our knowledge and expertise even though publishing is a competitive world. Yes, all those things we learned in kindergarten are still important.
Most of all, if we feel a meltdown coming, let's decompress by getting our angst out of our system through writing.
We'll produce some fabulous fiction and poetry!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Rockin' Robin . . .
I admit it. I've been Left Behind. Educational policies notwithstanding, I have been left behind in the technorevolution. A few years ago, I might have been close to the front of the pack, but now, I feel as if I'm the last to cross the start line at the Boston Marathon.
The truth is I don't tweet. I have tweeted once. I signed up, signed in, and signed out.
In our creative writing course material, we were given a list of sites to follow. The Plus of tweets is the fact that they are short. Only 140 characters, and that's counting spaces.
The Twitter.com web site promises that "Twitter is without a doubt the best way to share and discover what is happening right now."
I liked the certainty of "without a doubt" and the immediacy of "right now."
What I discovered was a string of personal sentences congratulating this writer or that poet on winning such-and-such a prize. It was the equivalent of electronic chit-chat--maybe birdseed would be an apt metaphor--cluttering up the screen and my day.
I know I'm probably missing something terribly important, but how useful is this:
Or what about this?
And then this display of public grief:
Undaunted, I searched the creative writing sites:
And this from MP Bob Rae:
And the French-language version of Châtelaine, the national Canadian women's magazine, recently asked: Je twitte, donc je suis?
Apparently, everyone's doing it. Which is what high school students used to say about some other social activities when we were young. Only that wasn't really true!
For me, I think my time is better spent actually writing. I'll leave the tweeting to the other birds!
The truth is I don't tweet. I have tweeted once. I signed up, signed in, and signed out.
In our creative writing course material, we were given a list of sites to follow. The Plus of tweets is the fact that they are short. Only 140 characters, and that's counting spaces.
The Twitter.com web site promises that "Twitter is without a doubt the best way to share and discover what is happening right now."
I liked the certainty of "without a doubt" and the immediacy of "right now."
What I discovered was a string of personal sentences congratulating this writer or that poet on winning such-and-such a prize. It was the equivalent of electronic chit-chat--maybe birdseed would be an apt metaphor--cluttering up the screen and my day.
I know I'm probably missing something terribly important, but how useful is this:
Lady Gaga has canceled her partnership with Target due to their anti-gay rights donations, a source says.
Or what about this?
The inside of Charlie Sheen's urethra must look like Willy Wonka's boat ride.
And then this display of public grief:
Devastating to hear of Mike Starr succumbing to his illness. So very sad. Our prayers are with his family.
Undaunted, I searched the creative writing sites:
Oh no! Heal quickly, Ms. Didion! RT @LATimesbooks Joan Didion breaks collarbone in fall.
Big announcement next Tues: finalists for RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers to be revealed.
And this from MP Bob Rae:
Congrats to my friend (and constiuent!) Anna Porter for winning the Shaughnessy Cohen book prize!! Great book too - The Ghosts of Europe...
And the French-language version of Châtelaine, the national Canadian women's magazine, recently asked: Je twitte, donc je suis?
Apparently, everyone's doing it. Which is what high school students used to say about some other social activities when we were young. Only that wasn't really true!
For me, I think my time is better spent actually writing. I'll leave the tweeting to the other birds!
Every little swallow, every chick-a-dee
Every little bird in the tall oak tree
The wise old owl, the big black crow
Flappin' their wings singing go bird go
Rockin' robin, tweet tweet tweet
Rockin' robin' tweet tweetly-tweet
Monday, March 7, 2011
B.C.'s Bestsellers!
The Association of Book Publishers of B.C. puts out a weekly list of the best-selling books in B.C. There are two categories: adults' and children's. Fiction and non-fiction are not separated.
Here's the most recent list.
Adult Bestseller List
1.Patriot Hearts by John Furlong
2.Quinoa 365 by Patricia Green & Carolyn Hemming
3.The Sentimentalists by Johanna Skibsrud
4.Adventures in Solitude by Grant Lawrence
5.The Zero-Mile Diet by Carolyn Herriot
6.Vij’s at Home by Meeru Dhalwala & Vikram Vij
7.Everything Works by Mike McCardell
8.And to Think I Got in Free! by Jim Taylor
9.Bateman: New Works by Robert Bateman
10.Voices of British Columbia by Robert Budd
Children’s Bestseller List
1.Field Guide to the Identification of Pebbles by Eileen Van der Flier-Keller
2.Storm Boy by Paul Owen Lewis
3.Fishing with Gubby by Gary Kent
4.Fraser Bear by Maggie de Vries
5.Frog Girl by Paul Owen Lewis
This is what's selling!
Here's the most recent list.
Adult Bestseller List
1.Patriot Hearts by John Furlong
2.Quinoa 365 by Patricia Green & Carolyn Hemming
3.The Sentimentalists by Johanna Skibsrud
4.Adventures in Solitude by Grant Lawrence
5.The Zero-Mile Diet by Carolyn Herriot
6.Vij’s at Home by Meeru Dhalwala & Vikram Vij
7.Everything Works by Mike McCardell
8.And to Think I Got in Free! by Jim Taylor
9.Bateman: New Works by Robert Bateman
10.Voices of British Columbia by Robert Budd
Children’s Bestseller List
1.Field Guide to the Identification of Pebbles by Eileen Van der Flier-Keller
2.Storm Boy by Paul Owen Lewis
3.Fishing with Gubby by Gary Kent
4.Fraser Bear by Maggie de Vries
5.Frog Girl by Paul Owen Lewis
This is what's selling!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Letter-Writing - Revive the Art!
It's a northern night. It's very dark as the moon has already set. It's very cold-- it's -19 C but headed for -24 C overnight. It's a perfect night for writing a letter!
Letter writing--actually taking a piece of paper or a card and using a pen or other writing implement to make some marks on it--is a bit out of style, having been overtaken in speed and ease by electronic means, but writing by hand has several advantages.
First, there is the element of surprise when the recipient opens the mailbox and finds, like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, the envelope from you buried beneath bills, bank statements, and grocery store flyers. Oh, the delight of it all!
In addition, there's a sense of accomplishment. You've done something that people have been doing for at least two thousand years--using the postal system to carry a missive to a loved one, a friend, a relative. Did you know that the Romans had a very efficient mail system in which a letter could go from Rome to the outposts of civilization, say in Spain or Gaul, in less than two weeks? Canada Post could perhaps take a page from their book! So you're carrying on a long tradition when you affix that stamp and drop your letter into the mail box.
Finally, letter writing is a fantastic way to get the creative juices flowing. It's a way to rev up your writing engine. Take time to think. Take care with what you say. Pour out your thoughts and your heart.
I don't often get such letters, but I hope that someone you know sends you one once in a while. Read it, tuck it into a box or a drawer, and years from now, you'll be able to pull it out, and with it, the fond memories that it brings.
Letter writing--actually taking a piece of paper or a card and using a pen or other writing implement to make some marks on it--is a bit out of style, having been overtaken in speed and ease by electronic means, but writing by hand has several advantages.
First, there is the element of surprise when the recipient opens the mailbox and finds, like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, the envelope from you buried beneath bills, bank statements, and grocery store flyers. Oh, the delight of it all! In addition, there's a sense of accomplishment. You've done something that people have been doing for at least two thousand years--using the postal system to carry a missive to a loved one, a friend, a relative. Did you know that the Romans had a very efficient mail system in which a letter could go from Rome to the outposts of civilization, say in Spain or Gaul, in less than two weeks? Canada Post could perhaps take a page from their book! So you're carrying on a long tradition when you affix that stamp and drop your letter into the mail box.
Finally, letter writing is a fantastic way to get the creative juices flowing. It's a way to rev up your writing engine. Take time to think. Take care with what you say. Pour out your thoughts and your heart.
I don't often get such letters, but I hope that someone you know sends you one once in a while. Read it, tuck it into a box or a drawer, and years from now, you'll be able to pull it out, and with it, the fond memories that it brings.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Here's the List!
World Book Night – The Books
Here is the list of the 25 books that will be distributed today in Great Britain. One million books—given away! What an idea! What a luxury!
Links to information about each author, about the books, and first-chapter excerpts can be found at worldbooknight.org.
In alphabetical order (except I’ve put the Canadians first!):
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
A Life Like Other People’s by Alan Bennett (UK)
Agent Zigzag by Ben Macintyre (UK)
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (Germany)
Beloved by Toni Morrison (US)
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (UK)
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (UK)
Dissolution by C.J. Sansom (UK)
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (UK)
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)
Killing Floor by Lee Child
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez
New Selected Poems 1966-1987 by Seamus Heaney
Northern Lights by Philip Pullman
One Day by David Nicholls
Rachel’s Holiday by Marian Keyes
Stuart by Alexander Masters (UK)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John Le Carré
The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy
Toast by Nigel Slater
How many of these have you read?
There's your reading plan for the next few months!!
Here is the list of the 25 books that will be distributed today in Great Britain. One million books—given away! What an idea! What a luxury!
Links to information about each author, about the books, and first-chapter excerpts can be found at worldbooknight.org.
In alphabetical order (except I’ve put the Canadians first!):
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
A Life Like Other People’s by Alan Bennett (UK)
Agent Zigzag by Ben Macintyre (UK)
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (Germany)
Beloved by Toni Morrison (US)
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (UK)
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (UK)
Dissolution by C.J. Sansom (UK)
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (UK)
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)
Killing Floor by Lee Child
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez
New Selected Poems 1966-1987 by Seamus Heaney
Northern Lights by Philip Pullman
One Day by David Nicholls
Rachel’s Holiday by Marian Keyes
Stuart by Alexander Masters (UK)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John Le Carré
The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy
Toast by Nigel Slater
How many of these have you read?
There's your reading plan for the next few months!!
Friday, March 4, 2011
A Must-Read!
Russell Smith has written an interesting article about the creative-writing course industry (who knew that it had gained industry status?).
It's short, and will take you only several minutes to read it. You'll find the article here.
I'm interested to hear your opinion about what he says. Leave a "comment" below.
It's short, and will take you only several minutes to read it. You'll find the article here.
I'm interested to hear your opinion about what he says. Leave a "comment" below.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
World Book Night Coming - March 5, 2011
World Book Night is a celebration of the written word. On the March 4th, the eve of World Book Night, Margaret Atwood, Alan Bennett, Nick Cave, John Le Carre, Rupert Everett, Mark Haddon, and other writers will join an audience of 5000 Givers and 5000 members of the public for a glittering celebration of the written word.
The audience will be treated to wide-ranging performances and readings from some of the most celebrated artists from stage and screen, literature and art, as well as from some of the authors whose books feature on the list of 25 World Book Night titles.
The countdown begins. World Book Night will take place on Saturday, March 5, 2011. This dynamic and unprecedented industry-wide initiative to celebrate adult books and reading will see one million free books given away on World Book Night by 20,000 passionate readers to other members of the public across the UK and Ireland. World Book Night will take place two days after World Book Day, the established nationwide reading campaign.
A growing list of high-profile figures from publishing, media and the arts are lending their support to this ambitious initiative by becoming Patrons of World Book Night.
Jamie Byng, Chairman, World Book Night says:
“World Book Night is a unique collaboration between publishers, booksellers, libraries, writers and individual members of the public and one that I think is going to have an enormously positive impact on books and reading. There are few things more meaningful than the personal recommendation and having one million books given to one million different people on one night in this way is both unprecedented and hugely exciting.”
An independent editorial committee composed of a broad mix of booksellers, librarians, authors, broadcasters and other individuals carefully selected the 25 titles to be given away to the public on World Book Night. Prior to this, the entire book trade was canvassed for recommendations and hundreds of lists were received. The final selection offers a wide array of outstanding books encompassing all types of fiction be it historical, literary, crime and commercial as well as poetry, memoir and young adult. Whether a huge bestseller, a prize-winning debut, a lesser known gem or an undisputed classic, it was felt that every book needed to be an accessible work of enduring quality that people would feel passionate about sharing with others.
Author John le Carré says:
“No writer can ask more than this: that his book should be handed in thousands to people who might otherwise never get to read it, and who will in turn hand it to thousands more. That his book should also pass from one generation to another as a story to challenge and excite each reader in his time -that is beyond his most ambitious dreams.”
Author Margaret Atwood adds:
I [am] amazed not only by its magnitude but by its simplicity. The love of writing, the love of reading – these are huge gifts. To be able give someone else a book you treasure widens the gift circle. I was thrilled to be asked to support World Book Night, and doubly thrilled that The Blind Assassin was chosen to help launch it. Long may its voyage be!”
The World Book Night website is at www.worldbooknight.org
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Novelteens a Novelty!
A recent headline in one of the local weekly newspapers stated:
"Novelteens" sets out to promote reading for teenagers
As my headline indicates, I believe there is a play on words between "novelteens" and "novelties" and, of course, "novels."
Novelteens is a group that is "aimed at encouraging a love for reading among teens aged 13-18." I'm not sure why the 19-year-olds were not included, but, there you have it.
The group is sort of a book club combined with a library and second-hand book store. Teens can borrow books for free or buy them for half of the original price of the book (the newspaper article said that they could buy the books for half the value of the book, but we know that the value of a book in a person's life may be incalcuable).
So it's like a library but not exactly. There is no time limit on how long a book may be borrowed for. If teens have books they are finished with, they can donate them. This keeps the collection circulating.
It's also not quite like a library in that the group meets at Faking Sanity, a cafe in the downtown area. It's a bit more relaxed perhaps, and, for some, maybe not as intimidating.
The group has other activities, such as a book drive and a Scrabble tournament, coming up soon.
Why should writers be interested in this group? These people are our readers now and our future readers! We can find out what they like in books. What they want to read. What makes a book "work" for them.
Novelteens may even have some budding writers in their midst!
"Novelteens" sets out to promote reading for teenagers
As my headline indicates, I believe there is a play on words between "novelteens" and "novelties" and, of course, "novels."
Novelteens is a group that is "aimed at encouraging a love for reading among teens aged 13-18." I'm not sure why the 19-year-olds were not included, but, there you have it.
The group is sort of a book club combined with a library and second-hand book store. Teens can borrow books for free or buy them for half of the original price of the book (the newspaper article said that they could buy the books for half the value of the book, but we know that the value of a book in a person's life may be incalcuable).
So it's like a library but not exactly. There is no time limit on how long a book may be borrowed for. If teens have books they are finished with, they can donate them. This keeps the collection circulating.
It's also not quite like a library in that the group meets at Faking Sanity, a cafe in the downtown area. It's a bit more relaxed perhaps, and, for some, maybe not as intimidating.
The group has other activities, such as a book drive and a Scrabble tournament, coming up soon.
Why should writers be interested in this group? These people are our readers now and our future readers! We can find out what they like in books. What they want to read. What makes a book "work" for them.
Novelteens may even have some budding writers in their midst!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
It's Not a Poem Yet, But Just Wait . . . !
At work today in the lunch room, I heard a line of poetry. The speaker perhaps didn't realize it was poetry since she spoke it as part of a conversation around the table, but to me it was. As faithfully as I can, I reproduce it here:
I have been in Rome when . . . and the lavender was in bloom
It doesn't look like much at the moment, especially since I can't remember the middle section, but the important thing is that I heard it--I heard it with a poet's ears. It sang to me. It wrapped me in its warmth, in the warm hues of its Mediterranean-ness. I could taste the olives still warm from the vine and smell the aroma of bread from the stone oven. I could see the vision of what it was expressing.
So I asked. I asked if I could use it. "Can I use that in a poem?" Yes, said the person who had originated what I considered to be a beautiful line. I took it away with me (well, most of it, anyway), and now all that's left is the hard work of melding it with other lines to bring out the poem that I heard in my head.
I'll keep you posted.
I have been in Rome when . . . and the lavender was in bloom
It doesn't look like much at the moment, especially since I can't remember the middle section, but the important thing is that I heard it--I heard it with a poet's ears. It sang to me. It wrapped me in its warmth, in the warm hues of its Mediterranean-ness. I could taste the olives still warm from the vine and smell the aroma of bread from the stone oven. I could see the vision of what it was expressing.
So I asked. I asked if I could use it. "Can I use that in a poem?" Yes, said the person who had originated what I considered to be a beautiful line. I took it away with me (well, most of it, anyway), and now all that's left is the hard work of melding it with other lines to bring out the poem that I heard in my head.
I'll keep you posted.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Occasional Writing
What is occasional writing? By this, I do not mean that occasionally, from time to time, once in a blue moon or once in a month of Sundays, you pick up a pencil, pen, or stylus, or you sit yourself down in front of your computer, laptop, netbook, iPad, or other device, and write a few lines.
No, occasional writing is writing for a special occasion. For example, your mother's birthday, your niece's wedding, your friend's baby shower, your grandson's soccer victory--an occasion that presents a perfect opportunity to Write Something.
Forget buying a birthday gift, shower gift, or wedding gift! This kind of writing can be a gift in and of itself.
It doesn't have to be long and involved. Start with a couplet! Move up to a quatrain. There are lots of possibilities.
Of course you can always write it in a birthday card or wedding card, just to make it official.
No, occasional writing is writing for a special occasion. For example, your mother's birthday, your niece's wedding, your friend's baby shower, your grandson's soccer victory--an occasion that presents a perfect opportunity to Write Something.
Forget buying a birthday gift, shower gift, or wedding gift! This kind of writing can be a gift in and of itself.
It doesn't have to be long and involved. Start with a couplet! Move up to a quatrain. There are lots of possibilities.
Of course you can always write it in a birthday card or wedding card, just to make it official.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Owed to a Bank
By Pamela den Ouden
Thy mighty halls intimidate the weak;
The poorest men stand mute, afraid to speak;
Thy marble walls guard secrets dark and deep;
Thy stairs, though grand, are never quite as steep
As interest rates.
As did Achilles in the days gone by,
We tackle armies, not afraid to die.
And yet one weak point caused his final fall.
We, too, are weak—our very life and all
Owed to a bank.
Thy mighty halls intimidate the weak;
The poorest men stand mute, afraid to speak;
Thy marble walls guard secrets dark and deep;
Thy stairs, though grand, are never quite as steep
As interest rates.
As did Achilles in the days gone by,
We tackle armies, not afraid to die.
And yet one weak point caused his final fall.
We, too, are weak—our very life and all
Owed to a bank.
Ode to British Columbia
At the suggestion of patb, who commented on my previous post, Think Poetry!, here is my attempt at an ode:
Ode to British Columbia
Columbia! You guard the western shore
Of this great land stretched forth from sea to sea,
Wide azure skies with eagles free to soar
And snow-capped mountains clothed in majesty.
Our motto sings, Here’s “Beauty Without End”—
The coast, the isles, Chilcotin-Cariboo,
The fruit-rich orchards, grapes upon the vine
The northern prairie where wild flowers blend
Their fragrance with the early morning dew.
My heart is conquered, for all this is mine.
Although this land is blessed with great romance,
Our people and their talents are our gold—
Our heritage is rich in music, dance—
In theatre, poetry, our lives unfold.
Our arts tell stories many different ways,
With fabric, film, with paint and words and food.
Contemporary artists fill the air
With magic that will set our hearts ablaze!
The BC Scene will set a lively mood
To celebrate the arts with certain flair!
Ode to British Columbia
Columbia! You guard the western shore
Of this great land stretched forth from sea to sea,
Wide azure skies with eagles free to soar
And snow-capped mountains clothed in majesty.
Our motto sings, Here’s “Beauty Without End”—
The coast, the isles, Chilcotin-Cariboo,
The fruit-rich orchards, grapes upon the vine
The northern prairie where wild flowers blend
Their fragrance with the early morning dew.
My heart is conquered, for all this is mine.
Although this land is blessed with great romance,
Our people and their talents are our gold—
Our heritage is rich in music, dance—
In theatre, poetry, our lives unfold.
Our arts tell stories many different ways,
With fabric, film, with paint and words and food.
Contemporary artists fill the air
With magic that will set our hearts ablaze!
The BC Scene will set a lively mood
To celebrate the arts with certain flair!
Monday, February 21, 2011
WARNING! WARNING! BILL C-32
What's Bill C-32, you ask? It's a bill to introduce the new copyright legislation, which will overhaul a law that is woefully out of date, what with all the new technology.
As writers, we need to be aware and concerned about what's happening "out there," even if we are stuck "up here." Watch this video--it's only 2 minutes 51 seconds. Listen to what these writers are saying.
Then call, phone, fax, text, e-mail, or otherwise notify your Member of Parliament. Make sure he or she is on-side with revisions that will protect intellectual property, not give it away for free.
As writers, we need to be aware and concerned about what's happening "out there," even if we are stuck "up here." Watch this video--it's only 2 minutes 51 seconds. Listen to what these writers are saying.
Then call, phone, fax, text, e-mail, or otherwise notify your Member of Parliament. Make sure he or she is on-side with revisions that will protect intellectual property, not give it away for free.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Think Poetry!
Free verse has reigned over Canadian poetry for the past 50 or 60 years. Writers moved away from the formal poetry, by which I mean poetry with a certain and controlled form, and moved towards the anything-goes-anywhere on the page.
In some poems, for example, "I Watched a Snake," by Jorie Graham, the form supports the content in that the lines on the page imitate the content, by creating the weaving-in-and-out of a snake moving through the grass.
Experimental poetry moves further towards the unformed by unhinging the normally accepted meaning of the words from the words themselves.
Returning to formal poetry, however, is a great exercise for the writer's brain. So let's think about those forms that we all learned in grade school and beyond:
Haiku - everyone always liked this because it was only three lines! We all know the formula: five syllables, seven syllables, five syllables. Mention a season or something in nature and Presto! A haiku! (A glance at the major haiku journals will show that many of today's haiku writers find a lot of wiggle room in that formula.)
Limerick - We all know about that girl or boy from Nantucket. Perhaps this type of verse is not very high in the hierarchy of poetry, but it's lots of fun to try. Does someone you know have a birthday coming up? Write a limerick for the birthday girl or boy!
Sonnet - Okay, some of you are having flashbacks to high school. Your English Lit teacher, Mrs. Dalrymple, is trying to teach you rhyme scheme, abab cdcd efef gg . . . or was it abba abba cde cde? The terms swim in our heads: octave, sestet, couplet, Elizabethan, Petrarchan, iambic pentameter . . . now we're lost, just like back then.
Step up to the plate. Try writing a sonnet! Taking the strict requirements of syllable stress and line length into consideration is great training!
One more:
Villanelle: a nineteen-line poem with two repeating rhymes and two refrains. The form is made up of five tercets (sets of three lines) followed by a quatrain (four lines). The first and third lines of the opening tercet are repeated alternately in the last lines of the succeeding stanzas; then in the final stanza, the refrain serves as the poem's two concluding lines. Using capitals for the refrains and lowercase letters for the rhymes, the form could be expressed as: A1 b A2 / a b A1 / a b A2 / a b A1 / a b A2 / a b A1 A2. (Thanks to Poets.org for help with this explanation!)
Sound complicated? Again, it's great training to think in such a structured way.
Give it a try! Upload your haikus, limericks (remember this is a family-friendly site!), sonnets, and villanelles in the comment section. The rest of you, offer some encouraging comments to those who step up to the plate!
In some poems, for example, "I Watched a Snake," by Jorie Graham, the form supports the content in that the lines on the page imitate the content, by creating the weaving-in-and-out of a snake moving through the grass.
Experimental poetry moves further towards the unformed by unhinging the normally accepted meaning of the words from the words themselves.
Returning to formal poetry, however, is a great exercise for the writer's brain. So let's think about those forms that we all learned in grade school and beyond:
Haiku - everyone always liked this because it was only three lines! We all know the formula: five syllables, seven syllables, five syllables. Mention a season or something in nature and Presto! A haiku! (A glance at the major haiku journals will show that many of today's haiku writers find a lot of wiggle room in that formula.)
Limerick - We all know about that girl or boy from Nantucket. Perhaps this type of verse is not very high in the hierarchy of poetry, but it's lots of fun to try. Does someone you know have a birthday coming up? Write a limerick for the birthday girl or boy!
Sonnet - Okay, some of you are having flashbacks to high school. Your English Lit teacher, Mrs. Dalrymple, is trying to teach you rhyme scheme, abab cdcd efef gg . . . or was it abba abba cde cde? The terms swim in our heads: octave, sestet, couplet, Elizabethan, Petrarchan, iambic pentameter . . . now we're lost, just like back then.
Step up to the plate. Try writing a sonnet! Taking the strict requirements of syllable stress and line length into consideration is great training!
One more:
Villanelle: a nineteen-line poem with two repeating rhymes and two refrains. The form is made up of five tercets (sets of three lines) followed by a quatrain (four lines). The first and third lines of the opening tercet are repeated alternately in the last lines of the succeeding stanzas; then in the final stanza, the refrain serves as the poem's two concluding lines. Using capitals for the refrains and lowercase letters for the rhymes, the form could be expressed as: A1 b A2 / a b A1 / a b A2 / a b A1 / a b A2 / a b A1 A2. (Thanks to Poets.org for help with this explanation!)
Sound complicated? Again, it's great training to think in such a structured way.
Give it a try! Upload your haikus, limericks (remember this is a family-friendly site!), sonnets, and villanelles in the comment section. The rest of you, offer some encouraging comments to those who step up to the plate!
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Arc Poetry Magazine Contest: Deadline Soon!
It's time for Arc Poetry Magazine's Third Annual "Poet vs. Poet" Poetry Contest.
They're looking for poets with "talent, drive, kick-ass technique and the ability to meet a deadline."
If you've got what it takes and some poems on the topic of contests, poet vs. poet, competition in art or in life, then get the lead out and send them in.
Please mark your envelope "POET vs. POET" and send to:
ARC Poetry Magazine
P.O. Box 81060
Ottawa, ON
K1P 1B1.
Deadline for poetry submissions is March 1, 2011.
WHAT???!!! No entry fee??? Gotta do this one!
They're looking for poets with "talent, drive, kick-ass technique and the ability to meet a deadline."
If you've got what it takes and some poems on the topic of contests, poet vs. poet, competition in art or in life, then get the lead out and send them in.
Please mark your envelope "POET vs. POET" and send to:
ARC Poetry Magazine
P.O. Box 81060
Ottawa, ON
K1P 1B1.
Deadline for poetry submissions is March 1, 2011.
WHAT???!!! No entry fee??? Gotta do this one!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
News Pegs as Ideas for Stories
Today I heard on the news about a house invasion in the Vanoouver area. Stolen from the residence was $750,000 worth of silver bars. The police officer interviewed said it is the hope and wish of the RCMP that people do not keep large amounts of cash or valuable metals in their homes, but, if they do, they should "keep it to themselves." She said that it was obvious that the theives knew what they were looking for.
How's that for an idea for a story! Hard to believe, but, as they say, truth is stranger than fiction.
Some questions to ask about this incident to pump it up to a story or a poem:
- why was all that silver in the house?
- where did it come from?
- how long had the owner been "collecting" it?
- what was it eventually going to be used for or what was the owner planning to do with it?
- who else knew about it?
- how did the information leak out?
- what about insurance? (Can you insure that under your regular house insurance??)
Anyway, scan the newspapers. Find the odd stories. Take a line or an idea and go to town with it!
Remember to change the names to protect the innocent and the guilty.
How's that for an idea for a story! Hard to believe, but, as they say, truth is stranger than fiction.
Some questions to ask about this incident to pump it up to a story or a poem:
- why was all that silver in the house?
- where did it come from?
- how long had the owner been "collecting" it?
- what was it eventually going to be used for or what was the owner planning to do with it?
- who else knew about it?
- how did the information leak out?
- what about insurance? (Can you insure that under your regular house insurance??)
Anyway, scan the newspapers. Find the odd stories. Take a line or an idea and go to town with it!
Remember to change the names to protect the innocent and the guilty.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
A Simple Task
By Pamela den Ouden
A simple task—
mailing a book of poetry to a friend
I wrap carefully
cheery birthday paper
party hats and streamers
in neon pink and green
(a padded envelope
assures arrival in good shape)
to save five percent
I print my own shipping label
from the Canada Post web site
sender information . . .
recipient address . . .
payment method . . .
a few more clicks on the keyboard
and the printer hums
As I cut on the dotted line
to separate label from receipt
I read the fine print
in both official languages:
The sender warrants that this item
does not contain dangerous goods
L’expéditeur garantit que cet envoi
ne contient pas de matières dangereuses
I put the scissors down
In all good conscience
I cannot mail it
On my next trip south
I hand-deliver the book
A simple task—
mailing a book of poetry to a friend
I wrap carefully
cheery birthday paper
party hats and streamers
in neon pink and green
(a padded envelope
assures arrival in good shape)
to save five percent
I print my own shipping label
from the Canada Post web site
sender information . . .
recipient address . . .
payment method . . .
a few more clicks on the keyboard
and the printer hums
As I cut on the dotted line
to separate label from receipt
I read the fine print
in both official languages:
The sender warrants that this item
does not contain dangerous goods
L’expéditeur garantit que cet envoi
ne contient pas de matières dangereuses
I put the scissors down
In all good conscience
I cannot mail it
On my next trip south
I hand-deliver the book
Monday, February 14, 2011
Get your Name in Print!
Do you belong to a group or society that has a newsletter? I do, and I know that the newsletter committee is always looking for content. Many offices or companies have company newsletters. Everything that someone else writes is something that someone on the committee doesn't have to write!
Take advantage of your connections and your knowledge in a specialized area to get your name in print. Newsletters are a certain kind of publishing credit, usually not the paying kind, but at least it's experience!
I have two articles in the current issue of the Prince George Astronomical Society Newsletter (January 2011). I just received my copy in the mail today, and the newsletter hasn't been posted online at their web site yet. A previous article that I wrote for this newsletter can be found at on page 8 of the November 2009 issue at:
http://vts.bc.ca/pgrasc/news/news.html
Start thinking where you can exercise your new-found expertise as a writer!
Uh oh, the deadline for the next astronomy newsletter is this Friday! I'd better get writing!
Take advantage of your connections and your knowledge in a specialized area to get your name in print. Newsletters are a certain kind of publishing credit, usually not the paying kind, but at least it's experience!
I have two articles in the current issue of the Prince George Astronomical Society Newsletter (January 2011). I just received my copy in the mail today, and the newsletter hasn't been posted online at their web site yet. A previous article that I wrote for this newsletter can be found at on page 8 of the November 2009 issue at:
http://vts.bc.ca/pgrasc/news/news.html
Start thinking where you can exercise your new-found expertise as a writer!
Uh oh, the deadline for the next astronomy newsletter is this Friday! I'd better get writing!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Try Your Hand at This!
CV2 (Contemporary Verse 2), the Canadian Journal of Poetry and Critical Writing, published in Winnipeg, has an interesting contest: The Two-Day Poem Contest.
Here's what you have to do:
First, you have to register, and you have until April 1 to do that. When you register, you have to pay $12. There are many choices of how to pay, including PayPal. Complete details are at the CV2 web site.
Then, at midnight (CST), when Friday turns over to Saturday, April 2, contestants will be e-mailed 10 random words. You have 48 hours to write and submit a poem, using each of the 10 words at least once.
Here is last year's list of words:
1. grit 2. bound 3. anniversary 4. table 5. note
6. leaf 7. etiolate 8. magazine 9. slake 10. solemn
Get your creative juices flowing by practicing with these words (or open your dictionary at random at 10 different pages, close your eyes, and point to a word).
Then, after you've written half a dozen or so poems for practice, hemmed in by the need to use the above list of words, go to the CW2 web site and read the amazing winning poems from last year.
I'd better get practising!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
A "Reply" but No "Comment"
Once I wrote to Queen Elizabeth. It was at the time that Prince Charles became engaged to Lady Diana Spencer. I wrote to the Queen and said that I had a daughter named Diana and how delighted I was that Prince Charles was marrying a Diana, etc., etc. Or something to that effect.
I did receive an answer: The Queen has commanded me to write to you . . . etc., etc., and the letter, on Buckingham Palace stationery, was duly signed by a Lady-in-Waiting. The receipt of this letter at our house was An Event!
After yesterday's blog post, I wrote to the Queen of Popular Fiction, Jodi Picoult, letting her know that I had mentioned her on my blog.
This morning I received a reply, not from a Lady-in-Waiting, but from the Queen herself:
Okay, everyone! Make up your minds right now: when you're a famous author and a fan writes to you, be as gracious as the Queen, and send a speedy reply!
I did receive an answer: The Queen has commanded me to write to you . . . etc., etc., and the letter, on Buckingham Palace stationery, was duly signed by a Lady-in-Waiting. The receipt of this letter at our house was An Event!
After yesterday's blog post, I wrote to the Queen of Popular Fiction, Jodi Picoult, letting her know that I had mentioned her on my blog.
Dear Ms. Picoult:
I just wanted to let you know that I have mentioned you on my blog, www.northern-night-writer.blogspot.com
I am in a creative writing course (and was heartened to hear that you had studied creative writing at Princeton) and my northern-night-writer blog is part of a social media assignment for the course. In my blog, I examine many aspects of creative writing. Often what I write is based on what I am reading, as in the case of your book.
Unfortunately, I live a long way from Vancouver and will not be able to take in your reading on March 13.
Thank you for telling stories.
This morning I received a reply, not from a Lady-in-Waiting, but from the Queen herself:
Thank you for the mention, and good luck with your writing.
Okay, everyone! Make up your minds right now: when you're a famous author and a fan writes to you, be as gracious as the Queen, and send a speedy reply!
Friday, February 11, 2011
The Plain Truth about Introducing Characters
Jodi Picoult is a very popular writer, with at least 16 novels to her credit, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers Handle with Care, Change of Heart, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister's Keeper, which is now a major motion picture. Picoult, who is 43, studied creative writing at Princeton University, and had two short stories published in Seventeen magazine while still a student. You can read more about her at her web site: www.jodipicoult.com
Here, I'd like to look at how she introduces the main character in Plain Truth, the story of an Amish woman and a dead baby.
This woman is introduced on the first page, but she is not named, only referred to only as "she." The first page is entirely taken up with this character.
We don't meet her again until eight pages later, by which time we've been introduced to several other characters: Aaron and Sarah Fisher; Aaron's father, Elam Fisher; cousins Levi and Samuel Esch; and police officer Lizzie Munro. It is only then that we learn the name of the woman on page 1: "she" is Katie Fisher, 18-year-old daughter of Aaron and Sarah, and sister to Hannah, who drowned at age seven.
So there's some mystery. It leaves readers turning the pages because they want to find out who the "she" is and what her story is. So this is one way to introduce a character: give us a sneak-peek, but hold something back! Of course, we're not talking about a short story here; this novel is 404 pages, so perhaps there's lots of room for a slow unveiling.
By the way, Jodi Picoult will be in Vancouver and will give a reading on March 13, at 7:30 p.m. at St Andrew’s-Wesley United Church, 1022 Nelson Street (at Burrard). The reading is sponsored by the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival (VIWRF) and Picoult's publisher, Simon & Schuster Canada.
Picoult will read from her new novel, Sing You Home, accompanied by guitarist Ellen Wilber. Tickets are $21 general/$19 students & seniors, available through Vancouver Tix.
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