Reflecting: Mirrors and Character

View from a downtown Cincinnati street, October 2013

                        "A writer can never know about a character's feelings what is 

                         not somewhere mirrored in her own." --Katherine Paterson

Been reflecting on this thought here of late...

Any writing subject in particular you've been pondering?

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A Writer's Postage Stamp

"I was trying to talk about people, using the only tool I knew, which was the country that I knew...I discovered that my own little postage stamp of native soil was worth writing about and that I would never live long enough to exhaust it." --William Faulkner

Hubby and I participated in our second-ever 5K Volksmarch yesterday (last year's here), a "German-style walk" hosted by the local German Society in our area. A volksmarch is defined as "a people's march," a non-competitive leisurely walk along a marked trail. The goal of a volksmarch? "To develop physical fitness and good health and enjoy the camraderie of fellow walkers." We can attest to that--it was great fun, and the German food afterwards delicious! And in talking with my brother after the fact, I found out that years ago he participated in volksmarches where they originated--in Germany itself. He was stationed in the army there at the time and recalls great memories of the native soil he strolled through.

Do you agree with Mr. Faulkner, that the "little postage stamp of native soil" wherever we writers might live is worth writing about? I know I captured a few images yesterday from my native soil. Wonder how I might draw inspiration for writing from them. Hmmm...

A few samples of my postage stamp this October:

                    

I must say I don't think I will ever exhaust the idea-possibilities abundant in my corner of the

world. What about you? What's your postage stamp like, and do you draw inspiration from what you see around you?

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A Poem, A Poet, and Gold Dust

view from my porch room
on a beautiful October day 

                           "Days"
              by Karle Wilson Baker

Some days my thoughts are just cocoons--
      all cold, and 
            dull, and blind,
They hang from dripping branches in the gray 
      woods of my 
            mind;

And other days they drift and shine--
       such free and flying 
            things!
I find the gold-dust in my hair, 
       left by their brushing 
            wings.

I found this poem in an old book on the shelf, One Thousand Beautiful Things (copyright 1947 :-) and thought of my friend Peggy who often drops in and encourages me with her comments. But when I posted about the hummingbird, Peggy answered with "I feel a lot like a hummingbird--beating frantically just to stay in place." When I posted about the praying mantis and asked what insect readers might draw parallels from, Peggy responded, "The worker bee--buzzing around, working like crazy, never having time to smell the roses."

And I felt the frustration behind the words. Feel it in my own writing world sometimes. Know it's in many lives. So, I post this poem to say, let's spread some gold dust around! Here's a sprinkle for you, Peggy, with hopes that the upcoming week slows down a bit so you can do some of those things you really want to do--filled with thoughts that are free and flying.

Oh, and by-the-way, who's Karle Wilson Baker anyway? I wondered about that, too, since I had never heard of her before. That's right--Karle Wilson Baker was a woman as I found out in my research. She lived from 1878-1960 and became well-known in the early 20th century as a noted poet from Nacogdoches, Texas. I immediately felt an affinity to Karle, the poet with the unusual name (for a girl) and also for the fact that I once enrolled in a novel-writing course and my instructor was from...Nacogdoches, Texas!

"Poetry came naturally to her," according to Sarah Jackson in an on-line biography (here). Her poetic styles included the lyric, sonnet, narrative, and ode. Jackson also writes that she had "a strong sense of imagery and of figures of speech, especially metaphor."

In Karle's own words in a diary entry dated 1917, she wrote: "Writing my poems is seldom more laborious than skimming the cream from my thoughts. It just needs time and quiet to rise."

Oooh, if it were only that easy, right? Well, although we might envy such a talented poet, Jackson reports that while poetry came easy, Karle's attempts at fiction did not. So she had her frustrating writing days, too!

Maybe those were the days when a girl named Karle wished that gold-dust fell from the sky, too?

Are you having cold, cocoon-thought days lately, or flying-thought days when you wear gold-dust in your hair?

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4 Writing Lessons from a Praying Mantis (and Isaac Asimov)

view from the window October 2013

"You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send that work out again and again, while you're working on another one. If you have talent, you will receive some measure of success--but only if you persist." --Isaac Asimov

One week it was hummingbirds out our porch room window. This past week the fascination--especially for the kids, cousins aged five, three, and almost three who played practically nonstop through a four-day visit--came in the form of one of the strangest of insect creatures, the praying mantis. "Come, look!" we said. "See if you can find the praying mantis among the vines."

An up-close encounter with the praying mantis coupled with discovering the above quote (thank you, Isaac!) elicited a chuckle. Parallels popped to mind between the strange insect, the quote, and the writer's life. Bear with me :-)

1. "You must keep sending work out..." A perfect camouflage cover, our cardinal creeper vine has the same same green hue as the mantis. The stick-like figure fades from view in its tangled shoots and leaves--never to be seen unless one intentionally focuses on it. Sort of like that manuscript buried in the bottom of the file drawer.

2. "You must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer..." You do know, don't you, that the female praying mantis is known for sometimes eating the male after mating? Don't let that manuscript lay in the drawer for fear it will eat its own head off!

3. "You send that work out again and again, while you're working on another one..." The praying mantis can turn its head 180 degrees. It also can scan its surroundings with two large compound eyes and three other simple eyes located between them (fact source: National Geographic). A writer would do well to emulate a praying mantis' observation skills, both in researching markets and in working on the next project--details, details, details.

4. "If you have  talent, you will receive some measure of success--but only if you persist..." The praying mantis, named for the bent position of its front legs, suggests a prayerful pose. Ah, a little talent and persistence as Isaac Asimov says and--my addition to the equation--maybe a little prayer? For me, it's one of the most important needs of a writer since, ultimately, success is a gift to be thankful for. So my goals for the upcoming week? Get that manuscript out of the drawer. Query with persistence. Attack the WIP. Attempt a poetry prompt or two to encourage the words to come. And pray.

Lessons from a praying mantis? You bet.

Any other parallels you see? Is there an insect you take inspiration from?

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Hummingbird Magic and Inspiration

"The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,

And off a blossom in mid-air stands still." --Robert Frost

We're going to miss our little friend, the one that visited us so many times this summer and whom we could watch from our porch room window--a small green hummingbird that sipped from our Cardinal Climber vine that trains up the trellis below. We watched it hover and flit many a time and never got tired of watching it, especially when savoring the moment over a cup of tea. The fascinating creature only caused frustration when I tried to take its picture. After many attempts, this is the best snapshot we got.

But just like the season of summer is behind us and September now fades into memory, the hummingbird takes flight to warmer climates as fall's cooler temperatures beckon. But, because I want to carry the picture of the hummingbird with me for a little bit longer, I share some of its story here--mainly so I don't forget its magic.

Some facts about hummingbirds (from Yes I Know That):

• The hummingbird is one of the smallest and most beautiful birds in the world, weighing only about 5 grams.
• Hummingbirds can fly backwards, up and down, and sideways.
• Some of their senses are so much stronger than humans, they can see farther and hear better than we can.
• Their average life span is about 5 years but most die in their first year of life.
• They can beat their wings from 10-100 times per SECOND according to their size, increasing to 200 beats per second when diving.
• Their flying speed may reach 49 MPH.
• Some smaller species can make their nests on leaves of trees.

Awsome little guys, huh?

Another site with interesting info' on our friends includes "Hummingbirds: The Birds that Kiss the Flowers" (squidoo), an article that shares legends,  a list of the best plants that will attract them, rescue stories, and hummingbird organizations. You also might have bought a Papyrus greeting card and noted their message printed on the back of their cards: "Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy and celebration. Hummingbirds open our eyes to the wonder of the world and inspire us to open our hearts to loved ones and friends. Like a hummingbird, we aspire to hover and to savor each moment as it passes, embrace all that life has to offer and to celebrate the joy of everyday. The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation." --Papyrus

Amen.

Might we learn something from the hummingbird that we can apply to our writing--and to our everyday lives? Things like beauty, wonder, savoring moments, laughter? Maybe something about heart, courage, vision, and focused efforts? It's worth a thought, anyway.

Such musings will carry over with me until we meet again. Happy travels, little friend. Hope to see you next year!

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Words of Wisdom from Robert Frost

photo courtesy of hxc.hu

"Talking is a hydrant in the yard and writing is a faucet upstairs in the house. Opening the first takes the pressure off the second." --Robert Frost

I came across this quote the other day, and it gave me pause. One of America's best loved poets, Robert Frost expressed in a colorful metaphor a concept I've found to be so true--if I talk too much about a writing project before getting it down on paper, the idea seems to lose power--and drizzle to a drip. Ah, what else, dear Robert, could you teach me (besides something about being a better poet??). Let's see...

"I have never started a poem yet whose end I knew.Writing a poem is discovering."

"Writing free verse is like playing tennis with the net down."

"The brain is a wonderful organ; it starts working the moment you get up in the morning and does not stop until you get to the office." (Boy, isn't that the truth?)

"Forgive me my nonsense, as I also forgive the nonsense of those that think they talk sense."

"Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words."

"Pressed into service means pressed out of shape."

"The best way out is always through."

Just some food for thought as we continue on this week. Any of Robert's thoughts jump out at you? Do you find that your writing ideas lose their punch when you talk about them too soon?

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22 Rules to Phenomenal Storytelling, by Emma Coates

Maybe you've seen this graphic, maybe not: "22 Rules to Phenomenal Storytelling." In case you haven't, I thought I'd share since it's a visual that covers all kinds of great writing prompts and inspiration--and packs quite a writer's punch in a compact, artistically pleasing form. What do you think? Pretty cool, huh?

I first saw this in a post by Martina, over at Adventures in YA Publishing. Thanks, Martina!

Digging a little deeper, I found that this graphic was originally designed by storyboard artist Emma Coates when employed by Pixar. She wrote the rules herself, but says she learned the principles from senior colleagues while at Pixar. The beauty of it all is that the 22 Rules can also be purchased as a poster. What a neat idea. What better gift for a writer friend, or maybe even yourself? I know I've been inspired by it.

In fact, I've spent a bit of time this week looking over the 22 Rules from the viewpoint of my finished mss, now in the querying process, and my current WIP. What tips have I actually put into practice? Which ones do I understand better now than I did, say, two years ago? Which ones am I currently dealing with? Which ones do I plan to use as writing prompts or avenues of going deeper?

A few of my stats:
1. Those things I can say about my finished mss: #3, #8, #11, #14.

2. Those things I understand better than I did before: #1, #2, #16, #17, #19.

3. Those things I'm addressing in my current WIP: #5, #6, #7, #9, #12, #13, #21.

4. Those things I have made notes of and plan to experiment with: #10, #20, #22.

The poster provides quite a feast, wouldn't you say? Something from which we can take to fill our writer's toolbox, play with, contemplate.

Overall, I'd say my favorite is #11: "Putting it on PAPER lets you start fixing it. If it stays in your head, A PERFECT IDEA, you'll never share it with anyone."

Which, of course, speaks to the number one cardinal rule of a writer: WRITE.

All other advice simply branches out from that...

What points jump out at you? Anything you want to do, or do better? Which rule is your favorite?

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