Neil Gaiman on Making Good Art

Friends of the Library, wall noting names of supporters, Public Library of Hamilton County, Cincinnati

"Life is sometimes hard...And when things get tough, this is what you should do. Make good art. I'm serious. Make it on the good days, too." --Neil Gaiman

We ended up at a library again this week, this time Cincinnati's Main Library downtown. (It's been a summer of libraries, it seems.) This time we were in the city for business, walking from one location to another--and the library was located between the two. It was too enticing and we couldn't pass up the opportunity. So we stopped in.

While there, I stumbled upon a gem on the new release shelf: Neil Gaiman's Fantastic Mistakes, Make Good Art. The delightful tome was actually a keynote address he gave to the University of the Arts Class of 2012, University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Next to actually being there, this is the next best thing. Maybe even better since the layout helps make the book. The graphic design takes you through the speech in an artistic way with bold font, small font, poetic form, slants, surprises and flair. You have to see it to appreciate it.

Being in the audience to hear the speech firsthand must have been inspiring, for sure. But I was inspired just sitting there in the quiet, surrounded by books, holding the speech in my hands and taking it in. A sample from the book:

"Looking back, I've had a remarkable ride. I'm not sure I can call it a career, because a career implies that I had some kind of career plan, and I never did. The nearest thing I had was a list I made when I was 15 of everything I wanted to do: to write an adult novel...a children's book...a comic...a movie...record an audiobook...write an episode of Doctor Who...and so on. I didn't have a career. I just did the next thing on the list."

No pressure! This from a man who has accomplished all the goals of his 15-year-old self multiplied many times over.

Another tidbit: "If you're making a mistake, it means you're out there. And the mistakes in themselves can be useful. I once spelled Caroline, in a letter, transposing the A and the O, and I thought, 'Coraline looks like a real name..."

(Coraline is a favorite Neil Gaiman book.)

I can't do justice in describing this fun little book, I can only say it was neat serendipity to run across it on a random visit to the library and would encourage writers--just graduating or seasoned veterans--to take a peek at it.

You'll be inspired just like those students in that audience must have been.

Question: did you start out trying to make writing "a career," or simply attempt to do "the next thing" on your list until you realized, yes, you are a writer!? Which way is more fun? Do you see your writing as making art?

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Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library

"Jo-Beth shouted into the phone. 'We're prisoners! We're prisoners in the library!'" 

                                                                           --Eth Clifford, Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library

No, I'm not currently a prisoner in the library, but by chance I saw this book while there the other day. And I had to laugh at both the title and my situation.

For I was at the library for an extended period that afternoon and unable to leave at will. Hubby and I were about to head out on a short overnight road trip, but he had a tutoring session scheduled at the library first. So rather than him having to come back and get me before hitting the road, I chose to spend his 2 1/2 hour tutoring time with him, howbeit discreetly on the other side from where he and his student worked. I certainly had enough to keep me busy, a folder of writing material at hand as well as a list of books and authors I wanted to check out.

I did a little reading. I did a little writing. I scanned the shelves for the books on my list. And then, after exhausting the list, I casually wandered the children's stacks just looking for a title to jump out at me. Jump out it did--Eth Clifford's Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library (Houghton Mifflin 1979). Ironic? I thought so.

Maybe you've heard of Clifford and her work? She has a long list of children's books to her credit. As for Prisoner, the flyleaf reads, in part:

"Although Mary Rose and Jo-Beth hardly ever agreed on anything, they both thought that night would never end. So much had happened! First their car ran out of gas in an unfamiliar city. Then, after their father left in search of a gas station, they trudged through the snow until they found a curious old library that housed the most extraordinary objects: wooden children dressed in old-fashioned clothes, a terrible flying creature that rushed at them in the dark, and (they would later learn) a cellar full of animals.

"But worst of all, they were locked in..."

Sort of like me, but not really--it's a much better story than mine! With a happy ending, all about the promise of saving an old library otherwise destined for demise. Mixed in with middle-grade sisters, bumps in the dark, a talking mynah bird, just enough spookiness. An old book but still a good read.

And to think I found it when locked...I mean stuck...no, when enjoying an afternoon in the library!

Where better to be if you had to be locked in somewhere, right? How about you, where would you want to be if you found yourself stuck somewhere? And any new-found favorites and/or authors on the library shelves (or e-readers) for you lately?

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If You Have a Garden and a Library, Part I

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." --Cicero

We had a splash of a time the other night when we celebrated Adrian's first birthday. At the library.

What better place to take a child, especially to the children's hour where warm, kind, energetic, and book-loving librarians read and dance and sing with the wee ones? What better place, next to parents reading to their children, fosters an early love for books that will then surge through their bloodstreams throughout their lives?

Going to the library is a regular habit for Adrian and Angelica. Mommy takes them to scheduled children's hours during morning times. Daddy takes them on Wednesday evenings to another. That's where they decided to hold the party, since Adrian's birthday happened to fall on the same day. "Why not have the party here?" librarian Miss Amy said. Miss Amy loves Adrian. She loves all the children.

So that's how we ended up having cupcakes, juice, birthday songs, Christmas picture book stories, friends and family, laughter and celebration all bubbling over together in a room full of books.

Even Nelson was there. Nelson? Nelson loves libraries, too. He's a neighbor, friend, and therapy dog who just happens to be very familiar with Adrian and Angelica's library. For he is part of a therapy program where children who have difficulty reading come and read...to him. Such dog reading assistance programs are designed to help children develop reading skills in a relaxed environment. Dogs, after all, make good listeners, are patient, and always give A's for effort. (If you're interested in reading about such programs, check out "Can a Dog Help Your Child Read?" You can find it here.)

Thus it was a special evening. As Cicero said, if you have a garden and a library you have everything you need. And the garden part? Stay tuned. There's a story there, too.

Any special stories, get-togethers, or gatherings that have come your way lately?

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Imagination Revisted, Part 2

There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. --Ralph Waldo Emerson

A trip to the library reminded me of an overlooked key in my last post about kickstarting a writer's imagination. So, without further ado, here is part 2--which, simply put, is:

READ

Yes, read. I say this not only to share a thought, but to imprint the importance of that on my own brain! After all, we have it from Stephen King who said, "If you don't have time to read, you don't have time to write."

And so, I present the titles of the books I brought home (and can't wait to get started on). There's no rhyme or reason to most of the selections. But as I studied the library's shelves, I chose authors I like, and authors I've never read before. I chose Newbery Medal authors and New York Times best sellers. Most are children's books, but some are YA. There's fantasy and historical fiction, recently published books and classics. Here then, in no particular order, is the list of books before me:

Alchemy and Meggy Swann, Karen Cushman

Twisted, Laurie Halse Anderson

The Slave Dancer, Paula Fox

               The Unfinished Angel, Sharon Creech                 

Coraline, Neil Graiman

Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbitt 

Iron Thunder, Avi

The Witches, Roald Dahl

Raleigh's Page, Alan Armstrong

Poppy, Avi

Poppy's Return, Avi

         
If I were to boil it down, what would I say then are my conclusions to igniting the imagination?

...Observe...Visualize...Dream...Read...Write...Have fun...

The joy of being a writer takes us many places--in books, in real life, in our imaginations.

Now the question is, have I overextended myself? Will I finish all these books in the next 21 days--the library's alloted time without having to renew them--and meet my writing goals? The challenge is on!

What's your latest read?

The greatest part of a writer's time is spent reading in order to write;
a man will turn over half a library in order to make one book. --Samuel Johnson