Hi all. Today is my half birthday, for what that's worth. I went on a blog cleanse, not writing or reading blogs or much of any social networking sites for months. I did write up an event sponsored by WNBA about social networking, and understood what I reported on with a beginner's puzzlement. Some of us prefer reading well written books than blogs. You can order just about any book from the NYPL and get a reserved copy within a week or so. It's very satisfying to take out a book and return it to any public library branch in NYC and not have to feel guilty about the piles of books you have no room for in your home or un-spacious apartment.
So the topic at hand, prologue--also see more about it under the "Saving Silver Lake" heading. Although it may seem simplistic to categorize people as pro or con prologue, humor me. We live in a non-prologue, twitter era--get to the main course. Those of us who LOVE the seduction of a good prologue find it a tantalizing way to enter a literary world. Which raises the question-how do we enter life? What are the best structures or prologues? When are prologues inane, as in the perfunctory greeting, "How are you?" When is a prologue like an outline we can cast off?
A good one can be like a frame for a painting, holding the picture in a satisfying structure. I like frames, and hats and scarves, the shapes of things that envelop primary forms. So be it, if there's a touch of tentative to prologue, as in the excuses women make (more than men), "oh it's really nothing," when they are complimented. It's an easy, gentle soft sell--here's what I'm going to tell you, I trust you'll like it. If you don't, I warned you. Sort of.
My prologue to this blog is also a round about way of saying why I disappeared from this site for a while. Life was happening, to quote Jon Kabat-Zinn, in full catastrophe mode. My mother Ruth moved and we've been helping her deconstruct her old house and clear it out before June sell date.
I've come home with more chotchkes, funny silver objects, art works, old yearbooks, stuff I can't quite place or throw out. My Aunt Esther "Teddi" passed away after a long, horrific illness, leaving my mother the sole survivor of five siblings. We've been working with the state on a case involving our son Zach-Jacob (Z-J), and the services he receives through the autism agency/residence. More I can not comment on at this point, but will do so when the time is right.
Classes, new and old workshops, and the writing group ran, and I enjoyed working with new moms, seniors, and the usual noisy bunch of young students. I started (mostly in fits) a new, curious novel -- as I am curious as to where it is going. Teaching duties have ebbed for the season, so I'm sliding into a summer of writing and creating, and would love company! Yours! I will write shorter, more frequent blogs, and would love to hear from you in blog-versation, prologues or not.
Share your adventures on the creative journey. I'm particularly interested in hearing how meditation of any kind shapes your day, and from writers, about what you are writing. As I'm still a bit of a dinosaur with the website form, it's best to email me at [email protected].
I'll reply and send personalized meditations and prompts if you tell me what you'd like. I hear a number of people are having sleep issues, and I have some real zonkers.
Cheers, Sheila
So the topic at hand, prologue--also see more about it under the "Saving Silver Lake" heading. Although it may seem simplistic to categorize people as pro or con prologue, humor me. We live in a non-prologue, twitter era--get to the main course. Those of us who LOVE the seduction of a good prologue find it a tantalizing way to enter a literary world. Which raises the question-how do we enter life? What are the best structures or prologues? When are prologues inane, as in the perfunctory greeting, "How are you?" When is a prologue like an outline we can cast off?
A good one can be like a frame for a painting, holding the picture in a satisfying structure. I like frames, and hats and scarves, the shapes of things that envelop primary forms. So be it, if there's a touch of tentative to prologue, as in the excuses women make (more than men), "oh it's really nothing," when they are complimented. It's an easy, gentle soft sell--here's what I'm going to tell you, I trust you'll like it. If you don't, I warned you. Sort of.
My prologue to this blog is also a round about way of saying why I disappeared from this site for a while. Life was happening, to quote Jon Kabat-Zinn, in full catastrophe mode. My mother Ruth moved and we've been helping her deconstruct her old house and clear it out before June sell date.
I've come home with more chotchkes, funny silver objects, art works, old yearbooks, stuff I can't quite place or throw out. My Aunt Esther "Teddi" passed away after a long, horrific illness, leaving my mother the sole survivor of five siblings. We've been working with the state on a case involving our son Zach-Jacob (Z-J), and the services he receives through the autism agency/residence. More I can not comment on at this point, but will do so when the time is right.
Classes, new and old workshops, and the writing group ran, and I enjoyed working with new moms, seniors, and the usual noisy bunch of young students. I started (mostly in fits) a new, curious novel -- as I am curious as to where it is going. Teaching duties have ebbed for the season, so I'm sliding into a summer of writing and creating, and would love company! Yours! I will write shorter, more frequent blogs, and would love to hear from you in blog-versation, prologues or not.
Share your adventures on the creative journey. I'm particularly interested in hearing how meditation of any kind shapes your day, and from writers, about what you are writing. As I'm still a bit of a dinosaur with the website form, it's best to email me at [email protected].
I'll reply and send personalized meditations and prompts if you tell me what you'd like. I hear a number of people are having sleep issues, and I have some real zonkers.
Cheers, Sheila