Popular Posts
-
A Writer's Moment: 'Property of the imagination' : “The English language is nobody's special property. ...
-
“Librarians and romance writers accomplish one mission better than anyone, including English teachers: we create readers for life - and w...
-
“One of the great joys of life is creativity. Information goes in, gets shuffled about, and comes out in new and intere...
-
A Writer's Moment: 'Be willing to fail' : “I'm always terrified when I'm writing.” – Mary Karr ...
-
A Writer's Moment: 'Story ideas surround you' : “I always tell my students, 'If you walk around with your eyes and ears...
-
A Writer's Moment: 'Information In; Creative Responses Out' : “One of the great joys of life is creativity....
Monday, October 31, 2022
A Writer's Moment: It's Just 'Squiggles on the Page' Without You
A Writer's Moment: It's Just 'Squiggles on the Page' Without You: “A story is open-ended. A story invites you into it to make your own meaning.” – Katherine Paterson Born on this date in 1932, Paters...
It's Just 'Squiggles on the Page' Without You
“A story is open-ended. A story invites you
into it to make your own meaning.” – Katherine Paterson
Born on this date in 1932, Paterson is best
known for her children's novels, winning
two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards for her work. Bridge to Terabithia,
her most widely read, was both a Newbery winner and highly
controversial when published (1977) because her youthful
protagonists take on themes considered adult in nature. But, they also
learn about triumphing through self-sacrifice and how to deal with death
and jealousy.
Although her characters often face dire situations,
Paterson writes with compassion and empathy, interlacing her writing with wry
wit and understated humor.
“The problem with people who are afraid
of imagination,
of fantasy,” she said of her detractors, “is that their world becomes so narrow that I don't see how they can imagine beyond what their senses can verify. We know from science that there are entire worlds that our senses can't verify.”
of fantasy,” she said of her detractors, “is that their world becomes so narrow that I don't see how they can imagine beyond what their senses can verify. We know from science that there are entire worlds that our senses can't verify.”
Among Paterson's other major prizes are the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council -- the
biggest monetary prize in children's literature; the
NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature; and the Laura
Ingalls Wilder Medal from the American Library Association.
“Reading asks that you bring your
whole life experience and your ability to decode the written word and your
creative imagination to the page and be a co-author with the writer,” Paterson
said. “Because the story is just
squiggles on the page unless you have a reader.”
Saturday, October 29, 2022
A Writer's Moment: 'A record of place . . . and beauty'
A Writer's Moment: 'A record of place . . . and beauty': “If someone is alone reading my poems, I hope it would be like reading someone's notebook. A record. Of a place, beauty, difficulty. ...
'A record of place . . . and beauty'
“If someone is alone reading my poems,
I hope it would be like reading someone's notebook. A record. Of a place,
beauty, difficulty. A familiar daily struggle.” – Fanny Howe
Poet,
novelist, and short story writer, Howe celebrated her 82nd birthday this month.
One of America's most widely read poets, her prose poems, "Everything's
a Fake" and "Doubt,” were selected for the anthology Great
American Prose Poems: from Poe to the Present. And, her poem "Catholic" was
selected for a volume of The Best American Poetry. For Saturday’s Poem, here is Howe’s,
Footsteps
I have
never arrived
into a new life yet.
Have you?
Do you find the squeak
of boots on snow
excruciating?
Have you heard people
say, It wasn't me,
when they accomplished
a great feat?
I have, often.
But rarely.
•
Possibility
is one of the elements.
It keeps things going.
The ferry
with its ratty engine
and exactitude at chugging
into blocks and chains.
Returning as ever
to mother's house
under a salty rain.
into a new life yet.
Have you?
Do you find the squeak
of boots on snow
excruciating?
Have you heard people
say, It wasn't me,
when they accomplished
a great feat?
I have, often.
But rarely.
•
Possibility
is one of the elements.
It keeps things going.
The ferry
with its ratty engine
and exactitude at chugging
into blocks and chains.
Returning as ever
to mother's house
under a salty rain.
Friday, October 28, 2022
A Writer's Moment: Sharing life's 'funny' moments
A Writer's Moment: Sharing life's 'funny' moments: “Laughter is the closest distance between two people.” – Victor Borge For many years I wrote a “humor based on lif...
Sharing life's 'funny' moments
“Laughter
is the closest distance between two people.” – Victor Borge
For
many years I wrote a “humor based on life” column called “Jargon,” which also
became the title of one of my books.
Started when I was writing for the Hot
Springs Star in the Southern Black Hills, “Jargon” gave readers an
invitation to enjoy a laugh at things that might or might not happen to them
but had, in fact, happened to me or members of my family.
And,
while some columns were written purely to entertain, others were done as a way
to draw attention to a special need, an idea, or a concept that was easier to
convey through the use of humor.
Most
of the things we laugh at in real life – whether they be about a temperamental
pet or embarrassing things your kids say at the most inopportune times – are
true stories, even if sometimes slightly exaggerated for effect. Humor
is not only a great technique, but also often the key focus of what makes up
many of our writers’ moments. “Happy”
writing.
Cartoonist Paul Kales must’ve known
about our cat Pouncer
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)