Sunday 22 June 2014

KLWG June 2014

The June meeting of Kessingland Library Creative Writing Group met on Wednesday this week, with a slightly smaller turnout than usual.  But we still had a productive meeting, so that's all that matters.

Homework from last session was to take a walk around a graveyard and take note of the words on one grave and write a story for that person.

I had a pleasant wander around the local graveyard on a Sunday afternoon, making the most of the sunshine and the peacefulness.  Even though I managed to sting myself on some nettles, I found the whole experience rather uplifting, to see that so many people died young or alone, and it makes you realise just how blessed you are.

So while I found quite a few interesting names ...


... but chose this one to write about ...


Annie

I could have
  • ·         learnt how to crawl then stumble then walk
  • ·         cried all night long keeping my parents awake
  • ·         tied up my shoes and buckled my belt
  • ·         built a fort with my cushions and quilt
  • ·         played in the snow in my pyjamas and socks
  • ·         watched the school playground and wished I was six
  • ·         collected bugs and eaten worms covered in mud
  • ·         stamped my feet and held my breath to send my parents mad
  • ·         come home drenched in glitter and paint on my first day of school
  • ·         perfected my pout and secured my scowl
  • ·         bruised my arms and grazed my knees
  • ·         screamed and shouted and made too much noise
  • ·         played and danced and made up rhymes
  • ·         had adventures, explored and roamed
  • ·         skateboarded head first down a hill
  • ·         hid under my bed through thunderstorms and hail
  • ·         spoken to an imaginary friend
  • ·         kept all the treasures that I’d have found
  • ·         had sleepovers and midnight feasts
  • ·         thrown snowballs in winter frosts
  • ·         been afraid of spiders or ghosts or clowns or heights
  • ·         had my heart broken and broken some hearts
  • ·         studied hard or failed all my tests
  • ·         worked my way through fashionable fads and tastes
  • ·         found a job, gone to university, or travelled around the world
  • ·         conformed to society or rebelled, running wild
  • ·         fallen in love and had our own little family
  • ·         passed my driving test after six attempts, finally
  • ·         taught my children to ride their bikes
  • ·         written a pile of best-selling books
  • ·         cut hair, flown planes, fixed pipes, answered phones
  • ·         not paid my speeding fines
  • ·         watched my children lead their lives and grow
  • ·         dyed my hair and plucked out all the grey
  • ·         lied about my age, filled my wrinkles with cream
  • ·         broken the law and committed crimes
  • ·         watched my husband get ill and die
  • ·         got my telegram from the Queen before I knocked on heaven’s door

if I hadn’t died when I was only 3 hours old

*****

During the session, I tried an activity that I'd worked on with my teen writing group, and that was to write a 26 sentence story, with each sentence starting with a different letter of the alphabet (in alphabetical order).

Brothers

Angry, Jeremy stood at the top of the stairs, hands on hips, a furrow in his brow, shaking his head at the pile of boxes covering the hallway floor.

"Barry!" he yelled, knowing full well that Barry would still be asleep and quite possibly wouldn't wake up for a good few hours.  Climbing cautiously over and around the maze of boxes, Jeremy pushed open the living room door and pulled open the curtains, letting the morning sunlight burst in.  Drowsily, Barry groaned from the sofa and rolled over, away from the light, hugging a cushion over his face.

"Ever thought about getting a proper job?" Jeremy breathed in his brother's ear, and then planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Feck off," Barry croaked, waving his arm in front of his cushion-covered face, as though trying to swat a fly.

"Get up!" Jeremy shouted, pulling Barry off the sofa by his ankles.

Hanging on for dear life, and putting all his strength into making his body as rigid as possible, Barry managed to pull the sofa over, covering himself, and knocking the vase off the coffee table.

"I give up, I really do.  Just when I think that you couldn't waste any more space, you go ahead and surprise me by being even more useless," Jeremy ranted while leaving the room.

Kicking a small box out of his way, Jeremy dropped his head and rubbed his right eye with the heel of his hand.  Life was so difficult with Barry around.

'Maybe if he took things a bit more seriously he wouldn't be such a pain,' Jeremy thought as he clicked on the kettle.  'No, that'll never happen.'

Outside, a sparrow danced on the bird table, jabbing its beak into the mesh of the bird feeder, getting its breakfast, while inside Jeremy stirred his coffee and daydreamed about jabbing his spoon into Barry's head.   'Perhaps I can do it, one night, when he's asleep, when he's dead to the world and won't feel anything,' he thought, smiling.  Quite unexpectedly, Barry appeared in the kitchen doorway, looking worse for wear.

"Right, look, I know what you're going to say, but you don't need to say it; I already know," Barry says, sheepishly, holding his hands out, apologetically, to his brother.

"Shut up, just just up, I've heard it all before.  Time and time again, the same excuses, the same apologies, but this time I don't want to hear any of it," Jeremy snapped.

"Understood," Barry said, knowing full well that he had pushed it a bit too far this time.

Vacantly, Jeremy looked back out of the window at the sparrow on the bird table.  "What's in those boxes this time?" he asked but wished he hadn't spoken.

"Xanax," Barry mumbled.

"You had better get those drugs out of my house, and any other drugs you have here, and go; I never want to see you again!" Jeremy screamed, not turning around to face his brother.

Zigzagging across the sky, the sparrow flew off into the morning clouds, leaving the earth behind to carry on turning.

*****

The homework for our next meeting is to go for a walk and take note of signs (street signs, direction signs, house names, menu boards, lampposts, etc), and use the words found in a story.

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 16th July, 10:30 - 12:00.

Saturday 7 June 2014

LLTW - June 2014

Another good turn out for the Lowestoft Library Teen Writing Group this week, with six creative writers turning up.

This session we each wrote a 26 line story, where each sentence began with a different letter of the alphabet (in sequence).  This is a bit like an acrostic/abecedarian poem, but obviously using prose.  We had fun trying to think of words beginning with the more difficult letters of the alphabet.  I think a little cheat should be allowed with X, as we could only think of 'xenophobic' and 'xylophone', which didn't really fit in with anyone's stories, so words beginning with ex- were allowed (exciting, example, explore, extend ...).

While writing this I found that I don't know my alphabet as well as I should!  We can all recite it, but when it comes to knowing which letter follows on from another, out of context, it can be quite tricky!

Anyway, here's my story.

-----

A few years ago the world was subject to a terrible catastrophe.  Bombs were dropped on all major capital cities, killing millions of innocent people.  Catharine should have been in London on that fateful day, but a power cut has meant that her alarm hadn't gone off, and she slept in till 10am.  Dragging herself out of bed, bleary eyed, she sighed as the red lights on her clock came into focus.  'Eric should have called me,' she thought, as she reached for her phone, which was sitting on her bedside table.  From the flat next door, Catharine could hear old Mrs. Jacobson sobbing and wailing like a deranged banshee.  Groaning, she pounded her fist on her bedroom wall in the hope it would quieten down her neighbour, but the crying just got louder.  Her phone vibrated in her hand, but when she looked down she was disappointed to see that it wasn't Eric, but instead her battery was dying.  Irritability started to set in as Catharine scrambled about under her bed looking for the right charger cable for her phone.  "Just how many of these things do I need?" she mumbled whilst untangling the wires.  Kneeing herself in those nose as she stood up, Catharine grumbled and flopped back onto the bed.  Laughing, she pulled a pillow over her face.  Moments later her phone vibrated loudly.  NICOLE flashed across the screen, and Catharine knew to never ignore a call from Nicole.

"Oh my goodness, where have you been?" Nicole screamed into Catharine's ear.  "Please tell me you're alive, I couldn't bear it if something had happened to you," she continued.

Quickly, Catharine opened her mouth to speak, but, as always, Nicole carried on talking before waiting for an answer.

"Really, you should let your best friend know if you're dead or alive, if nothing else.  Something like that should be at the top of your list, you know.  Talk to me Catharine, I'm begging you."

"Uumm, my alarm didn't go off, and I feel like I've been kicked in the face, which I kind of have been, but with a knee rather than a foot, and I'm a bit confused as to why you're panicking more than usual," Catharine answered.

"Vap-a-rize dropped their bombs today," Nicole said solemnly.

"What are you talking about?" Catharine asked.  Exhaling slowly, the penny dropped.

"You must remember, they've been threatening to drop them for ages, and today, this morning, first thing, they annihilated the world's major capital cities; London being one of them," Nicole blurted out.  "Zombie apocalypse annihilation would be a day at the beach compared to this."

-----

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 2nd July, 5-6pm, at Lowestoft Library.


Sunday 25 May 2014

KLWG May 2014

We had another great meeting this week, with 9 members coming along.  We had been meeting for an hour, but I felt that it was too short to really get a lot of writing and reading done, so I suggested lengthening the session.  Everyone was in agreement, and one member suggested that we go from 10:30 to 12:00.

Homework from last session was to randomly pick a Picasso portrait and use that as a basis to write something.  Everyone approached this task from different angles, from writing from the point of view of the model, to the point of view or the canvas, to factual pieces about the artist, to fictional pieces inspired by the image, to personal responses to the picture.  

I chose this picture -


And wrote this -

Mirrors

What’s it like to be out there?

What do you mean?

I mean, how does it feel to be real?  To be out there in the world?

I don’t understand.

Ok, let me try to explain.  What are you doing right now?

Nothing really.

Yes you are.  What are you doing?

Well, I’m just looking in the mirror.

Right.  So what does that mean I’m doing?

You?  You’re me.  We do the same things.

I wish that was true, but it isn’t.

Yes it is.  Look.  I move my hand, you move your hand.

It’s not the same hand.  Move your hand again.  The right one.  And look closely at my hand.  It’s not my right one.  It’s my left.

Heh, so it is.  I’d never noticed that before.

No, you don’t notice much.

What’s that supposed to mean?

While you spend your time looking in the mirror, I spend my time looking out.  At you.

If I’m not looking at you, how can you be looking at me?  I move my hand, you move yours.  I close my eyes, you close yours.  I turn around, you turn around.  That’s how mirrors work.

Is it?  Is that really how mirrors work?

Yes.  Everyone knows that.

How?

What?

How do they know?

What do you mean?

Ok.  Turn around and look at the wall.

Why?

Just do it.

Ok.

Now turn back and face the mirror.

What was the point in that?

What did you do?

I turned around.

And what did I do?

You turned around too.

But the thing is, I didn’t move.

Of course you did.

How do you know?

Well … I …

Did you see me turn around?

No, but …

But?

You just had to.

Why?

Because that’s how it works.

Who told you?

No-one.  Some things just happen.

Do they?  Do they ‘just’ happen?  Does the sun ‘just’ rise?  Does the rain ‘just’ fall?  Are babies ‘just’ born?

What’s that got to do with this?

Weren’t you ever taught to think?  To question?

Yes, but …

But?

I never thought I’d need to question the workings of a mirror.

Why would you?  It serves a purpose, and when you’ve finished with it, you forget about it.

How dare you?

Everything you see in this mirror is a reflection.  It’s not the truth.  It’s a palatable version of the truth.

What’s that supposed to mean?

I don’t think you could handle seeing the real you, the way I see you.  You’re more concerned with the way you look than the way you are.

Are you saying that I’m vain?

I’m saying it how I see it.

You don’t know what you see.  You’re just a reflection, remember.  You’re not real.  You don’t exist in the real world.  Everything you do and everything you are is because of me.  I move my hand, you move your hand.   And when I turn around, so do you.  You’re nothing without me.

What would you do if I left, right now?

You wouldn’t.  You can’t.

Just watch me.

*****

In the session we spoke about writing 'faction' which is a combination of fact and fiction.  A lot of writers draw from personal experiences, but fictionalise everything.  Writing faction means that a real person will exist in a fictional setting, or fictional people will exist in a real setting.

We each wrote a piece of faction, about a real person in a fictional setting.

Tony looked at himself in the bathroom mirror, peering closely at the hair growing out of his ears.

'Why does hair sprout out of every part of my head other than the top?' he pondered.

The reflection of the clock behind him caught his eye.  He was late, as usual.  He splashed some water on his face and walked downstairs, drying his skin with his sleeve.  An alarm sounded.  He was going to be in trouble.  One more late mark against his name and he would be up in front of the commander.

Tony put on his hat, to cover his hairy ears, straightened his tie, and placed his palm on the pad by the front door.  The alarm stopped and the door slid open.  Sergeant Noble was waiting for him, with a strong hand held at his temple in salute.  Tony reluctantly raised his hand and touched his eyebrow before waving at the young boy standing nervously in Noble's shadow.

"And who do we have here?" Tony asked.

"Corporal Andrews, Sir!" the young boy asserted, with a salute.

"And what can I do you for?" Tony asked.

Andrews looked confused.

"He'll be accompanying us on patrol today," Noble said.

"Jolly good," Tony said, smiling.

"You're late," Noble said, walking away from Tony's house.

"When am I never not late?" Tony asked.

"It doesn't set a good example for the new recruits," Noble tried to say out of Andrews' earshot.

"It's ok, Sir, I'm always late for everything," Andrews said, perking up.

"Andrews!" boomed Noble.  "You will only speak when spoken to!"

"Yes Sir, sorry Sir," mumbled Andrews, looking towards the ground.

"Leave him alone, Noble.  Remember, you were new once," Tony said.  "So Andrews, so you like football?"

"Excuse me?" Andrews responded.

"Football, the greatest game England ever invented," Tony said.

"I'm sorry Sir, I'm sure I don't understand," Andrews said.

"He was born way after the collapse of England, so there's no way he'd remember football," laughed Noble.

*****

Homework for next time is to go to a graveyard and find a name that stands out.  Look at all the information (their age, if they had family buried there, etc.) and write a fictional story using this information.

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 18th June, at Kessingland Library.

Saturday 10 May 2014

LLTW - May 2014

Due to work, I was unable to hold Lowestoft Library Teen Writing Group for a few months, but with a change of day we are all back up and running.  We now meet on the first Wednesday of each month, 5-6 pm, in the library cafe.  The age limits have also been extended from 11 years old to 18 years old.  This is because I received a lot of interest from younger writers, and I wanted to be able to provide a writing community for them too.

So now the group has 7 members, which is great.  All girls though.  It would be nice to see some boys who want to take part, but I certainly can't complain.

Another change is that I've stopped giving homework.  A couple of them are taking exams now, and what with school work for the others, they're not going to have time for writing group homework too.

So we met on Wednesday 7th May, and 6 people turned up.  I know they're young, and fairly shy, but I want them to have confidence in their work and their ability to share.  Last time I asked them to bring along some work to read out to the group.  Two girls did this, and I was so pleased with what they had written and the fact that they were brave enough to read it out.

In the session I gave everyone a copy of a story plan.


I asked everyone to fill in one box and then pass their paper on to the person sitting on their right.  We carried on doing this until we had filled in all the boxes.

I ended up with this outline for a story - 

Title
Mirror Shards

Setting
A city in the shadow of an active volcano, with a corrupt government & eruption day nearing.

Main Characters
Shana - Oblivious to everything.  She thinks the volcano won't erupt.
Emmy - Determined to get Shana to realise that the volcano is going to erupt someday.

Supporting Characters
American police officer - Ignorant to the corrupt government.  Aims to help everyone he can, but isn't too smart.

Problem
Emmy has an evil twin, is taking over the world, trying to get Emmy to be evil too.  Only one thing can stop her, has no idea what it is.

Solution
Hire a vigilante spider to conquer all foes and problems.  He returns to the centre of the earth.  Can be called upon whenever Earth is in need.

Although there wasn't much time left, we all started to write the story from our plans.

Shana sits on her balcony, staring out at the mountain in the distance.  She smiles at the occasional black puff of smoke which pops out of the top.  She sees the mountain as a friend, someone she can confide in.  She knows that the mountain won't judge.  She knows it won't leave her.  Her family left her a long time ago.  They left her alone, running scared, believing that the mountain was a volcano and that it would erupt soon.  Shana didn't understand the panic.  As soon as it started smoking, six weeks ago, people started to leave the town in their droves.  But Shana didn't believe anything bad would happen.  The mountain was her friend.

*****

If everyone wanted to finish the story for homework they could, but they didn't have to.

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday 4th June.

Wednesday 30 April 2014

Z is for ... The Zutons

Today is 30th April, so here is my twenty-sixth post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

The Zutons

source

I have to admit, when The Zutons first came out, I really didn't like them.  I don't know why I didn't like them.  They just didn't appeal to me.  I could have seen them in a really small venue when I was at university, but I didn't.  And now I wish I had!

Many of you may have heard 'Valerie' by Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson, but how many of you know that it was originally written by The Zutons?  Please listen to the original as it's so much better than the cover.

They're indie.  They're rocky.  They're a band I missed out on for a while.



Honourable Mentions go to - 

Zig & Zag - Ok, these guys aren't musicians.  They're aliens from the planet Zog, and they used to co-present The Big Breakfast on Channel 4 during the 1990s.  I dare you not to love it.  Wrap your ears around Dem Girls.

Zwan - If you like The Smashing Pumpkins, you'll like Zwan, basically because they sound pretty much the same (and it's not just because they have the same lead singer).  Wrap your ears around Honestly.

Zero 7 - They're a bit jazzy and a bit electro.  You can chill out with these guys.  Wrap your ears around Today.

*****

What Z bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - Z is for Zut Alors!

Tuesday 29 April 2014

Y is for ... Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Today is 29th April, so here is my twenty-fifth post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

source
Yeah Yeah Yeahs are part of the New York indie rock craze that took over the music world in the early to mid 2000s.  They're rocky and grainy (I do love a grainy singer).  Karen O screams and screeches and sings, and makes you want to get up and dance.


*****

Honourable Mentions go to -

Young Knives - Another Indie Soc band.  Again, a lovely English accent comes through in the vocals.  Wrap your ears around She's Attracted To.

Yellowcard - This band is from the American 'punk' ilk.  Sometimes they can sound the same as the next band, but I still like them.  Wrap your ears around Empty Apartment.

Yum! Yum! Orange - Japanese ska pop?  Surely not?  But yes, it exists and it sounds like this.  Wrap your ears around Precious Days.

*****

What Y bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - Y is for You Can Do It

Monday 28 April 2014

X is for ... The xx

Today is 28th April, so here is my twenty-fourth post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

The xx


source
I found The xx on one of the millions of music television channels.  It was the video which captured my attention before the song (Islands), but the music is beautiful on its own.  Romy has such a soft, hypnotic voice, and the music is so simple, you can't help but drift away in it.



*****

Honourable Mentions go to -

I wish I could have some honourable mentions, but I don't know any other X bands or artistes.  Please introduce me to some!!

*****

What X bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - X is for X mistakes Y for Z

Saturday 26 April 2014

W is for ... The Whip

Today is 26th April, so here is my twenty-third post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

The Whip

source
The Whip is another support band that I fell in love with.  They're electro dancey, and they have a female drummer (I don't know why I like that, I just do!).  You'll learn the lyrics in a second, but that doesn't matter.  You'll be dancing like a lunatic to even notice what they're singing!




*****

Honourable Mentions -

The White Stripes - Are they brother and sister?  Are they ex-husband and wife?  Who cares?  These two people make so much noise with just drums and a guitar, and they like to wear a lot of red.  Wrap your ears around Fell In Love With A Girl.

The Walkmen - If you like a bit of Razorlight, I think you'll like this band.  Wrap your ears around The Rat.

Walk off the Earth - I'm not always a fan of cover bands because they tend to play the song the same as the original and they don't (in the words of Louis Walsh) make it their own.  The members of WOTE are brilliant musicians and manage to add their own dimension to the songs they cover.  Wrap your ears around their cover of Lorde's Royals.

*****

What W bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - W is for Word Ladder

Friday 25 April 2014

V is for ... V V Brown

Today is 25th April, so here is my twenty-second post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.


V V Brown

source
I'm not a huge fan of female singers.  I don't know why.  But V. V. Brown has a great stage presence, quirky style, and beautiful voice.  I think I first saw her when she supported Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly a few years back, and then she was everywhere, advertising for Marks and Spencer.




*****

Honourable Mentions go to -

VHS or Beta - Again, this is another band I found while at university.  I dare you not to dance.  Wrap your ears around Night on Fire.

The Vines - I like this band because the lead singer gurns when he sings.  They also make good music to rock out to.  Wrap your ears around Get Free.

Vega 4 - I wish, I wish I could remember where I first came across these guys.  Never mind.  I like them.  I hope you do too.  Wrap your ears around You and Me.

*****

What V bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - V is for Veuillez trouver ci-inclus

Thursday 24 April 2014

U is for ... Urthboy

Today is 24th April, so here is my twenty-first post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

Urthboy

source
I came across Urthboy, otherwise known as Tim Levinson, via last.fm.  This is a great website that takes note of music that you're already playing and makes suggestions with similar bands and artistes.  I'd been playing Hilltop Hoods for a while, after being introduced to them by my boyfriend at the time.  I didn't think I'd really like hip-hop, but then I thought all hip-hop was that 'guns, bitches, and bling' tripe that bled out from America.  I guess Australians have a different view of that musical genre.

There's something raw and grainy (a bit like Buck 65) that I really like about this guy.



Honourable Mentions go to -

UNKLE - These guys are a DJ outfit, who produce and remix music.  When making their own stuff, they have a lot of other artistes singing on their tracks, so they may have worked with people you already like.  Wrap your ears around Reign.

Underworld - If you were a teenager in the 90s you will have seen the film Trainspotting, and if you saw Trainspotting you will have listened to this band.  Wrap your ears around Born Slippy.

*****

What U bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - U is for Univocalicism

Wednesday 23 April 2014

KLWG April 2014

Today, the Kessingland Library Creative Writing Group met.  And we had a great turn out, with 11 people.  The group really has grown, and new people keep coming, which is great.

Last session, I handed out a copy of Wilfred Owen's poem 'Exposure', which contains half-rhymes.


Homework was to write a half-rhyme poem.  A lot of people found it difficult but gave it a go, and the results were extremely impressive.

Here's my untitled piece -

a sight, a glance, a fleeting look
a quickening pace for a lonely heart
breaking ice with bursts of heat
a key is needed for this rusty lock

a smile, a nod, a nervous wave
a tingle wandering over skin
blinking eyes afraid to scan
a crowded room through which to weave

a walk, a glide, a twisted turn
a sudden gasp of mottled air
counting seconds passing by the hour
a jerky movement to a jumbled tune

a palm, a hand, a friendly touch
a shudder surging through the blood
merging moments becoming blurred
a match to light this fading torch

a taste, a lip, a secret kiss
a closeness shaped with bodies bound
quivering fingers form a bond
a freedom flight from a single curse

a space, a path, an open door
a venture taken with life at stake
following eyes silently stalk
a memorable minute forever held dear

*****

In the session, I wanted to talk about different narrative perspectives in writing.  I think most people are familiar with 3rd person perspective and 1st person perspective, but 2nd person perspective is something that not many people had heard of or even read.  I managed to find a few novels written in 2nd person, and gave the group excerpts of these to read and respond to.


So the task in the session was to write to yourself in 2nd person perspective/narrative.

You try.  I know you do.  It's not easy but you want to make a difference.  You want to make the world  better place, you want to make people happy, but it's not easy.  For some reason, people don't want to be happy.  For some reason they like to find problems in everything and you can't understand it.  You like to spend your time watching people, trying to work out what makes them tick, but they're complicated creatures.  You've tried to be like them but you didn't like it.  You found it unnatural to be so mean, so selfish, so rude.  You knew it wasn't you, but you persevered even though it was making you miserable.  You often wondered how people could be so mean, so selfish, so rude, and still be smiling.  Perhaps they didn't care about others as much as you did.  You tried to talk to them, to see if they could see things from your point of view.  You didn't expect them to agree with you, but you'd hoped you could open their eyes to the bigger picture.  But for some reason they didn't want to know.

*****

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 21st May, 10:30-11:30, at Kessingland Library.

Homework for next time is to use one of the following Picasso portraits to inspire a piece of writing.











T is for ... TV on the Radio

Today is 23rd April, so here is my twentieth post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

TV on the Radio

source
TV on the Radio were another Indie Soc find.  I used to think that I liked music, until I went to university and found that there was so much more out there than I was aware.  They're kind of electro-rocky, with a good background beat.  A good band to just get lost in.



*****

Honourable Mentions go to - 

Transplants - Ex-boyfriend again!  They're punky and rocky, and a bit sweary.  Wrap your ears around Diamonds and Guns.

Tom Waits - My dad really likes this man, but when I first heard him I found his voice too raw to enjoy properly.  I was used to shiny, well-produced fluff.  But now I can really appreciate his voice and his talents.  And do you know he was in Shrek 2?!  Wrap your ears around Hoist That Rag.

Tenacious D - I'm sure most people have heard of these guys.  I think they are amazing.  Jack has an outstanding voice, and they don't take themselves seriously at all.  Wrap your ears around Tribute.

*****

What T bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - T is for Tautogram

Tuesday 22 April 2014

S is for ... Saul Williams

Today is 22nd April, so here is my nineteenth post for the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  This year I am sharing my musical tastes with you.  I hope I can introduce you to some new bands/artistes, and if you'd like to comment perhaps you could introduce me to some of your favourite bands/artistes beginning with the appropriate letter of the day.  For more music, please have a look at my last.fm profile.

Saul Williams
source
If I didn't have ex-boyfriends, I wouldn't have such a wide taste in music!  Saul Williams is primarily a poet with a hip hop backdrop.  Thankfully his lyrics are deep, rather than those of more famous hip-hop artistes.  Live, he is crazy mental, but he pulls it off so well.  



Honourable Mentions go to - 

Sonic Boom Six - I first heard this band about 8ish years ago because an ex-boyfriend wanted to see them live.  They were so different to most things around, with their ska/punk/rap sound.  Wrap your ears around Northern Skies.

The Skints - Being friends with Sonic Boom Six, I was bound to really like this band.  And guess what?  I do.  A drumming lead singer.  A rapping guitarist.  And a woman with a great taste in clothes who plays every other instrument and more.  Yep, good combination.  Wrap your ears around Sociopath

Scroobius Pip (with Dan le Sac) - Spoken word poetry is awesome.  Clever lyrics, English accent.  Man with a beard.  Wrap your ears around Beat That My Heart Skipped.

*****

What S bands/artistes do you like listening to?

2013 A-Z Challenge post - S is for Snowball