On Hiatus

Sometimes it seems that life gets in the way of writing. This is one of those times. The Heart and Craft of Lifestory Writing is going on vacation, and will resume in mid-September.

Stay tuned for stories of happenings during the hiatus. If you haven’t subscribed, now is a good time, so you’ll get a notice when I post again.

In the meanwhile,

Write on,

Sharon Lippincott, aka Ritergal

Fresh Insight

One of the best ways to improve your writing is to read the work of fine writers. This reading can give you fresh insight into writing style, writing technique and a general philosophy of writing. I just finished reading Floor Sample, Julia Cameron’s hot new memoir and gained new insight in each of these areas. Julia is a novelist, playwright, songwriter and poet, and author of the best-seller, The Artist’s Way, the premier work on freeing the creative process in any mode. She is a fine writer indeed, and her story stirs my own creative juices.

In a comment on the inside cover, Sophy Burnham writes, “Courageous! An unflinching view of drugs, drunkenness, marriages, madness and the redemptive power of the creative spirit.”

When I finished reading the memoir, I thought of this comment. Yes, it is courageous and unflinching. She neither ducks issues like guilt, addictive denial, psychotic episodes, and flights of artistic inspiration, nor does she wallow in any of this. She records it, almost dispassionately. She’s entirely dispassionate about her successes, merely recording the fact of a book or script sale, without mention of the ecstasy she must have felt — or did she? I was left with the feeling that I’d peered through a porthole into one corner of her complex mind.

I mention this not as an indictment of the book. Her writing is lyrical, and I loved the book. It made me more keenly aware that the best efforts of the most talented authors result in a sketchy outline of actual experience. In every case, the story is finished with details and inferences supplied by the mind of the reader. No two readers will understand it the same way, because our interpretation of the story is colored by our own experience.

The interactive duality between reader and writer is both liberating and challenging. As a writer I realize that all I can do is to blaze a trail my readers will follow. The optimum result I hope for is to provide a lens for them to see their own world or work in a new way. Realizing that I don’t need to justify or explain my experiences or ideas, but merely present them as they are, is liberating. The challenge is to find a way to present them that’s fresh enough to inspire those new views.

This book was my first taste of Julia’s magic. It’s her most recent work, and having the story behind her earlier ones whets my appetite to work through The Artist’s Way, and perhaps one or more of her later works on creativity also.

I found this book, as I find nearly all my reading material, in the local library. Perhaps you’d like to take a library break this weekend and pick up a book or two to give you some fresh views and writing inspiration. You might even find one of Julia Cameron’s many titles on a shelf there.

Write on,

Sharon Lippincott, aka Ritergal

A Major Brain Health Day

Today has been one of those major brain health days. A search on the term “brain health” brings up thousands of links like the Alzheimers Association site. This site explains how staying mentally active by engaging in stimulating activities like reading, writing and working crossword puzzles will keep your brain in good working order. In my humble opinion, untangling messes like malfunctioning links covers all those bases, and I spend enough time every day on such activities that my brain should remain sharp for at least 250 years.

I got started with today’s exercise first thing this morning when I discovered that the link to the audio file in last night’s post wasn’t working as it should. My search for a more reliable audio file parking site ate a sizeable chunk of the day, and led me through a succession of virtual junkyards.

In the process I discovered that there is an endless list of sites that are willing to host large files, at no charge, and most will hold them indefinitely. As you may expect, these sites are mostly supported by advertising. Many of similar to MySpace in promoting visibility and sharing among members. Any link to your uploaded file loads your member page with the player for the file. That page has links to all sort of other members, many of which are blatantly not family-friendly. That was an adventure.

Finally, I found FileDen, a low-key, tasteful site with a generous amount of space available at no cost, and far more available by subscription. You can upload any sort of file to their site, and link to it seamlessly from other sites. The audio file link opens in the standard QuickTime player rather than requiring you to download the file or look at trash. One of these months I'm going to venture into creating a short narrated photo-based movie with Microsoft's free PhotoStory 3 software. This will be a great place to store that for your viewing enjoyment.

You can also use this site to park files for friends and family to download. If you want to record a batch of stories, you can park them there and let people know where to go pick them up.

Lifestory writing itself is an excellent way to keep your brain healthy. The basic writing exercise is good, and so is the satisfaction of knowing you’ve produced a fine piece of work. Besides, it’s fun. If you take the next step of virtual wrestling as you master more technology and forge new paths in both cyberspace and your own gray matter, so much the better.

Write on,

Sharon Lippincott, aka Ritergal