Oct. 7: Sex

On today's meditation the author deals with the topic of writing about sex. In my case I much prefer to do as some of my favorite authors. Which is to say write in such a way that is not sexually explicit but that conveys sexuality through the use of innuendo, erotically charged language, and sexual tension. One of the things I so dislike about modern media is that sex is always so graphically portrayed. Much prefer when the actual act was a great mystery but that you know some of the character's engage in. I have some very old fashion moral values which are much more conservative now than in my earlier years. I do not think that it is a positive about our culture that "sex sells" whether it is jeans, perfume, or dish detergent today's media seems to think that the only way to sell a product is to use sexuality. Me personally that is just so wrong on every level. In fact today's "try it" section (which again will have to wait until later) is to "write a scene in which a man and woman begin to experience sexual attraction for each other, but write it in a way that is suggestive rather than explicityly sexual." Actually had already planned such a scene for one of the stories I am currently working on.

Oct 6: Wild and Crazy Ideas

Todays meditation is on not ignoring or arbitrarily discarding an idea just because it seems wild and crazy to you. The author reminds us that history is full of ideas that seemed outrageous and unbelieveable at the time. He also shares that wild and crazy ideas can be fun to conjure up just for their own sake. For me personally just the idea of writing would seem to some as a really wild idea, but then the idea of returning to school at the age of 45 was also seen as a crazy idea by some. Fortunately, I have stopped letting other people's opinions dictate my actions. I have always enjoyed learning and hope I always will.
The "try this" section today say "take your wildest and craziest short-story or essay idea and work it into a complete first draft. Set it aide to incubate for a couple of weeks, and then revised as you see fit, taking care to retain its craziness". Right now am going to have to move this one to the old composition book also because I have sat here for 30 minutes and nothing comes to mind. Well that isn't exactly accurate nothing has not come to mind that I have not already read. The only thing that really even pops into my head would need much more research to even move to the first draft point.

Oct. 5: The Future of Books

In today's meditation the author discussed the possible future of having physical books as opposed to digital material/media. I hope that for my lifetime at least we do not do away with physical books. There is something special about certain physical books. Maybe it is sentimentality because for the time I learned to read until I can no longer see (hopefully not before death) I have treasured my moments spent with actual books. I agree with Mr. White that there is something special and aesthetic about a book. A book that you can underline material that was particularly important to you and make notes in the margins. Even for me, fictional novels are something I like to clasp in my hands. There is something special about curling up in a favorite comfortable chair with a book, maybe a special blanket or laprobe draped around you and read a book. It would be even more spectacular if my home had a fireplace to sit beside or in front of, but will have to use my imagination on that one. I also agree with the author that it would be painful to contemplate a world without physical books. Sometimes on long trips I like to listen to an audio book but doubt that I will ever really get into reading a book on the internet.
Today's "try this" section in to interview the librarians at local public or college libraries, about what is the outlook for future maintenance and acquisition of physical books from their perspectives? Then write an article based on the information you obtain.

Oct 4: That's Entertainment!

Today's meditation is regarding how writer are entertainers. I most liked what the author said in the "For Further Reflection" Section: "Readers love to be informed in an entertaining manner. Fiction, we might even say, is philosophy, psychology, history, and sociology dressed up in dramatic scenarious. We learn best when ideas are played out on the stage of everyday experience."
For today's "try this": take a subject you know well and retell it in a way that makes for entertaining reading. For example, if you knwo something about baseball, write an essay about batting technique that would fascinate young readers.

Oct 3: Sensuous Bravura

Today's meditation has to do with the sensuous nature of poetry and also of writing. Mr. White states that "the observations of nonartists tend to be superficial, highly selective; that is, they see only what they wish to see. To see the world artistically, we must learn to penetrate beneath the glittery surfaces of things." The "try this" section is to take a biology textbook and write an essay on the hidden beauty of the human body, or limit your scope to just one set of organs. Remeber that every organ has its own internal components as well, which you should include in your description.

Oct 2: "Masked Woman in a Wheelchair, PA"

Forgot to take my book home over the weekend so am very quickly going to try to catch up. Loved this meditation. One of the things about being a therapist is to try to get folks to drop their masks of denial and work with the reality of their addiction. I know that throughout my life I have used a wardrobe of masks. There is a writing (not certain that it is a poem) about the fact that we all wear masks. The author in the "try this" section of today's meditation asks us to list our masks and then write an essay about why you wear them and two to write a story about a man who likes to dress as a woman (or vice versa) for Halloween. Explore the psychological impulses behind your character's desire to do so. Of course I will not have time to explore either of those today but maybe later in my little composition book.

Oct. 1: Fables

Today's reading is about fables, how they are entertaining reading and yet convey moral values.
They are allegories in which animals behavior and deeds reflect/highlight the behavior and deeds of people. I best liked Mr. White's comment that "fables serve as an objective and powerful lens through which we can best observe human folly." Most of us can easily remember and pinpoint the power messages of the fables we heard and/or read as children and possibly even as adults. Today's "Try This" is again something that it will take great time than I have time for today to accomplish. Another assignment to put in my composition book for later accomplishment and/or reflection.
1. Write a fable in which you make an unusual animal your main character (my thought is to use the animals of either Australia or Tasmania). That is, instead of opting for a cat, a dog, or a bird, try telling your store from the point of view of a snake or a giraffe, or some extinct animal such as a pterodactyl.
2. Read Henry David Thoreau's fable-like description of the battle between red ants and black ants in the "Brute Neighbors" chapter of Walden. Then write your own account of a confrontation between two similar species--say, between squirrels and chipmunks or ducks and geese (prairie dogs and ground squirrles). Give your fable a distinct moral purpose.