I just finished reading Edward Hirsch's The Demon and the Angel: Searching for the Source of Artistic Inspiration. It's a fascinating read – he draws from all sorts of different sources, from Poetry to Painting to Modern Dance to Jazz, with lots of other digressions along the way. He takes Lorca's idea of the Duende …
NaNoWriMo – the countdown begins (again)
Dear [supernatural-deity-of-personal-preference], it's almost that time of year again. NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, when people all over the world park their lives for thirty days to try and write a novel. I posted about this last year, but for those of you who need a reminder, this is the process: Sign up with the …
DIY Pimping for the New Author
(Slightly risky using the p-word in a blog title, but hey, it might actually snag me some new readers.) I was sent this link to a painfully funny article from The New Yorker, spoofing the whole “authors must be proactive in promoting their books!” thing. At least, I think it's a spoof … Actually, as much …
Free Workshop – Helen Lowe: Writing Fantastic Fiction
News just in of a very interesting sounding workshop for all of us who yearn to write that fantasy or science fiction novel: Award-winning author, Helen Lowe, runs a workshop on “Writing Fantastic Fiction”, focusing on Fantasy and Sci-Fi. The session includes discussions and exercises on the essential elements of 'fantastic world building', structure and …
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Coming Out (but not with heels and lipstick)
A moderately recent episode of Criminal Intent reminded me of just how far off the radar poetry seems to be for most people. (Not that it was news – hell, I once sparked a poem off someone's attempt to come to grips with being faced with an actual poet, and in a confined space too!) …
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A Dark Feathered Art 