Dan Jorgensen's Blog, page 504

The poetic power of observation

“I love the line of Flaubert about observing things very intensely. I think our duty as writers begins not with our own feelings, but with the powers of observing.” – Mary Oliver
People want poetry, this renowned poet states matter-of-factly.  That’s why she started writing it and has become one of the best ever in the genre.   “They need poetry. They get it. They don't want fancy work,” she said. “I consider myself kind of a reporter - one who uses words that are more like music and that have a choreography. I never think of myself as a poet; I just get up and write.”
Born this date in 1935, Oliverwon both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for her poetic stylings, and The New York Times described her as "far and away, [America's] best-selling poet.”
She began writing poetry at the age of 14, and at 17 visited the home of the late Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, in upstate New York. She and Norma, the poet's sister, became friends, and Oliver "more or less lived there for the next six or seven years, running around the 800 acres like a child, helping Norma, or at least being company to her," and assisting with organizing the St. Vincent Millay's papers -- another writing obsession.
 [image error] Mary OliverOliver's own poetry turns towards nature for its inspiration and describes the sense of wonder it instills in her. "When it's over," she says, "I want to say: all my life I was a bride married to amazement.  I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms."  Here’s an Oliver poetic sampleA Dream of Trees There is a thing in me that dreamed of trees,
A quiet house, some green and modest acres
A little way from every troubling town,
A little way from factories, schools, laments.
I would have time, I thought, and time to spare,
With only streams and birds for company,
To build out of my life a few wild stanzas.
And then it came to me, that so was death,
A little way away from everywhere.

There is a thing in me still dreams of trees.
But let it go. Homesick for moderation,
Half the world's artists shrink or fall away.
If any find solution, let him tell it.
Meanwhile I bend my heart toward lamentation
Where, as the times implore our true involvement,
The blades of every crisis point the way.

I would it were not so, but so it is.
Who ever made music of a mild day?

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Maintaining the 'wonder'

“Other writers definitely influence my writing. What encourages me and inspires me is when I read a good book. It makes me want to be a better writer.”– Kimberly Willis Holt
When I was first writing young adult literature, I was impressed with the work of Kim Holt and always remembered one of her sayings which I've since found to be extremely accurate.  “My biggest disappointment (as a writer),” she said, “is that once I’m finished working on the characters, I really do expect to see them in the flesh one day.” Like Holt, I’ve found it hard to “let those characters go” once I finish the book.

Best known for the novel When Zachary Beaver Came to Town, which won the 1999 U.S. National Book Award for Young People's Literature, Holt was born on this date to a US Navy Chief in Pensacola, Florida,  but spent most of her childhood in Forest Hill, Louisiana.  That “growing up” experience inspired her award-winning first novel, My Louisiana Sky, and her experiences as a “Navy brat” are reflected in her Piper Reed series. 
Like Holt, I'm amazed how the tiniest moments can grow into books, and as Holt noted, “I hope the wonder of what happens to my characters never goes away. That yearning keeps me writing.” [image error]
Holt also has some great advice for young authors who say they struggle with “wrapping up” a piece on which they’re working.  “If you're having trouble finishing a book, it might be that you're trying to hard to fix it as you go. Just finish the story, no matter how terrible you think that first draft is. Then let it cool off. In other words,” she said,  “don't look at it for a while. Then you can rewrite it.”


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Adding the 'vitality'

“I think almost always that what gets me going with a story is the atmosphere, the visual imagery, and then I people it with characters, not the other way around.” – Ann Beattie
An American short story writer and novelist born on this day, Beattie is noted for her dry, matter-of-fact irony – particularly in writing about the members of our Baby Boom generation (she and I were born in the same year).  Her keen style, especially reflected in Distortions, her first book of short stories, won her several awards for excellence in writing, including from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.

Her first novel, Chilly Scenes of Winter, was also made into a film. “I don't write about things that I have the answers to or things that are very close to home. It just wouldn't be an adventure. It wouldn't have any vitality,” she said about her particular style.


The Edgar Allan Poe Chair of the English and Creative Writing Department at the University of Virginia, she is married to the Virginia painter Lincoln Perry, and has also collaborated with him on a book about his works.
Beattie has this advice for writers who are trying to determine who should be their story’s narrator.  “Quite often my narrator or protagonist may be a man, but I'm not sure he's the more interesting character, or if the more complex character isn't the woman.  You have to figure out who the right person is.   People who are very self-aware will only sound as if they are pontificating if you choose them to tell your story.”  So how does the voice of your character sound?  Believe it or not, you, as the writer, have the ability to listen before you put those words into his or her mouth.   Listen carefully and happy writing.

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When music 'lived!'

“I’m not trying to stump anybody … it’s the beauty of the language I’m interested in.” – Buddy Holly
Much has been made of “the day the music died,” Buddy Holly’s death in an Iowa cornfield when the plane carrying him, J.P. Richardson (the Big Bopper) and Richie Valens crashed on Feb. 3,  1959.  His was a life and brilliant writing/singing career ended at just age 22.   [image error]Born on this date in 1936 to a musical family from Lubbock, TX, Holly often is held up as the iconic figure of the musical exuberance of the 1950s' Rock-and-Roll boom years that also, of course, produced American superstars Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry.   During his short career, Holly wrote, recorded and produced most of his own material as well as dozens of songs recorded by others.  He is often regarded as the act that defined the traditional Rock-and-Roll lineup of two guitars, bass and drums, and a major influence on later popular bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton and Elton John.
In 1986, he was in the first “class” inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.   Rolling Stone magazine ranks him number thirteen on its list of "100 All-time Greatest Artists" and Encyclopædia Britannica states that Holly "produced some of the most distinctive and influential work in rock music’s history.”  AllMusic defines him as "the single most influential creative force in early rock & roll."  Born this day and the music (and his writing) still lives.

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Writing of 'the journeys'

“Thank God for being a writer, because you do sort of find out what you think by the process of writing.  I'm not one of those true writers who can't bear not to be writing. Yet it's one of the most important things in my life.” – Robyn Davidson
While her career of travelling and writing about her travels has spanned over 30 years, this Australian anthropologist and writer is best known for her book Tracks, about her 1,700-mile trek across the deserts of west Australia using camels.
Born  this day at Stanley Park, a cattle station in Miles, Queensland, she is the second of two girls. Her mother died by suicide when Davidson was 11.  After going to boarding school in Brisbane, she earned a music scholarship to college, but decided she was more interested in biology and zoology.  After moving to Alice Springs, she started working with camels and developed the idea that would become her best selling book (and eventually movie).   For two years she trained camels, learned how to survive while trekking the desert, and developed a deep interest in the nomadic lifestyle. [image error]
The majority of Davidson's work since then has been travelling with and studying nomadic peoples. She has studied different forms of the nomad lifestyle—including those in Australia, India, and Tibet – and either written about them or is planning to do so in the near future.
“If you think of all the enduring stories in the world, they're of journeys,” she said. “Whether it's 'Don Quixote' or 'Ulysses,' there's always this sense of a quest - of a person going away to be tested, and coming back.”

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A double impact!

“I don't teach writing. I teach patience. Toughness. Stubbornness. The willingness to fail. I teach life. The odd thing is most of the things that stop an inexperienced writer are so far from the truth as to be nearly beside the point. When you feel doubt about your talent, that is your talent. People who have no talent don't have any doubt.” ― Richard Bausch
An American novelist, short story writer and Professor in the Writing Program of Wilkinson College of the Arts & Humanities at Chapman University in Orange, California, Bausch has written 12 novels – highlighted by his Peace U.S. and Peace, United Kingdom sequels – 8 short story collections and 1 volume of poetry.
Robert Bausch & Richard Bausch[image error][image error]
Bausch’s twin brother Robert is also a noted writer and has produced 9 novels – led by the award-winning A Hole in the Earth and Almighty Me (which became both a best-selling book and the popular movie Bruce Almighty) – and 1 collection of short stories.  Like his brother, he too is a college writing professor (in Northern Virginia).
“We were greatly influenced by my dad,” Robert said about the interesting character development both Bausch brothers have in their works.  “It’s upon him that I based A Hole In The Earth.  I tried to put everything my father believed in that book," Bausch has said. "Out of respect for him, and because, as my narrator comes to see, he was right about most things."

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'Enticing' the reader into our lives

“I hope to be remembered for writing books about social justice that also have enough aesthetic value to endure as works of literature.” – Jonathan Kozol
Born on this date in 1936, Kozol is an American writer, educator, and activistism, best known for his books on public education in the United States.
Death at an Early Age,  his first non-fiction book, is a description of his first year as a teacher in the Boston Public Schools. It was published in 1967 and won the National Book Award in Science, Philosophy and Religion.  It has sold more than two million copies in the United States and Europe.His book Rachel and Her Children: Homeless Families in America received the Robert F. Kennedy Book award and the Conscience-in-Media Award of the American Society of Journalists and Authors.   And those were just two of his many books and essays.
 [image error]
“I don't know if anything I write will endure, but I do try to write it as a narrative that will not only challenge but also entice the reader into the lives of children,” he said in the 1980s.  Not only was he successful in that hope, but his writing continues to touch the conscience of all Americans yet today.
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Be bold ... and interesting

“As a writer, the best mindset is to be unafraid.” – Malcolm Gladwell
I read my first Malcolm Gladwell book right after I had open heart surgery and I have to say that it’s not the best idea to do something like that because you’re trying to heal.  And it’s difficult to heal when you keep tearing open your incision by reading something that makes you throw your arms wide apart and say "Oh my God, I never thought of that!”
That book was Outliers: The Story of Success,  and I couldn’t wait to have people visit me while I was recuperating so I could share things from the book with them.  It definitely took my mind off the fact that I had this long gash in my chest. 
So, when Gladwell’s next book, What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures, was released, I rushed to get that one too.  And I definitely was not disappointed.  Gladwell's books and articles often deal with the unexpected implications of research in the social sciences and make frequent and extended use of academic work, particularly in the areas of sociology, psychology, and social psychology.  And while that might sound dry, it’s absolutely the opposite and some of the most enjoyable and thought-provoking reading you might encounter.
Also optimistic.  “All my books are optimistic,” Gladwell said.  “I wrote my first book when I was in my late 30s, and I had so much optimism to share by that time.”  He said he may have gone through the angst of youth, but he didn’t write about it.  He has written 5 books now and all have been on the New York Times bestseller list.   A native of England who grew up in Canada, he has been a regular for The New Yorker since 1996 where most of his stories have originated.
When asked for the process behind his writing, he said "I have two parallel things I'm interested in. One is, I'm interested in collecting interesting stories, and the other is I'm interested in collecting interesting research. What I'm looking for is cases where they overlap.  Actually, I've had the most untraumatic life a human being can have.  But I've always been drawn to those who have had far more complicated histories.” 
And boy does that make for great reading.


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No shades of gray

“Journalism, for me, has always been a calling,  There are things that must be exposed to the light, truths that must be uncovered, stories worth risking your life for.” – Leslie Cockburn
An American writer, producer and director, Leslie Cockburn has often found herself in situations where her life was at risk.  But she relentlessly “followed the story,” traveling the globe to capture award-winning news, features and documentaries alike. 
 Born Leslie Redlich (on this date in 1952), Cockburn makes her home in Washington, D.C., with her husband, Andrew Cockburn, also a journalist and film producer with whom she both produced programs and co-authored several books,
She first got into filmmaking as an undergraduate student at Yale, where she learned her craft with a 16mm camera.  Right out of college she went to work making films, but was drawn to journalism working as both a feature reporter and producer for NBC, CBS, ABC and PBS, where she made documentary features for the program Front Linein collaboration with her husband.    Leslie Cockburn[image error]
In 2009, she directed and co-produced (with Andrew) her first feature documentary for theatrical release. American Casino, the story of the origins, progress and consequences of the subprime mortgage disaster that led to the greatest U.S. financial crisis since the Great Depression.   For perhaps the best look – and understanding of that crisis – this has become the “go to” film to see.

“When you are on assignment, you stick to the facts, limit your vision, and often cut out the most revealing material,” she has said about her reporting and producing style.  “(For a reporter) there is no texture, no shades of gray.”


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Writing becomes ... like a sport

“I come to writing the same way I come to teaching, which is that my goal is always to create life-long readers.” – Rick Riordan
I wrote about one-time Middle School teacher writing Riordan’s success yesterday, particularly in creating his series for Young Adults and Tweens (also super enjoyable for adults, by the way).  But even though he had that success, it didn’t happen overnight.    His Percy Jackson series grew out of bedtime stories he told his kids, but that was only where he formulated the idea.  After that it was a project 10 years in the making.
He said he realized that much more research on his idea of using mythology was needed before he could really “craft” the stories he wanted to tell.  “I think the more you understand myths, the more you understand the roots of our culture and the more things will resonate,” he noted.  “Do you have to know them? No, but certainly it is nice to recognize how deeply these things are embedded in our literature; our art.”
Now, many successful books (and series) later, he said he still doesn’t feel totally comfortable in his chosen craft.  “You have to work hard to get to the top of your game,” he said.  “I think every writer has doubts.  I still do all the time. 
“It's not easy. I got lots of rejections when I first started out. But, if you want to write, you have to believe in yourself and not give up.  … Writing is like a sport, it’s like athletics.  If you don’t practice you won’t get better.”



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