Leena Luther's Blog, page 2

My favorite line, ever

"

Charles Adams was an amiable, accomplished & bewitching young Man; of so dazzling a Beauty that none but Eagles could look him in the Face.

" Jane Austen —

Up and Coming

Winter hibernation is over, and I’m deep into spring celebration mode (birthdays, weddings, anniversaries!). But I wanted to take a few minutes to update you all on some upcoming activities.

Planned Parenthood has again asked me to be an official patient spokesperson. I’m so honored! This time, I’m headed down to the city for three days of media training, photo and video shoots, and hanging out with my fellow spokespeople. I cannot wait to meet them! I’m also intensely curious to see what it’s like on the other side of media training.

I had a session with a voice trainer once. I had been regularly presenting and doing voice-overs for work so I went into it with a sort of “this will be cute and mildly interesting” mentality. But the coach blew my mind. After listening to me speak for a minute, she was able to tell me that I played a woodwind instrument. My breathing gives me away! Ever since then, I’ve been wanting to talk with communications experts of all kinds, so I can geek out.

So that should be fun. I’ll be blogging about the experience here, so stay tuned for that.

On the hobby side, the hubby and I have a trip planned to the garment district to go fabric shopping. So I’ve been spamming my Pinterest board with lots of sewing tutorials and inspirational pieces. I’ll be sure to share lots of lovely pictures of fabric too.

I’ve also been dabbling with designing fabric patterns of my own. I’m very much a novice, so be gentle! I have these “Zing of Spring” fabrics that are still a work in progress (and thus not for sale yet). One or more of them will probably end up as a maxi dress at some point though.

But I also have these “Planet Polka” designs that I made for the kiddo. Pluto did not make the cut. Sorry Pluto.

The designs can also be purchased as wrapping paper, wallpaper, or decals. What a fun website! If you haven’t checked out Spoonflower.com, do that right now.

That’s it for now. I have some writing projects underway, but nothing to share about those yet. But I think it’s going to be a great spring and summer!

“A Time of Independence”

That’s the section two of my monologues, taken from LUMP, appear in in the new collection, “Audition Monologues for Young Women #2,” by Gerald Lee Ratliff. The chapter starts out with this quote:

“I am no bird, and no net ensnares me. I am a free human being with an independent will.” — Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre.

I knew that I had two monologues in this collection, but until this past week, that’s all I knew. I was so excited to get my copy in the mail on Friday, to discover Gerald Lee Ratliff’s editorial stance, who else was in it, and where my work fit in. Independence. I like that. He goes on…

There is a cold-eyed sharpness here that is unfashionably persuasive in the characters’ incessant search for answers to life’s big questions.

I love that phrase, “unfashionably persuasive.” That’s actually what I was going for. It’s hard to take a trope like cancer survivor and push the story beyond the Hollywood-type stories that people want to hear. My story wasn’t particularly tragic, which made it not particularly uplifting. But my emotions were true and powerful in other ways, I like to think.

When I signed permission for these monologues to be included, I was given the option to write my own introduction, which I declined.

…the author paints an absorbing human portrait that reaffirms the power of courage over fear. Unspoken doubts and inevitable challenges are voiced with a seamless blend of humor, pathos, and emotion that offers a touching glimpse into the life of a courageous breast cancer survivor.”

See, I never would have written that about myself. Thanks! I promise to not let it go to my head.

Anyhoo, I’m making my way through the collection right now, and I’m enjoying it immensely. I truly am honored to be included, and I’m using those emotions to propel myself into doing more writing (just bear with me—the baby makes things slow-going). If you want to pick up a copy, you can do so at your local bookstore. Or, for online purchasers, you can get one from the publisher, Meriwether Publishing, LTD, or the usual suspects like Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Sign me up: Bouchercon 2013 and HNA 2015

Gregory Maguire, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and William Kennedy were all born here. Herman Melville, Trevanian, and Kurt Vonnegut all lived here.

Then there are the rest of us not famous enough for our own Wikipedia page. That’s cool. Wikipedia doesn’t have the final say on our area’s vibrant writing scene. We have lots of great writing events, big and small, like the New York State Writers Institute and the activities put on by the Hudson Valley Writers Guild.

But I recently found out about two other events that are new to the area. And I would really hate to miss either one.

First up is Bouchercon 2013: A New York State of Crime. This is the world’s leading convention for crime fiction readers, writers and others. They’ll be honoring Sue Grafton, Anne Perry, Tess Gerritsen, Steve Hamilton and more, which will be terrific for their fans. Even as a writer, I find this exciting because even though I don’t write crime, per say, I think every story has an element of mystery in it. There is lots of great programming taking place. Bouchercon is happening next week, so be sure to register soon.

Next up is Haiku North America 2015, to be held at Union College in October 2015. Yes, I’m planning ahead here, but it’s the largest and oldest gathering of haiku poets in the United States. If you are into this sort of thing, which I am, this is terribly exciting news.

I’ll also throw in a mention of Fantacon, if horror & comics are more up your alley. I found out about it at the press conference for Bouchercon. Posing with zombies make for a fun photo for this blog entry, but my friends know that I can’t sit through ten minutes of a horror film (remind me to tell you the silverware story sometime). A visit to the website is worth it, if just to see Major Jerry Jennings’s smiling mug sandwiched between a dinosaur and the faces of stabmovies.com.

How it Went

Ten-ish weeks ago, I had my baby! She’s the most lovely thing I could possibly imagine. I won’t go on and on though. I’m writing today because this is a place for me to ramble about creative pursuits, and tomorrow, I go back to work.

Dun, dun, DUN

(I couldn’t resist the pun)

(Or the rhyme)

I was told time and time again, don’t plan on doing too much on maternity leave beyond sleeping and taking care of the baby—it’s not a vacation and you just won’t have time. Fair enough. My expectations were low. But at the same time, they were still there. I was very curious about how having a child would fit into my life, and how much room would be left for hobbies.

So far, so good!

If I’m completely honest, I’ve accomplished the most musically—in the form of making up silly little songs to sing to my daughter. That smile is a hell of a motivator. We sing about everything. But, I won’t be sharing those songs here, as they are too ridiculous for public consumption.

On a more serious note, I downloaded Scrivener for my writing projects, after hearing for some time about how great it is. I didn’t think it would make much of a difference to me (aren’t all word processors the same?) But oh my goodness, where has this software been all my life? I’m completely addicted to the “project goals” and seeing how many words I can write in a session. FUN. On a more serious note (and this may sound completely moronic to people), I’ve never before actually thought about setting my writing into scenes. That’s pathetic, right? What can I say, I come from a non-fiction background. I’ve struggled with not having everything sound like an essay or report (which in my defense, I’m excellent at writing). But with Scrivener, you have no choice but to organize by scenes, which is awesome. It was like a lightbulb going off. I’ve actually written a lot during my leave, which has made me so happy. I have about 50 pages of a novel done, and counting. Yay! I’m also rewriting one of my short stories into a play. My critique of this particular story has always been that it comes off too essay-ish. It probably won’t work as a play at all, but I’ll learn a lot about the story while trying.

Something else happened when I was on leave. The Capital Region got its first Makerspace, the Tech Valley Center of Gravity. The hubster and I actually got a sitter to go visit this place—twice. So it’s obviously up there with our only other sitter-worthy activities: seeing The Great Gatsby and Star Trek Into Darkness. I am now finding myself working on E-millinery projects. I made two fascinator bases today, in fact. I’m not sure where it’s all going to go, but I have some muscle wire, the Lilypad Arduino, and other assorted electronic materials to play with, as well as a husband who understands development and electronics a lot more than I do (very useful when I need to troubleshoot!). Expect a post on that soon. In the meantime, feel free to check out my E-millinery inspiration board on Pinterest.

I’m also debating whether or not I want to teach another class/workshop at The Arts Center. I have a great idea for a writing workshop. Maybe they will like it too. But I just don’t know how much time that would take away from the kid. I’m going back to work part-time tomorrow, and we’ll see how my work/hobby/child-rearing balance continues to play out.

An experiment in storytelling: A pic a day

I’m not a terribly visual person. I mean, like a bunch of other animals on Earth, I use vision to help sort stuff out. And I wouldn’t like to be blind, that’s for sure. And, I like photography and video. If I wanted to be an ass, I would point out that my photography and video somehow ended up in Science magazine and on PBS Newshour (proof that the world has a hilarious sense of humor).

But when it comes down to it, I still read the captions before looking at the photo. I dream in words above all else. And I just can’t bring myself to care all that much about how things look beyond a basic baseline of comprehension. It’s not my art, yo!

So, I’m the perfect person to do a photo meme! Right?

I took a picture a day for the entire month of February (the fact that it’s the shortest month is completely on purpose). It turned out to be a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. As I went along, I tried to keep a few things top of mind:

Don’t worry about quality or getting awesome angles or even centering things. Put the DSLR away, ignore your bounce circle/light diffuser, and just use the cell phone. Instagram filters were allowed, but only if I didn’t think too much about them.  
Don’t carefully craft the story. I wasn’t so lazy as to take a picture of my work desk everyday, but also wasn’t so anal that I created “cool things” to happen just so I could take a cool photo and look really cool to anyone looking at them.

These were my rules to make up, obviously. But I think I got some stuff out of it. What stuff? Look for more thoughts below the gallery.

The keeping the visual part simple was pretty successful, lol. I wasn’t going for quality. Except when the story meant a lot to me. Like on Feb. 14 – that’s my Nana. It was her 93rd birthday and she had to spend it in the hospital. I wasn’t going to be lazy with that one. But, if I apply the quality test to all the photos, I evidently also care about hot dogs, my emergency chocolate stash, and my husband. Fair enough.

The content selection was much more interesting. See, content selection is my art. It was really hard no to construct a narrative. If I found myself constructing a baby storyline, I made myself stop. I had to cut myself off from taking pictures of food. And I feel horrible that I wasn’t equal in taking pictures of my pets – one cat is missing and another one is in there twice. I had some cool moments that I felt the need to balance out with ordinary moments. And it took all my willpower not to snap a picture of my husband playing with a tube amp. The glowing was super fun, but, it was also his moment, not mine.

In a way, not constructing a storyline is constructing a storyline. Decisions have to be made, regardless of what they are. Right?

So that’s how this whole thing ended up being about Buddhism. I realized I was attempting some sort of visual meditation – accept the moments as they come and don’t overreact to them. Just be. Recognize the story you are building and where those urges come from, but don’t judge yourself for it.

*mindblown*

So, I will definitely do this again sometime.

Timing is Everything: What Books Have You Read Too Soon or Too Late?

“For a novel addressed by a man to men and women of full age….”

So starts the preface to the first edition of “Jude the Obscure“ (1895).by Thomas Hardy. As I read this sentence a few days ago, I reflected on this curious notion that pops up time and time again – that certain books are for grown-ups only. In fact, I had just had a discussion with my husband about whether or not Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was appropriate for our 8-year-old niece. Yes, we decided, it was. And that decision was followed by a timely feature in the New York Times about “What Books Are ‘Just Right’ for the Young Reader?” (which backed up our idea to introduce our niece to Harry Potter at Christmas).

Growing up, I was allowed to read anything I wanted. I was encouraged, to a degree, to read “ahead” but, I was also taught that reading “behind” was just fine too. As such, I have no trouble reading books aimed at kids and tweens today (Yes, I know who A is. And I’ve known for years.). Books are fun and rewarding in all sorts of ways! If it piques my interest, I pick it up—and that’s been a life-long habit.

As I read Jude, I was having a hard time seeing how it was grown-ups only. I figured a kid would probably be bored as hell and miss all the things that were making the book great, but, not scarred. Until I got to Part VI—then my eyes got all wide and I slapped my hand over my open mouth.

“Did you get to the part where it would be bad for kids to read?” asked my husband.

“Uh… yeah. You could say that,” I answered.

So, okay, Thomas Hardy. Warning warranted!

But it got me thinking about the other books I’ve read. It’s near impossible to pick the “best” time to read a book—as everyone’s emotions, experiences, and knowledge will give them all a different journey with each story. But I can say that, yes, some have been too soon. And some have been too late. Here are my lists. What are yours?

Books I’ve Read Too Soon

This list is hard to determine, exactly, because I can’t really know unless I’ve reread it later and appreciated it more. Or maybe the list are those books which I suspect I’d appreciate more. Or maybe it’s the ones I stopped reading, but fully intend to finish.

Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky

I’ve loved all the Dostoevsky I’ve read in the past five years, so I would really like to “redo” this first one I attempted, back in my 20s. I don’t remember finishing it. I’d probably appreciate it more now, having fallen deeply in love with The Idiot and really liking The Brothers Karamazov.

Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen

Oh Jane, you have written one book that I don’t have creased to hell in my bookshelf. Why aren’t you creased? I can’t remember if Fanny annoys me or if I go for your funnier books or what. I’ll find out. I’m sure I will love this one too, if I read it more than once or twice. This was the second Austen book I ever read, after Emma—I remember that.

Something About a Turtle and a Tree and a Dead Girl, by someone I don’t recall.

This isn’t the real title. But to round out this list, I offer some book I remember reading as a child that my mom bought for me. When she asked me how I liked it I responded, “It was good at first, but then the main character fell out of a tree and died.” My mom felt bad. I was upset, but, I pretty much forgot about it two weeks later. Except sometimes it pops up in my mind every now and again, even now, 25ish years later.

Books I’ve Read Too Late

The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger

This one stands out the most. I read it when I was in my mid-20s, and I hated it. I wanted to smack that Holden kid upside the head. What an annoying twit. So many people say this was such a powerful books for them when they were a teen. I can appreciate that, I guess. But all I can say is, I’m glad I kept evolving from when I was a teen and that I couldn’t relate to this moron at all. *shudder*

Geek Love, by Katherine Dunn

I think I tried to read this one when I was sick with cancer. I was so disturbed at the notion of people intentionally fucking with their bodies that I couldn’t even finish it, though everyone else I know who has read this novel loved it.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams

I liked this book, I really did, but, I didn’t have the urge to read beyond the first book. If I read it a few years earlier than I did, then maybe the jokes wouldn’t have seemed done to death. This book was a victim of its own success, IMO. Alas.

Happy New Year!

closed lids

the sun becomes

a flower

I am very excited for the Year of the Snake, 2013. This haiku is many things to me. This spring, so much is going to change when I give birth to my daughter. I’m giddy with anticipation. Waiting, waiting, waiting… enjoying the moment while waiting.

On a global level, winter is when everything sits below the snow, and waits to bloom in the spring.

And of course, on a literal level, the winter snow makes the sun that much brighter. My blue eyes can’t deal, lol. I shut them and see sun spots.

So yeah, that’s the haiku I picked to share this New Years! Best wishes to you all.

A bit of winter, now.

Winter has always been the time of year when I cocoon. I’m introverted all year round, but during the winter I tend to take it to another level. It’s like I take all the observing and interacting I’ve done the rest of the year and THINK extra hard on it on it, and then bring those conclusions and decisions to that disciplined level of actually creating something with them.

And I read a lot too.

This year, I started early. I think I simply reached my limit of stimulation, frankly. Not that I’m complaining! It would be hard for my life to get any better. I’m settling into what lays beyond the newlywed phase of marriage, I’m coming up on the one-year anniversary of my new job, and I’m expecting my first baby in the spring. A family member passed, and others got sick (and then better). I also taught a workshop about something I’m passionate about and joined the board of a creative reuse center.

It’s no wonder I read four books in the past week.

So, since I haven’t updated in a while, I thought I could use this entry to share a little bit of my early winter with you.

Sewing Stuff

With a baby on the way, I’ve been nesting in my own way. Mostly, I’ve been scouring spoonflower.com for custom fabrics to make baby clothes and accessories with. My husband has been doing most of the creative nursery planning. All I had to say was, “Art Nouveau Nursery” and he was off and running. Although, I did have to fight for some saturation in the colors. I usually don’t argue color decisions with him, because he was raised by a painter and I was not. I guess I can blame pregnancy hormones?

Anyway, I made an adorable little baby swaddler. I have the fabric for a second one, but I still have to put it together. I also started a crocheted baby blanket, which is half done. I’ve also been collecting patterns for things like bibs and plush blocks and summer dresses. But people keep laughing at me because I feel I cannot buy fabric for summer dresses because I don’t know what coloring my little girl will have yet. Even my husband, Mr. PickyAboutColors, thinks that’s hilarious.

My mom brought over a bunch of baby clothes that my Nana made, which was awesome too.

Writing Stuff

I already mentioned the haiku workshop that I taught recently. That went fabulously. I’m participating in the New Year’s Postcard Exchange again, so, soon haiku from around the world will be arriving. I’ll share my design in time for the New Year!

I’ve also been making some headway on a story that has been in the planning phases for a very long time. It’s not the one I thought up in HS, but it’s close. And it’s in the science fiction genre, which I haven’t really shared before. It makes me nervous to share, because science fiction is my favorite and I’m really picky about my stuff being trite. But, the plot and outline are done. The characters are alive in my head. What’s left but to sit down and write it? Nothing. So, off I go. That’s my plan for the actual winter, to get a few hundred pages of that down. If I don’t do it before the baby comes, I fear I never will.

Not that I’m letting go of monologues. I found out there is a neighborhood storytelling event that fits in with this nicely. Once a month, people gather in a bar for an open-mic sort of event, where people share five-minute stories on a pre-determined topic. I’m going to check my first one out in a few weeks.

Reading Stuff

Like most readers, I have a “To Read” list that lives in my head and in wish lists, as well as a “To Read” pile of actual books and Nook files. Because I knew I wanted to do a lot of writing this winter, I decided to tackle the pile with selections I thought would motivate me.

First up, Kate Noble. At first glance, you might be confused that someone who writes monologues and who wants to write sci-fi would find a writer of deeply historical romance motivating.  Indeed, have I ever even read a romance novel before? No, I have not. I highly suspect they are not my thing. But (insert Will Ferrell’s voice from Elf here), “I know her!” We were actually sorority sisters in college. I think it’s fabulous that she is able to be an actual author for a living. Seriously, kudos. If I weren’t happy for her (because she’s a lovely person), I would be supremely jealous, and if I could shore up those bits of jealousy, I’d probably be motivated to write more.

The books have been in the queue for a while, but, like I said, being romance novels, I suspected they wouldn’t be my thing. Except, these are historical romances. Deeply so, which evidently means they are heavy on the history and light on the sex. Perfect! I like historical fiction, so, it could work, right?

Like I mentioned above, I read four this week. I think there are only two left, which I’m saving for next week.

I’ve also been compiling a nice list of “To Read” female science fiction authors that are new to me, like Doris Lessing. Where has she been all my life? I also renewed my subscription to Analog and Asimov’s, which I haven’t read in a long time. I’ll be posting any thoughts on new books read on my Goodreads page, so keep an eye on that if these thoughts interest you.

That’s all for now. Wishing you all a lovely winter, whenever you want to enjoy it.

“LUMP” is Going Into Collections

My life seems to have two modes: chill and crazy.

Right after I finish this blog entry, I’m going to fill out some paperwork to grant non-exclusive reprint rights to two of my monologues for the upcoming third volume of “ Contemporary Monologues for Young Women” (Meriwether Publishing, Ltd.).

Maybe I’m sheltered, but I think this puts life into crazy mode. I was surprised and humbled and sooo excited to hear from the editor, Gerald Ratliff.

When I was researching monologues, in preparation for writing “LUMP,” I actually researched his books. I was very interested in the editorial angle of different monologue collections, and how they were presented in terms of audition materials and classroom work. It was very important to me that “LUMP” be a collection that not only worked as a whole, but also provided useful and interesting things for actresses to chew on, so to speak. I spent a long time analyzing these books, and reading reviews of them, so I could better understand what folks were looking for.

So, I don’t know how my pieces (“The Princess with the Pea” and  ”The Fifth Annual ‘Leena’s Not Dead Party’”) will be incorporated into the larger work (or even if they will make the final cut), and what, specifically, triggered his interest in each one. But I can’t wait to find out!