Leena Luther's Blog, page 4

Creative Nonfiction – A Classroom Discussion

Today I had a great talk with the Creative Nonfiction class at Emma Willard School. Because I have respect for full disclosure, I will tell you that I worked there, making the website. Today was my last day actually. And I couldn't think of a better way to go out.

The class was small, with only seven students, which gave us the opportunity to have a nice, personal discussion about inspiration, process, choices, autobiographical writing, and why I decided to write LUMP as monologues instead of something else.

I don't know if I had ever sat down and thought about it, before I started preparing for this visit. But it turns out the answer is because I was so engrained in my usual non-fiction types of writing (mainly, article writing and marketing)–which just wasn't working!

I was having all sorts of problems. I had too much information. I mean really, one's life is a lot of information. I couldn't put away my marketing point-of-view. I couldn't decide where to draw the line on privacy. Plus life kept happening and I was having a hard time isolating my life from my life.

For two years, I really struggled with it. And I found that shocking, because I had always been able to pound out writing fairly quickly.

One day I decided to try one as a monologue. That one decision solved so many problems. It forced me to stay in the moment. I had no experience with monologues or theatre, so marketing wasn't getting in the way. And it even solved the privacy issue, because a performer would be telling the story, not me.

The rest is history, or shall we say, LUMP.

The girls were great though. I brought in my "orange" tic-tac to show them. It was older than they were, lol. I also brought in some new ones, so they wouldn't be totally scarred. They asked a lot of great questions too. I really appreciated the opportunity to go out on such a high note. Thanks Creative Nonfiction class!

One Missing High Priestess

My husband is a huge Dali fan. I got him a (used) Dali Universal Tarot Deck for Christmas. Except it wasn't complete. It's missing card number 2: the High Priestess. It also contains duplicates of the moon, death, and the lovers. I figure, if our deck has extras, then some other deck may as well. If anyone on the web ever finds this post and is interested in some trading, let me know.

Today I Learned About Tetra-Tetraflaxagon

Today I received a tetra-tetraflaxagon haiku card, and I am in heaven.

It was for the Nengajyou postcard exchange I talked about earlier. And it had six blocks, which made it ultra nifty. The haiku was written three folds in. And it was about curtains, which plays in with the packaging. FUN!

I was going to share the postcard design I sent out, but it's nowhere near as cool as that. May as well share the haiku though.

placing the drink

on the mirrored platter

new year's eve

I had to explain it to my husband, so I guess it's not that good. I went back and forth a lot between using the word glass or drink. I wanted to show the two reflective surfaces playing with one another in a cyclical way (which plays into the whole culture of celebrating New Year's Eve). Glass seemed too vague, like, the glass what? Figurine? Eye? But drinks can be in mugs and sippy cups and styrofoam containers too. I was hoping the reader would figure out that it was a glass, because it's New Year's Eve and there are mirrored platters around. I was also hoping the phrase mirrored platters would serve as a hint. But maybe that's too fancy for haiku. I dunno.

I could have said drink glass but that seemed like too much.

Anyhoo, I'm going to spend the rest of my evening folding my own tetra-tetraflaxagons. (Hey, do you think it's just a coincidence that tetraflaxagon sorta rhymes with year of the dragon? I hope so, otherwise that dude is way too nerdy cool for me.)

The Haiku Begin to Arrive

One of my favorite traditions this time of year is the Nengajyou postcard exchange. Me and my fellow haiku enthusiasts exchange postcards to celebrate the new year. It's a Japanese thing, typically. But lots of Western haiku writers do it as well, since the tradition involves writing a haiku or senryu on the postcard.

Happy New Years, 2008

I haven't talked about haiku yet, on this blog—or senryu, tanka, or renga. These are all Japanese poetry forms that I simply adore. I've been practicing them for a few years now, and I'm still not that great at crafting them, but, I so so love to read them.

"Haiku?" You may say, "How hard is that? 5-7-5, right?"

Well, no. Not exactly. Haiku is more about kigo (nature) words, and celebrating "is-ness," and taking a pure moment and distilling it to its very core. Its not about flowery language or jaded navel gazing. It's about the moment you experience something and go, "A-ha!"

Literally. One of my favorite writers runs this site: http://www.ahapoetry.com/

I think the simplicity and bare-bones nature of haiku appeal to the type of writing I do. I am a trained journalist, and it shows in everything I write. Plus I love the idea of components adding up to more than their parts. It's very gestalt, to apply a western term.

This was the card I sent out for 2008. It's cute, huh? That was the year of the rat. I'd write that poem differently now. It's crying out to be simplified. Something like:

Dots of salt

on the night road

New Year's Eve

2008 was the last year I participated in the exchange. The postcards this round are for the year of the dragon. I can't pass that up. Plus, it's fun to get mail from a bunch of poets around the world. My first one arrived yesterday. I'm excited for them all!

I'm still working on a haiku for this year. I will keep you posted.

Impact on Life Interview

A few weeks ago, my friend Greg Aidala offered me the opportunity to be a guest on a show he just started working with, Impact. Greg is a very funny comedian and promoter who loves to bring great entertainment to the area. His mom died from breast cancer 30 years ago, so this cause is very dear to him.

I was honored to be a guest, alongside the lovely Maria Crawley. You can watch our interview here:

Random aside: My make-up looks so fab because Paul Mitchell: The School did us up right. While I was there, I bought some doggie shampoo, mostly as a joke because, really, who needs Paul Mitchell shampoo for their dog? But it turns out the stuff is fantastic.

Anyhoo, Impact is an hour long, weekly interview-based show covering various topics of interest in the Capital Region and beyond. Each week, they look at local issues, developments and trends in different walks of life, primarily the Arts, Government and Science. The show is available through video on demand on www.openstagemedia.org if you are interested in watching more episodes and segments.

The Planned Parenthood Post

Thank You Planned Parenthood

This issue is so serious that I used my full name.

I am one of those people that have been helped by Planned Parenthood. As I detail in LUMP, I had no health insurance when I found my lump. The high-tech startup industry wasn't all that stable, what can I say. I was between jobs and pretty screwed.

That's why I almost ignored it. I didn't have the money to deal with something that was most likely just a cyst.

Except I remembered Planned Parenthood. I had never been to one before, but hoped they would be affordable. Or at the very least, not require insurance and/or referrals (because that's all the pushback I was getting from every other health practitioner I called).

Not only could they get me in, they guaranteed a sliding scale. When I got there, they actually used a grant from the Susan G. Komen Foundation to do all my screenings. I ended up with two free breast exams, a free ultrasound, and a free biopsy. And a free phone call telling me I had cancer.

I cannot stress enough how much PP and Komen saved my life. October's been good to Komen. Most times are. But Planned Parenthood is under more attacks than ever. And it makes me sick. So I recorded this:

Thank You Planned Parenthood – Colleen

Thank you Planned Parenthood.

Pay it Forward

I was recently featured in the Times Union Pay it Forward blog, written by Mary Kenney and others. She had a very sweet write-up of LUMP and its author. I think she's pretty darn fabulous too. You won't see me jumping out of a plane for charity, much less while looking gorgeous and serene while I do it. Seriously, you should see her pictures. Maybe if we all pressure her to post a twitpic, she'll do it.

Pay it Forward Profile: Meet Leena Luther (local author and much more)

Ok, only one more post to go. I really need to be more regular in my blogging habits so they don't all build up like this.

A Superhero Name

So, today I find out that Lex Luthor (of Superman infamy) has a sister (or daughter, depending on which version we're talking about) named Lena Luthor. I'm laughing so hard.

Someone recently told me I had a superhero name. I guess they were right. How did I miss this?

She was nice, and a good friend; however, she was sensitive and easily angered, using her scientific prowess to do things such as removing everyone's meteor-given superpowers.

LUMP Performance at the Allegany Arts Council

Okay, so it already happened. I'm sharing anyway.

10/06/2011-10/07/2011

Front & Centre Stage is pleased to present, "Lump: A Collection of Breast Cancer Monologues" for two performances in the Community Room of the Allegany Arts Council. The show will be performed Thursday, October 6 & Friday, October 7 at 7:30PM. The monologues, written by Leena Luther, a 27-year-old breast cancer survivor, showcase the complex, unique, and true stories of a woman unexpectedly thrust into the world of breast cancer. Ranging from the comedic to the dramatic, and often incorporating both styles at once, these quirky scenes explore the idea that real bravery is in continuing to live with cancer; not in facing chemotherapy or weight gain or financial distress like a champ, but rather worrying more about your love life and skinny jeans. It also enforces the revelation that cancer is something that happens to you, and not something that takes over your life or changes who you are fundamentally.

The show features the talents of Staci Calder, Meghan Crossland, Heidi Gardner, Jessica Growden, Beth Hilliker, Heather Kline, Kimberli Rowley, Martha Schadt, Jessica Seminerio, Suzi Shulten, Wendy Snow, Lura Thompson, & Lauren Elizabeth Wahl.

Tickets are $10. All proceeds from the show will be donated to the Making Strides Relay Team, "Artists With a Passion." If you are interested in joining the Relay Team and participating in the Making Strides Walk on Saturday, October 8, please contact us at 301-268-3724 or email us at frontandcentrestage@yahoo.com.

Check out their Facebook page for more information on this group!

Thank You More Magazine!

LUMP is featured on more.com, the online home of More magazine in, "Tackling Breast Cancer With Humor Books".

The book is the 5th one listed, and the list includes books by stand-up comic Robert Schimmel, Fran Drescher (come on, you know you just got that laugh in your head), Hoda Kotb (she survived cancer AND Kathi Lee), humorist Miles Kington, and New Yorker cartoonist Marisa Acocella Marchetto. And me. Wha???

I need to google my own name more often.