Roger B. Burt's Blog, page 35

The Promise of the Women’s March

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(Sorry about the picture. Something about peace would have been better but I couldn’t help myself given the theme of empowerment.)

What possibilities would you welcome?

At the risk of seeming political I have to comment on the events of this past weekend. What we have seen were events which were not actually partisan, but display two conflicting realities in our country at this time.

Alternative Realities

The events of this weekend underscored one of the basic themes of this blog. Reality i...

The Myth Underlying the Gaia’s Majesty Trilogy – Part 1

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What if this myth was our reality?
Misty Origins with Truth

Exploring human history leads us back into misty origins and within those origins are fascinating events and adventures. Many of them are not recorded except perhaps as they may be revealed in mythology which often is shown to be more truth than fiction. The long ago events continue to shape our present lives and often tell who we are and foretell the future of humankind. Constructing a myth is a way to illuminate who we are and wh...

Fiction Writing Process III

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Personal Approaches

How do you approach writing? Do you have a system?

Of course in writing there are nuts and bolts which may be idiosyncratic. Although there are some general best writing practices, I suspect we each may have different approaches we prefer.

After a lot of thrashing around, I’ve pretty much settled on writing first thing in the morning. What is really odd is that I am definitely not a morning person. But what has ended up working is to get things going first and then atten...

Our Nation in Crisis – An American Vision: Part 1

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What do you believe is the core we need to address?

The Need for Vision for an America in Crisis

This has been a grueling election with a conclusion very few expected. Now we have to deal with the consequences.

Our middle class has seen income stagnate over forty years. Income inequality has been substantial and is increasing. We have created a body of people we are calling “left behinds”. And through it all there has been a stunning lack of vision combined with obstruction of problem solvi...

Meshing Fantasy with Unfolding Crises

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Do you find current world events disturbing or hopeful?

The World Trembles

Again I have to note the title of this blog is Cusp of Reality.

The news recently is chilling. It was not so long ago that the world seemed so much more stable and suddenly it seems almost surreal. Did I somehow move to an alternative planet which bears a strong resemblance to this one, but with an entirely different character? It feels that way and simultaneously I find myself reviewing history as I’m reading the bo...

Fiction Writing Process II – An Inherent Process

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If you write fiction, what is your process?

An Outpouring

At last the writing of the Gaia’s Majesty Trilogy began. It led initially to scattered notes which shaped a global outline. As I said previously, I found definitive guidance in the story arc process described by Dara Marks. It is visually and conceptually helpful and is found in her book INSIDE STORY.

Intrinsic Structure

When looking at the arc I became immediately aware of how I had been seeing the process in films. Being highly vis...

Fiction Writing Process I – The Birth and Shaping of Fiction

Various Sources and Resources

[image error] The writing process is fascinating. There is conventional wisdom about how to do it, but there is considerable variation among those of us who write fiction. Nothing is universal. Clearly we are using our personal resources, but certainly we all need editors and a proofreader at the end. Of course there is the matter of inspiration. For me, I found some surprises. And those surprises came at many levels. First I noticed that I reached a point in the development o...

Cusp of Reality and Visionary themes

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Crucial Exploration

There is another story which is related to the Gaia’s Majesty Trilogy. That story is the matter of vision in human affairs. The name of this blog is Cusp of Reality and that theme leads us to exploration.

In life it is typically most comforting to dwell in what we term reality. When we do, we believe we know where we are, how things are and what to expect. It may not quite be a delusion to believe in reality but a departure from reality has rewards.

Alternatives to Reali...

Dreams Versus Reality

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Your Dreams

Do you dream? Oh no, I’m not talking about those things that crop up at night. I’m talking about the dreams you have for your future, your desires, what might be. How much of a hard edge do they have? Do they involve mysticism? Do they lead you into a spirit world of your own? What do they say about you and your life?

Questioning Reality
I’m a clinical psychologist and have spent a lot of time talking with people about their lives. Often we talked about what we call reality but...

A Vision to Explore Our Future

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Next month the first book of the Gaia’s Majesty Trilogy, Gaia’s Majesty: Mission Called – Women in Power will be published. In these books we will trace a story of what might be crises coming on our lovely planet. The mythological underpinnings are woven together with the theme of the rising of women to power and partnership. The women in this story are called Tethyans and they are central to the future of humankind and our beautiful blue planet.

Let me tell you a story.

The universe is a...