Kurt Brindley's Blog, page 93
July 15, 2015
July 14, 2015
THE CREATOR OF BEAUTIFUL THINGS: A Guest Post by Author G.N. Boorse
Oscar Wilde, in his famous preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray
begins, “The artist is the creator of beautiful things.” But I’ve been struggling to understand what he means by that.
Do all artists create beauty? Are all of those who create beauty artists?
E. L. James recently published another book in the Fifty Shades of Grey series, merely titled Grey—the story as told by Christian Grey himself, and not through Anastasia’s eyes. According to the Los Angeles Times, following the first four days after its release, Grey had already sold 1.1 million copies, so her publisher printed a few million more.
Yet we cannot attribute James’ success to a particular artistry or cleverness with words. She appeals to the baser desires of the public, and they snap at the bait. Grey is a butchery of the English literary arts, but it sells copies.
Meanwhile the rest of the writers struggle to chain three words together in the hopes that they might find something beautiful, that their words resonate deeply from the heart. And in the rare event that beauty occurs and blooms like a violet in a pit of mud, it falls unnoticed by the wayside.
I’m not saying that you can’t find good writing on the New York Times bestseller list. I’m just saying you’ll have to look very hard.
Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love commented in a TED talk on questions she’d been asked by fans as to what she was going to do now that she’d met with some success in her creative endeavors. In her talk, which is well worth listening to, she explains a fear that so many writers and creative people have—that either the best of their art is behind them or that they will never reach their full potential.
The pressure to improve, the burden of producing something marketable—these things hold back the artist like a bit restrains a horse. Try to write something beautiful and the dining room table goes empty while estimated retail value determines the speed, direction, and content of dime novels. No money, no bread. But if there isn’t a dollar in art, where does the industry fall? Places like Christian Grey’s apartment, I would assume.
So is there hope for the modern publishing industry? When will excellence win out?
Honestly, I don’t know, but we as both readers and writers have a duty to pursue the unmarketable art. Prose that speaks from the depths of the soul. Quality; not light reads. The involved reading projects, the memoirs and novels and elaborate space operas that maybe no one will ever pick up other than the writer’s girlfriend and his parents.
Gilbert suggests that we channel a creative genius greater than ourselves, and Wilde remarks, “It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors.” Bare your souls, artists, and pen not the shallower mass-produced stock. Instead weave your own story on the page, heeding not the agents and presses and houses and focus groups that expect the same plot canned and recanned in shiny packaging. Dare to write selfishly, for the satisfaction of the artist and not the critic. Slave away years on a single sentence to make it perfect or jot down a novel and keep it that way.
But don’t ever feel that you have to write to please the people. It couldn’t matter less whether they get the bigger picture or not: popularity isn’t the goal. Don’t mimic E. L. James to collect Twitter followers.
You are a writer and an artist, and your job is to make something beautiful.
G.N. Boorse is a writer and blogger currently living in the central part of New Jersey. He recently published his first book, Don’t Touch the Glass, on March 3, 2015. Other works of his have been featured in numerous places online. You can learn more about the author at his website asotherswere.me.
Filed under: Writing Tagged: authors, book reviews, books, Don't Touch The Glass, E. L. James, fiction, G. N. Boorse, Indie Authors, indie publishing, Oscar Wilde, publishing, reviews, The Picture of Dorian Gray, writing
EMPIRE
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
There’s nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
These streets will make you feel brand new,
The lights will inspire you,
Let’s hear it for New York, New York, New York
Alicia Keys, “Empire State Of Mind”
Filed under: Photography Tagged: Alicia Keys, Empire State Building, empires, Freedom Tower, Hudson Bay, Jay Z, lyrics, music, music videos, New York City, NYC, photography, skylines, videos
July 13, 2015
GOTHAM
Reporting live from you know where
Filed under: Photography Tagged: cities, Gotham, New York City, photography
DON’T TOUCH THE GLASS by Author G.N. Boorse – IABS&R Volume IV Book Reveal
Quite the haul from just one visit to my PO Box, wouldn’t you say? Makes me feel like a kid at Christmas…
Well, we kind of kicked off the IABS&R Volume IV with this, so what do you say we go ahead and get this party started?
We’ll start off by revealing DON’T TOUCH THE GLASS by author G.N. Boorse in this post, and then we’ll reveal the other books in the haul at a later date. I will say now, however, that the other books are by author Avril Meyler and you can get a head start as to what to expect from her by checking her site out at multidimensionalreality.wordpress.com.
I was going to publish this book reveal earlier this morning and then publish a guest post by the author later this evening. However, the sons and I decided to make a quick day trip to New York City (jealous, ain’t ya) so I am publishing this from the road and I will publish the guest post tomorrow some time, Inshallah.
Here is a front view of the novel DON’T TOUCH THE GLASS by author G.N. Boorse. It is a very eye appealing, professional-looking cover that is, quite honestly, compelling me to read it.
Visit with Author G.N. Boorse at his website
asotherswere.me
From the back cover of DON’T TOUCH THE GLASS:
A record-breaking mudslide traps seventeen people behind the glass front of a superstore. Food and supplies abound, but they yearn for freedom, debating the risks of smashing the windows and breaking free. The days grind on, and Audrey Frost’s nightmares won’t seem to leave…
Does DON’T TOUCH THE GLASS look rockin’ or what? Yes, indeed it does. The fun and excitement continues so stay tuned for tomorrow’s guest post by Author G.N. Boorse…
And remember, we’ll leave submissions open for this volume for about a month or so, so if you want your book considered while also receiving a reveal treatment such as this, let me know soonest.
Right on?
Write on!
Available at Amazon
Author G. N. Boorse
Filed under: Reviews Tagged: authors, book reviews, books, Don't Touch The Glass, fiction, G. N. Boorse, Indie Authors, literature, photography, publishing, reviews, suspense novels, thrillers, writing
July 12, 2015
Like we Americans do, I tend to assume everyone the world over understands my cultural references…
Yeah, I know, I know…
It drives some of you bonkers when we Americans do that…
Just as I know that, thanks to the long-established American cultural propaganda machines of Hollywood, McDonalds, Levis, and Coca Cola, as well as the newcomers Apple, Facebook, Twitter, and Starbucks, it drives some of you just as bonkers, if not more, that you do understand so many American cultural references.
(Not to mention the madness it causes Canada and Mexico and all the thirty some odd other American countries North and South to know that “America” has come to mean only one country out of all of them.)
Ergo, it is with humility that, in an effort to make amends for my all-too-often ignorant assumptions, I attempt to explain for those of you who aren’t an American “of a certain age” who just don’t get my cultural reference point for these “Ain’t That America…” posts that I’ve been posting lately…
So, it is for all of you who aren’t hip for whatever reason to American culture that I am pleased and proud present John [Cougar] Mellencamp’s wonderful song “Pink Houses”…
Obviously – #freddygray #ferguson #gunviolence #etcetera – there is a lot more to America than just apple pie Americana, all of which, I spend a great deal of time criticizing and complaining about – out of a deep true love, of course – some here but mostly on my @KurtBrindley twitter account.
But a lot of (United States of) America is apple pie Americana and when I find myself out and about and I come across something that makes me shake my head, smile, and say to myself, “Shucks, ain’t that America…,” I am happy to be able to take out my phone, take a photo of it, and share some of that down home American “Pink House” propaganda that I love so much with you all…
The world over…
Peace.
Filed under: Culture Tagged: Ain't That America, Americana, Americanization, culture, Hollywood, John Mellencamp, music, music videos, photography, Pink Houses, propaganda, United States of America
July 11, 2015
Ain’t That America…
Reporting live from Brown's Orchard
Filed under: Photography Tagged: abundance, Ain't That America, Americana, farms, life, living, nature, orchards, photography
July 10, 2015
You As Now
it’s not where you are
it’s why and it’s how you are
it’s the now you are
Filed under: Photography, 俳句 Tagged: awareness, frogs, nature, philosophy, photography, poetry, prosoche, Senryū, spirituality, the art of attention, writing, zen, 俳句
PROSOCHĒ, an Introduction
Inspired by a love of literature in specific and “The Arts” in general, as well as our very own Indie Author Book Selection & Review (IABS&R), it is my pleasure to introduce you to a long in planning yet new venture of mine, a venture of which is in possession of the entrepreneurial name of PROSOCHĒ (pronounced pro-so-hi) as legally registered in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania of the United States of America and which is now open for business to all those of a literary nature world-wide.
In other words, I’ve founded a Literary Consultancy gig and I cordially invite you to consider my services as an option for expanding and enhancing your authorial endeavors.
Admittedly, in its present state the website is rather understated in looks and overstated in words, but it does embody that which I wish to convey and present to the world at this time.
And, as in much if not most of life, it is subject to change.
You can visit the site to learn all about it – like what in the heck does PROSOCHĒ even mean – but here are a couple key points I’d like to highlight for you right now:
– Long term I hope for PROSOCHĒ to be a full-scale Creativity Consultancy firm, catering to all “The Arts.” But as of the moment, it employs just yours truly and I am able to offer Literary Consultancy services in the form of manuscript proofing, editing, and other such things that can be found on the website.
– While I found that manuscript proofing and editing services can run into the thousands of dollars, I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what my services are worth at this time. I do believe I can provide some value, however, as is attested to by the testimonials found on the site, and I do believe it is worth a fee of some sort; but until I figure it all out, I am accepting as a fee whatever it is my select clientele, perhaps you, choose to pay.
I did mention that things are subject to change, right? Well the fee structure certainly will, and I imagine soon, so please keep that in mind if considering the services.
I also mentioned at the beginning of this post that PROSOCHĒ was partially inspired by the IABS&R. That inspiration came not so much from what has been advertised about the IABS&R here or from the reviews I have written in response to the selected texts; the inspiration came from that part of the IABS&R which you probably aren’t aware of, which is an email I send to the IABS&R authors that consist of detailed and expansive feedback of contextual, proofing, and editing recommendations based upon my close reading of the text. I believe these emails have been of more value to the authors than either the exposure they’ve received through this site or the reviews of their work I post here or elsewhere.
So, in addition to a deep understanding of the ins and outs of the world Indie Publishing, that is the crux of what I bring to PROSOCHĒ: my ability to give a manuscript a close read and provide its author a deep and extensive critique of it.
So, please check PROSOCHĒ out if you feel so inclined and just maybe we can work together on a project of yours.
Now, with the advent of PROSOCHĒ, does it mean the end for the IABS&R? The answer is most certainly not. In fact, I am getting ready to kick off Volume IV as I am already in receipt of three books – you’ll be seeing the Book Reveal posts of them very soon so if you’d like your hard copy book to be entered in this volume you better send it to me pronto as my selection will be in a month or so.
As always, there’s a lot going on, of which I am very happy and even more thankful for.
If you have any questions about PROSOCHĒ, please let me know about them by contacting me through the site’s Contact Page.
Thank you and, as always…
Write On!
PROSOCHĒ
Our Mission ◌ Our Services ◌ Our Fees ◯ Our Team ◌ Our Free Initial Consultation ◌ Our Blog
Filed under: Books, Business Tagged: art, authors, books, business, editing, Indie Authors, indie publishing, literary consulting, literature, music, P R O S O C H Ē, publishing, writing
July 9, 2015
PROSOCHĒ, an Introduction
Inspired by a love of literature in specific and “The Arts” in general, as well as our very own Indie Author Book Selection & Review (IABS&R), it is my pleasure to introduce you to a long in planning yet new venture of mine, a venture of which is in possession of the entrepreneurial name of P R O S O C H Ē (pronounced pro-so-hi) as legally registered in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania of the United States of America and which is now open for business to all those of a literary nature world-wide.
In other words, I’ve founded a Literary Consultancy gig and I cordially invite you to consider my services as an option for expanding and enhancing your authorial endeavors.
Admittedly, in its present state the website is rather understated in looks and overstated in words, but it does embody that which I wish to convey and present to the world at this time.
And, as in much if not most of life, it is subject to change.
You can visit the site to learn all about it – like what in the heck does P R O S O C H Ē even mean – but here are a couple key points I’d like to highlight for you right now:
– Long term I hope for P R O S O C H Ē to be a full-scale Creativity Consultancy firm, catering to all “The Arts.” But as of the moment, it employs just yours truly and I am able to offer Literary Consultancy services in the form of manuscript proofing, editing, and other such things that can be found on the website.
– While I found that manuscript proofing and editing services can run into the thousands of dollars, I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what my services are worth at this time. I do believe I can provide some value, however, as is attested to by the testimonials found on the site, and I do believe it is worth a fee of some sort; but until I figure it all out, I am accepting as a fee whatever it is my select clientele, perhaps you, choose to pay.
I did mention that things are subject to change, right? Well the fee structure certainly will, and I imagine soon, so please keep that in mind if considering the services.
I also mentioned at the beginning of this post that P R O S O C H Ē was partially inspired by the IABS&R. That inspiration came not so much from what has been advertised about the IABS&R here or from the reviews I have written in response to the selected texts; the inspiration came from that part of the IABS&R which you probably aren’t aware of, which is an email I send to the IABS&R authors that consist of detailed and expansive feedback of contextual, proofing, and editing recommendations based upon my close reading of the text. I believe these emails have been of more value to the authors than either the exposure they’ve received through this site or the reviews of their work I post here or elsewhere.
So, in addition to a deep understanding of the ins and outs of the world Indie Publishing, that is the crux of what I bring to P R O S O C H Ē: my ability to give a manuscript a close read and provide its author a deep and extensive critique of it.
So, please check P R O S O C H Ē out if you feel so inclined and just maybe we can work together on a project of yours.
Now, with the advent of P R O S O C H Ē, does it mean the end for the IABS&R? The answer is most certainly not. In fact, I am getting ready to kick off Volume IV as I am already in receipt of three books – you’ll be seeing the Book Reveal posts of them very soon so if you’d like your hard copy book to be entered in this volume you better send it to me pronto as my selection will be in a month or so.
As always, there’s a lot going on, of which I am very happy and even more thankful for.
If you have any questions about P R O S O C H Ē, please let me know about them by contacting me through the site’s Contact Page.
Thank you and, as always…
Write On!
P R O S O C H Ē
Our Mission ◌ Our Services ◌ Our Fees ◯ Our Team ◌ Our Free Initial Consultation ◌ Our Blog
Filed under: Books, Business Tagged: art, authors, books, business, editing, Indie Authors, indie publishing, literary consulting, literature, music, P R O S O C H Ē, publishing, writing
