Metaphor and Motion

 
Last night the sound of one pet or another woke me with the thought that the character in my work-in-progress sees the world in metaphor. At the moment this seemed revelatory, as such broken-sleep thoughts can sound. But this morning I’m unimpressed with my night mind. What metaphors, I want to know. Can you give me even one example?

Nope.

So, onto work with morning mind, but I’ve come to think there was a bit of a message there. I’ve been working on a series of poems and in this early-ish draft there’s a lot of chronology to work out. Who’s doing what when, and how do I make this clear without too many words. I have some images I’m working through, but my focus is on the forward motion, nudging readers from one page to the next.


Today I’m taking my night thought as a message to open some metaphors, the way you can unfold a paper swan. This will bring a pause in the action, but it’s time to figure out where I can slow things down with a glimpse inside paper wings, a more lingering look at a long neck and dangly feet. There has to be a need to turn the page, or at least move down it, but also something that makes us want to enjoy a wee bit of contemplation, to leave the page feeling the way I did this morning: what might that stray night-thought mean? If anything at all?

If you’re not in the mood to make metaphors, but want to be creative, here’s a video about how to make an origami paper swan. Maybe I’ll recycle some failed drafts.