Uvi’s Comments (group member since Apr 09, 2012)

Uvi’s comments from the The Creative Spark with Uvi Poznansky group.

It's a good thing you're reading such dark literature, because then, when you start reading Apart From Love it will seem one shade lighter... ;)

I am not familiar with The Grand Failure, but remember vividly certain passages in Tolstoy's book, The Death of Ivan Ilych. It is quite a journey the protagonist takes until he draws his last breath.

So here it is, as promised:

Some subjects leave such an impression in my mind that words are not enough. Such was the case with the human disaster that came about at the heels of hurricane Katrina, which formed on August 23 during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, and caused devastation along much of the north-central Gulf Coast.

This is a big canvas, 36x60. When it is hung on the wall, you are face to face with...
To read more, click the link
http://uviart.blogspot.com/2012/05/wh...

Morning Angela, your note is so refreshing to read this morning. Talking about the devastation of Katrina, I have painted a large oil painting after the disaster, named Katrina. I will post it for you sometime today in my blog, and let you know right here about it, because it may touch you directly.

I truly enjoy the conversation too.

Angela wrote: "I've been enjoying your art work and sculptures periodically throughout the day, because they are very soothing yet complex. I'm going to re-post your blogspot again on my FB page so that more peop..."

Bless you Angela!

Hi Angela, New Orleans girl! Great to see you here! It'll be so rewarding to discuss the book with you. Meanwhile have a great week yourself!
Uvi

Michelle wrote: "It definitely has a rhythm to it that reveals poetic prose.
I have marked your novel as to read. I'm looking forward to checking it out.

Last night I finished reading Michelle Bellon's book and posted a review on Goodreads. Let me first explain the initial burst of interest I found in the title, Embracing You, Embracing Me --before I even knew what it was about. I was intrigued by an apparent similarity between this title and an idea I explored, with great curiosity, in my book Apart From Love. And this is it: The new lover embraces his partner, who in turn embraces the shadow of his love for someone who can no longer be here. In the words of Anita, the female protagonist in my story:

"So I take a step closer to Lenny, and this time I don’t allow myself to be stopped—not by him, not by that shadow, and not by nothing else I’ve seen in my head, just now. And I brush my lips over his hair, and spread my arms real wide, hugging her hugging him."

To read my review click here
http://uviart.blogspot.com/2012/05/re...

My first encounter with Alzheimer's was through the phone--I would talk to my father, who up until a year before his passing at the age of 94, was bright and coherent. That year I found myself having to repeat, "It's me dad, it's your daughter.'

That, and a visit here in LA to a 'home' for elderly people where I met several people inflicted with the disease, drove me to research it in more depth.

I asked myself: What if my character, Natasha, had it for several years and nobody recognized it, because she was still in the prime of her life and the height of her career? How would she absorb that moment of recognition? In the memory of her son Ben, how far back could he go and still discover--to his surprise--that she was already suffering from it? How does he face his own denial, his dream to 'save' his mother and take her away from the 'home' where she now lives? What impact would her descent have on a family already laden with conflicts?

I can't even begin to imagine how you fought your way to survival, Christine. I have not asked so far, because I don't want to pry, you understand. That said, I'm so glad you chose to share your experience with me, and appreciate how difficult that may be for you. I think this is rewarding to us both.

What I want to know is how did these difficulties shape you as a person. I could see clearly that they gave you a calling in life. They must then continue, even now, to affect what you choose to read, and what characters you feel close to.

We all have challenges, we all stumble through the trials of life. This is something I like to explore in my writing. I do a lot of research on every aspect of my character's life. One of the characters, Natasha, is on a rocky descent into the depth of her Alzheimer. I treat her journey with the utmost sensitivity. Another one, Anita, is a survivor of child abuse at the hands of her mother's boyfriend. This has shaped her view that Love is a diluted word: "Why, why can’t you say nothing? Say any word—but that one, ‘cause you don’t really mean it. Nobody does. Say anything, apart from Love."

(btw if you wish, I could point you to some of the entries in my blog which highlight some of the characters in the book. You might find an affinity with them.)

NYKen wrote: "Hi Uvi. I am Ken, and I have a journal that I've been writing on a regular basis for the last two decades."

Hi Ken, here is a short segment, not of my memoirs, but of a biography this time. A few years back I started writing a biography, which I am yet to complete: my father's life. The starting point was this moment, when the old man, who was an author, poet and artist in the prime of his life, nods to sleep, propped by pillows on his armchair:

"Here is the place – he can bring it back – his first home.
Straight ahead is the door with a big handle high above. He can easily reach it, standing on the tips of his toes and pushing, pushing forward. It opens! Here is the room, which he shares with his sister, Batia. He is three yours old; she is five. And somehow he knows: she will come in later, much later. He can climb into bed now. Sleep is coming; he can feel it. Sleep is almost here...

To read more click the link:
http://uviart.blogspot.com/2012/05/fu...

Boy, you are a fast reader Dave! Thank you for the review, it was beautifully written. Now that you've read Apart From Love I would be glad to answer any questions you might have.

Hi Murdo, glad you read the blog entry. I find that the workflow of converting to the various ebook formats--which one to do first? kindle, nook or ipad--is also important.

I found doing the first conversion for ipad makes the other two almost trivial. This is because there are stricter instructions for the epub file for ipad, in terms of fonts and use of templates for the word or pages document. Following these instructions greatly enhances the appearance of your document on the reading tablet.

Many of my writing friends, who are curious to know how I accomplished the conversion of Apart From Love from book to ebook, ask me to explain, in excruciating detail, how to do it. My best advice to you, having gone through the process, is not to rush things, or you will create a mess...
To read more, click the link
http://uviart.blogspot.com/2012/05/co...

Here, here!

Thank you Dave!

So glad! I must share. The first UK review of my book appeared minutes ago on Amazon! A. Rose, a Top Amazon Reviewer (ranks #118 in the UK) writes:

"Uvi Poznasky is a very talented lady, not only is she a very accomplished writer, she is a poet, sculptor, artist, teacher and much more. The beautiful cover of the book is of one of her works of art and after visiting her website I see that she is indeed gifted and worth taking a look at uviart.com . This is a beautiful and sophisticated novel of love, loss and torture and well worth reading."

To read more, click the link
http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-revie...

Hi Murdo, welcome to the group. I love the way you invite your readers to discover, along with your characters, that even in the winter of wartime flowers may yet bloom. Three of my characters come from that era.

I invite you to engage in the conversation here, about writing, creativity, learning about my book,
Apart From Love, and drawing comparisons to your own writing method.

As an exercise, try stepping into his shoes and speaking in his voice, in first-person narrative.

So now, lets say he's describing a dialog he's taken part in. (I know you have an ear for dialog.) He may quote the other person with great accuracy, but would interpret what he hears from his point of view, to the point of misinterpreting, at times.

Get into his point of view. What is his past history? How did he get to become what he is at this moment?

Soon enough, your character will take over. He will start chatting in your mind faster than your can write him!

Hi Christine, I thought about your question once again, and would like to describe my writing in more detail, beyond the genre definition.

Apart From Love is an intimate peek into the life of a uniquely strange family: Natasha, the accomplished pianist, has been stricken with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Her ex-husband Lenny has never told their son Ben, who left home ten years ago, about her situation. At the same time Lenny has been carrying on a love affair with a young redhead, who bears a striking physical resemblance to his wife, but unlike her, is uneducated, direct and unrefined. Being a survivor of child abuse at the hands of her mother's boyfriend, Anita is a resilient and vivacious young woman.

This is how things stand at this moment, the moment of Ben’s return to his childhood home, and to a contentious relationship with his father.

And so he finds himself standing there, on the threshold of where he grew up, feeling utterly awkward. He knocks, and a stranger opens the door. The first thing that comes to mind: what is she doing here? The second thing: she is young, much too young for his father. The third: her hair. Red.

Hi NYKen, welcome back!

Indeed, conflict is the engine of a story. You remembered quite accurately the opening line from Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy: "Happy Families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." What a great beginning! How true it is! And by a strange twist, the more specifically you define your particular family, the more deeply you touch your reader (in your case, your children.) I am so glad I gave you the urge to write. You have a lot to give!