Monday, March 06, 2006
New format
So I got tired of the old look: all that black and also those pictures. I figured I needed to get things simpler here. Now I like this setting but it looks weird that the title is "Non Photo Blue" but it's in an orange background. Crazy. But this type is bigger and I think better to read which is important, don't want anyone going blind out there.
As for me, I did spend Friday morning with Tony Giardina. We had some nice conversation about Italy and writing and things like that. His new book, White Guys will be coming out in a few months.
I've been waking up now and then in the mornings thinking about how I'm going to teach fiction next year. I have so many ideas that I fear I'll get confused.
First, I don't think I'll have them write stories, at least not at first. I'd rather they stick to moments or scenes. I'd like to avoid the desire to write some complete circle and rather just focus on what happens with two people in a room, and some simple actions to break up dialogue.
I've also been thinking a lot about the "mystery" of writing vs craft. I think both parts need to be addressed. I'd like to go over specific text to see how it works, hands on, like taking apart an engine to see how that works. All us MFas were just discussing recently how we wish we had a class like that, just dedicated to craft issues. Unfortunately, it doesn't exist.
But I also believe in prewriting. I have written scene break downs that I learned as preps for my acting class. Also I did 5 page character analysises for an a different acting class which was helpful too. I try to spend time writing about my characters in their voice, but not writing the actual fiction. Like expository writing, where I sort of interview them and see where it goes. This is the more mysterious part to me, because I just write this stuff, read it over, think a little, then go back into the story, and bam, suddenly the characters have a little more depth. It's not as though I'm writing from a blue print--yeah, here's this character and here's his past, so how will it work in a story? But somehow it works.
Though I don't know because I don't write much pure "fiction."
I also have a page of quotes and a bunch of excerpts from novels that I'll probably share on the first day of class. I can't wait, really, I'm sick of 39C and I'm dreading having to start it over again in a few weeks with a new class.
There's a movie version of John Fante's Ask The Dust coming out in a few days, with Salma Hayek and Colin Farrell. Link. I can't picture Farrell as Arturo Bandini. I just know they're going to fuck it all up. But I'll go see it anyway.
As for me, I did spend Friday morning with Tony Giardina. We had some nice conversation about Italy and writing and things like that. His new book, White Guys will be coming out in a few months.
I've been waking up now and then in the mornings thinking about how I'm going to teach fiction next year. I have so many ideas that I fear I'll get confused.
First, I don't think I'll have them write stories, at least not at first. I'd rather they stick to moments or scenes. I'd like to avoid the desire to write some complete circle and rather just focus on what happens with two people in a room, and some simple actions to break up dialogue.
I've also been thinking a lot about the "mystery" of writing vs craft. I think both parts need to be addressed. I'd like to go over specific text to see how it works, hands on, like taking apart an engine to see how that works. All us MFas were just discussing recently how we wish we had a class like that, just dedicated to craft issues. Unfortunately, it doesn't exist.
But I also believe in prewriting. I have written scene break downs that I learned as preps for my acting class. Also I did 5 page character analysises for an a different acting class which was helpful too. I try to spend time writing about my characters in their voice, but not writing the actual fiction. Like expository writing, where I sort of interview them and see where it goes. This is the more mysterious part to me, because I just write this stuff, read it over, think a little, then go back into the story, and bam, suddenly the characters have a little more depth. It's not as though I'm writing from a blue print--yeah, here's this character and here's his past, so how will it work in a story? But somehow it works.
Though I don't know because I don't write much pure "fiction."
I also have a page of quotes and a bunch of excerpts from novels that I'll probably share on the first day of class. I can't wait, really, I'm sick of 39C and I'm dreading having to start it over again in a few weeks with a new class.
There's a movie version of John Fante's Ask The Dust coming out in a few days, with Salma Hayek and Colin Farrell. Link. I can't picture Farrell as Arturo Bandini. I just know they're going to fuck it all up. But I'll go see it anyway.
