Oh dear, I can't stop writing in blank verse

Fantastique Unfettered is still open to submissions for its Shakespeare Unfettered issue. I wanted to submit a story I wrote, but its far too short (I have unintentionally written my first ever piece of flash fiction.)

by Schnellart @ dA

I've written a piece about Ophelia, under water. I read and re-read the scene where Gertrude tells Laertes how his sister died, and tried to use similar images, and even mention plants that Gertrude talks about. Then, when I'd written a first draft, I thought about making it a real challenge to myself...so I re-wrote it in blank verse.


Good grief, I had no idea how much it would mess with my head! I don't know how Shakespeare could have held a normal conversation after a long stint writing - my brain was translating everything, and all I could hear was the iambic pentameter rhythm pounding in my head. I've experienced this before after reading Shakespeare, but I had no idea writing in blank verse would do the same thing; I thought my head would be pleased to be shot of it! Isn't it described as the rhythm most suited to the English language? Something like that - maybe that's why my brain couldn't let go. 


I would even recommend it - it was a fun sort of challenge, after all, how often can we say we've tried to write like Shakespeare? And if anyone submits a piece I would love to hear about it, or about anything Shakespeare-related that inspires/amuses/means something to you...

Never trust a talking tree

I've just noticed that a whole load of posts I'd written and scheduled to go live have somehow vanished from Blogger, which means that I am once again behind on posting (pretty ironic considering my recent warning about how much I have to talk about, haha!) 


I think there's a lesson here about backing up my work. Alternatively, there's one about making the best out of a bad situation. Despite feeling completely ineloquent and harried right now, I'd like to apologetically go for the second option and share something positive that came out of my day: I came across a beautiful picture that shocked me, because it perfectly encapsulates a story I'm working on:

by jerry8448 @ dA

(My tree even offers a girl a flower...) I would encourage everyone to explore jerry's gallery on deviantART, the scenes he creates are magical, and the attention to nature's details is wonderful.


I think lots of people are inspired by pictures or other creative media. Personally I find them most helpful for describing landscapes or buildings, but they inspire me most when I come across something that conveys a mood or feeling very strongly. My starting point for writing is often a feeling which is then attached to a situation or character, rather than a character, place or situation that I then have to find feelings for (if that makes sense).

I recognise that this often causes problems because my plots don't move at a decent pace, or my characters don't develop enough - I just get so caught up in the feeling! But I suppose, in the end, it doesn't matter where inspiration comes from as long as everything else fits together and works well, and the end result is a good story.


But this picture could be the find of a lifetime - like he was illustrating my thoughts...

Break, break, break

Break, Break, Break 

Break, break, break,       
On thy cold gray stones, O Sea!
And I would that my tongue could utter         
The thoughts that arise in me. 

-Alfred, Lord Tennyson 

When I first moved to Brighton two summers ago I spent so much time by the sea. I felt so free and relaxed listening to the waves, and it seemed like my best creative ideas popped into my head when I was in the water.  Perhaps it was inspired by change, but I also think that the raw power of nature played a part. Recently, it has been green spaces that draw inspiration from me; parks, gardens, forests...earth instead of water. 


I want to spend more time outdoors, now. I have been reading stories that draw so much inspiration and feeling from the landscapes in which they are set, where characters live and breathe their surroundings, and I've missed having that connection. It makes me feel alive; and reading it in books makes the characters and the stories come to life (and, frustratingly, they feel like they are living more than me, sitting with a book curled up on the sofa with a cup of coffee!)


A few examples off the top of my head of some books that I think do this more than others:

• Wide Sargasso Sea - Jean Rhys (various Caribbean locations)
• Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte (Yorkshire Moors)
• When God Was a Rabbit - Sarah Winman (Cornwall)
• The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy (Kerala, Southern India)

Birdy @ The Hurly Burly

Birdy

The Hurly Burly, 25/5/12, Brighton Fringe Festival

Photo from here

It occurred to us that the entire Brighton Festival and Festival Fringe had passed without us really noticing. Determined to enjoy something on offer with only 3 days remaining, we discovered Birdy. It is described as a 'fizzling, dark fairytale...with live music and physical mayhem,' on the festival website...and it truly is a fantastic and hilarious twist on the classic fairy tale that I would highly recommend! Click below for a synopsis and review...

New home

Apologies for my absence - I have recently relocated and I am without Internet. Which, of course, has made me come to realise how much I rely on it. I don't think I could find a library catalogue in a library, let alone use one; I wouldn't know how to access newspaper archives; I don't think I'd even have the strength to pick up an Encyclopaedia...Internet has been a blessing and a curse!


It's the little things that bother me, because I'm perfectly happy to let my email inbox stagnate, and I don't care about catching up on the TV programmes I've missed. 


I hate not being able to use a search engine to find out that random bit of information that I just can't quite remember. An actor's name, where Budapest is, where my nearest post box is...things that don't require a trip to the library, but which will absolutely do my head in if I don't find out the answers straight away!


So, if I never do return to blogging, assume I have been driven crazy from not being able to find out how many kilometres are in a mile. Or something like that.

Genre boundaries

I came across a new genre definition the other day - 'hysterical realism'. I was doing a bit of research into The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, and I was surprised to find this genre pop up when I had been expecting to see 'magical realism' mentioned. I had read the novel thinking about how it related to the magical realism genre, and I started to wonder, 'have I read it wrong? Should I read it again and re-evaluate?' (and then, of course, 'but I won't have time before we look at it at uni next week!')


We've been looking at genre more broadly in relation to horror films as well, and one of the questions that has arisen is whether or not genre is of any use as a tool for analysis. Boundaries are constantly being blurred; for example, horror films incorporate the gothic, thriller, murder mystery, some romance...I've even heard the word 'goreno' mentioned....


We have 'genre fiction', which isn't considered especially literary. But then works considered highly literary contain elements of genre fiction. I would argue that a great literary work like Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children is a work of magical realism, which I believe contains elements of fantasy. And the list could go on, along with the arguments.


I used to tell myself, 'I want to write a novel in X genre because it is better, and I won't touch X genre with a ten foot barge pole.' But classification is messy, and boundaries become blurred, and some of the best works aren't afraid to mix it up a bit.
We all interpret stories differently. Actually, we all interpret all sorts of things differently, so the idea of a one-size-fits-all classification system seems frankly laughable. Sure, it may help when used as guidance rather than rule, but I think if you have a story that you want to tell, just tell it without worrying about sticking to particular genre conventions. Sticking to convention means you're not offering anything new, and your story will have been heard a thousand times before. Conversely, if you end up with a story that has been heard a thousand times before, maybe then look at different genres to add a bit of spice and sparkle...


My attitude towards genre as a writer is different to when I'm considering it from the reader perspective, and I imagine that could be true more broadly. But I stand by the belief that anything can be used to your advantage if you approach it with the right attitude!

An accidental pilgrimage

Somehow, whilst on my cycling journey, I made accidental pilgrimages to two places that captured the heart of my inner child; the Alice Liddell memorial in Lyndhurst, and various tributes to the Famous Five at Corfe Castle. 


For those who don't know, Alice Liddell was the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's Alice in her adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. And the Famous Five are...well, how to put them into words? They are Enid Blyton's most masterful creation in my opinion, and I feel sure that before Harry Potter came along, no series of books had captured the imagination of so many children quite like this. (That being said, I don't know how famous they are outside of England...)


I wrote before about how good the journey felt for my soul, and this is one of the main reasons why...


Pictures and more explanations below: