Volume IIII, Issue 41 October 12, 2015 Word of the Week: character Dear ,
Four longtime friends and I had a great day last week in "Mayberry"—AKA the charming town of Mount Airy, North Carolina. Here
we are getting ready to embark on a squad car ride to take in all the sights. Our "sheriff" wasn't Andy Griffith, but he told us a lot about Andy's boyhood.
We ate at Snappy Lunch, mentioned in one of the first Andy Griffith shows. And we met Andy's real-life barber, on whom the character of Floyd is based. According to the
"sheriff," he's a real character. He sure enjoyed posing with us ladies!
I confess to going on a YouTube Andy Griffith Show blitz when I got home, starting with the pilot, which actually ran on Danny Thomas's Make Room for Daddy TV show.
Andy, Opie, Aunt Bee, and, of course, Barney Fife, are characters that became
mainstays of American TV for many years. We felt as if we knew them personally. Why? Because they were well-drawn. Yes, there was a lot of comedy, especially in Barney's case. But there was much more to them—mind, heart, body, and spirit.
I am a person who loves people, and good characterization is what draws
me to a story and keeps me reading. So it's no wonder I was crazy about author Rachel Joyce's companion books The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and The Love Story of Miss Queenie Hennessy.
These two books are a fascinating study in character, as each of the main characters is
experienced by the reader through his/her own and each other’s viewpoint, sometimes even in the same scene, told first by Harold in his book, and then by Queenie in hers.
I've excerpted a small sample below. And if you want to know more about them, along with two links to author Rachel Joyce's
discussing the writing of them, visit this new page my website where I look forward to sharing books recommended by readers like you. (Or maybe even by you, ). Email us at info@wordplaynow.com if you have a book you are truly passionate about sharing with others.
May you find great joy in bringing characters, real and/or imaginary, to life in your writing! Love and light, Upcoming WordPlay
PROJECT BOOK: GET YOUR BOOK OUT OF YOU AND INTO THE
WORLD
(Writing/Publishing Your Book-length Writing Project) A hands-on workshop for any writer who would like to write and/or publish a book and
1) doesn’t know how
2) doesn’t get around to
it
3) feels
a) intimidated
b) confused
c) overwhelmed
d) uninspired
e) all of the above
You’ll gain clarity, confidence, direction, momentum, and working knowledge of the steps you need to take and the procedures and pieces that are necessary (overview, synopsis, outline, and all that jazz), as well as an introduction to today’s publishing world (major publishers,
university presses, small presses, self-publishing, e-publishing, and print-on-demand). We'll talk about marketing, too, whether you're an introvert, extrovert, or ambivert. $418 (plus tax) includes retreat, lodging, two breakfasts and Saturday lunch.
WHERE: The Sunset Inn, 9 North Shore Dr., Sunset Beach, NC 28468
WHEN: Friday, November 13 – Sunday, November 15, 2015* TO REGISTER: Contact the Sunset Inn at 888.575.1001 or 910.575.1000 (if you would like to handpick your room, view your choices here first, then call). Because the Inn is holding rooms for you, our participants,
they are blocked off as unavailable online.
Find out more here.
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(Writing as Renewal/Creating New Writing/
Tools for a
Writing Life) Renew and delight yourself. The Winter Writing Retreat is an opportunity to create new pieces of writing and/or new possibilities for our lives. Enjoy various seasonal prompts; they elicit beautiful material that can be shaped into essays, poems, stories, or articles. After a communal lunch, you’ll have private time which can be used to
collage, work with a piece of writing from the morning, or play with a number of other writing prompts and methods. You’ll take home new ideas, new drafts, and new possibilities. $97 includes lunch and supplies.
WHERE: South Charlotte area. Details will be provided upon registration.
WHEN: Saturday,
December 19th, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
TO REGISTER: To pay with a check via mail , email info@wordplaynow.com for instructions. To pay online with your credit card or PayPal, click here.
More WordPlay opportunities here. WordPlay Featured Writing
an excerpt from
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy
by Rachel Joyce
St Bernadine’s Hospice
Berwick-upon-Tweed
13 April
Long ago, Harold, you said to me: ‘There are so many things we don’t
see.’ What do you mean? I asked. My heart gave a flip. ‘Things that are right in front of us,’ you said.
We were in your car. You were driving, as you always did, and I was in the passenger seat. Night was falling, I remember that, so we must have been on our way back to the brewery. In the distance, streetlamps sprinkled the blue velvet skirts of Dartmoor, and the moon was a faint chalk
smudge.
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell the truth. I couldn’t bear it any longer. Pull over, I almost shouted. Listen to me, Harold Fry - You pointed ahead with your driving glove. ‘You see? How many times have we come this way? And I’ve never noticed that.’ I looked where you were indicating, and
you laughed. ‘Funny, Queenie, how we miss so much.’
While I was on the edge of a full confession, you were admiring a roof extension. I unclipped my bag. I took out a handkerchief.
‘Do you have a cold?’ said you.
‘Do you want a mint?’ said I.
Once again, the moment had passed. Once again, I had not told you. We drove on.
This is my second letter to you, Harold, and this time it will be different. No lies. I will confess everything, because you were right that day. There were so many
things you didn’t see. There are so many things you still don’t know. My secrets have been inside me for twenty years, and I must let them go before it is too late. I will tell you everything, and the rest will be silence.
Outside I see the battlements of Berwick-upon-Tweed. A blue thread of the North Sea crosses the horizon. The tree at my window is pointed with pale new buds that glow in the
dusk.
Let us go then, you and I.
We don’t have long.
This excerpt and more about Rachel Joyce can be found online here.
WordPlay Now! Writing
Prompt This is WordPlay -- so why not revel in the power and potential of one good word after another? This week, it's "character."
PROMPT:
How well do you know the people you are writing about, whether they are real or fictional? You can find out by exploring this character development tool: http://www.eclectics.com/articles/character.html (Print only for your personal use.) While every aspect of this very thorough tool won't apply to every tool, it's a wonderful way to get in touch with your characters' minds, hearts, bodies, and souls.
You're sure to get ideas for scenes/stories as you fill it out.
MAUREEN RYAN GRIFFIN, an award-winning poetry and nonfiction writer, is the author of Spinning Words into Gold, a Hands-On Guide to the Craft of Writing, a grief workbook entitled I Will Never Forget You, and two collections of poetry, This Scatter of Blossoms and When the Leaves Are in the Water. She believes, as author Julia Cameron says, "We are meant to midwife dreams for one another."
Maureen also believes that serious "word
work" requires serious WordPlay, as play is how we humans best learn—and perform. What she loves best is witnessing all the other dreams that come true for her clients along the way. Language, when used with intentionality and focus, is, after all, serious fuel for joy. Here's to yours! |
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