mush

I am a brain dead lump right now. I am overly tired and physically weak. My concentration is non-existent and the idea of trying to flesh out any of my works in progress is making me want to cry. I think part of this is the grief, I feel kind of mentally blocked at the moment. Hopefully this is a temporary condition because I'm not feeling alive and complete if I cannot bring myself to write something. Signing off

polyester

object writing exercise from 22 june 2006, 7:30 am

It's hot! How in the world did they convince me that THIS was what I needed to wear? I could feel the faux silkiness of the fabric already sticking to my sweat-slick skin. Oh man... not the spotlight. Dear God this is the worst outfit ever! I can't even breathe in this. Sure on the hanger it looked beautiful. The shimmering irredescence under a cheap flourescent bulb was sure to look rock star-ish under bright stage lights. Unfortunately, I forgot to take into account that my body would ultimately suffer the consequences. Although smooth to the touch, heat and sweat add a smothering quality to polyester. I felt as though the shirt was attackig me as it's sinister fingers, disguised as a collar, crept around my neck to choke the life out of me. So very unfair. Hit the wind machine already. The cool breeze could place me on an island oasis shrouded in linen and take me from this inferno in my polyester prison. Someone, please, save me!!

object writing

In an attempt to improve my writing skills, I have decided to read Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison. This is a wonderful development resource. It is filled with exercises and examples that make you think on a deeper level. You are challenged to use 7 senses, not just the basic 5.

The first practice mentioned in the book is object writing. Pick any object and write about it, for 10 minutes when you first wake up. The point is to "treat the object as a diving board to launch you inward to the vaults of your senses" (p.2) When you are finished you are to go through and see what senses you managed to touch on in your writing. It is more challenging than it may seem at first. I chose to write about my alarm clock in my first exercise and although I was able to make a statement, there was not much depth to it, because I only touched on two of the senses, hearing and kinesthetic.

I want the works I create to have meaning and put the reader in touch with something within themselves. I hope to evoke a private emotion or take them on a trip down memory lane that stirs them in a way that makes them want to experience that moment over and over again. That is why I like the writers, whether novelists or songwriters, that I do. I am not just reading or listening to a song, I am experiencing the world that their words have created.

In any case, I will post some of my early morning object writing entries here to gauge my progress. (Hopefully there will be growth!)