The Spice of Life

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine


This weekend, a friend shared his childhood memories of the "family movie night" that was a weekly ritual in his home.  Each member of the family got to take turns picking the flick of the week at Blockbuster.  As you can predict, the kids always picked out movies geared toward children, while the adults chose more sufferable fare.

For every Ninja Turtles movie they watched, my friend's dad had them sit down to a classic like On the Waterfront. Or A Streetcar Named Desire. One week it was even Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. (Don't worry, grade school exposure to these mature themes didn't scar the young boy for life; in fact, he went on to become a youth pastor).

It harkened me back to thoughts of my youth, which included a lavish movie house with a balcony, curtains that opened and closed, and where you could buy expensive souvenir programs for the epics being shown. I think even more than the movies themselves, my parents enjoyed introducing their children to edifying entertainment.  So I too grew up on a well-balanced diet of comedies, dramas, romances, musicals, as well a couple of movies my parents made us walk out on.

Looking back, I'm especially grateful for this early education, which gives me a pretty good understanding today of the elements that go into a comedy, a drama, a romance, a musical, not to mention movies my parents would still walk out on. And no doubt you can say the same. While we may have a favorite genre of movie—let's say spy thriller—that doesn't keep us from attending the occasional romantic comedy that catches our interest.

Which brings me to this question: Do you read more than one genre?

Variety is a good thing, for storytelling and for painting

Do you always read the same genre, or do you mix that up too? Granted, committing to an entire novel requires a greater time investment than a two-hour movie (unless you're Susan Reichert, who can read a book a night).

Just as we moviegoers have cut our storytelling teeth by watching a variety of film genres, veering from our usual reading course and picking up an author who writes the kind of tale we're unfamiliar with could introduce us to other ways of telling a story. The intricacies specific to another genre could be eye-opening.  They could help add a new dimension to the genre we normally write in.

Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Mary Schmich said, "Good art is art that allows you to enter it from a variety of angles and to emerge with a variety of views."  I look forward to adding a little more variety to my library, and I hope new ideas will emerge for you too.

For now, I can't let a mention of Mary Schmich go by without sharing one of her greatest achievements, a laundry list of advice that director Baz Luhrmann turned into a music video.  It could change your life.  I at least guarantee it will change the next five minutes of your life.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI

Get Lost ... in Your Writing

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

In the March/April issue of Southern Writers, our popular feature "Magnolia Corner" asks the question:

Who do you trust to read your first draft?

The answers we received from Karen White, Cindy Woodsmall, Marji Laine, Joy Ross Davis, Randy Ingermanson, Stephanie Bennett, Bryan E. Powell, Hope Denney, E.E. Kennedy and Connie Chastain are as diverse as the genres they write in.

One thing they have in common is a degree of bravery.  It takes some fortitude to fork over your hard-fought words for their first reading.

An even more important trait they share is that of choosing those readers with care.  By making a discriminating selection, they are assured of getting constructive feedback which will be valuable for their first rewrite.

Getting to the end of a first draft is usually a mix of satisfying and scary, excitement and dread.  But your book has made it to the page from start to finish, and hopefully the rewrite can be met with the same enthusiasm.

But what if you're having trouble even getting to the end of the first draft?

The reasons are multitudinous, and here are some of the more common culprits:

• The story stalls midway through
• It's not as easy as you hoped
• It's not as perfect as you envisioned
• You gave someone a sneak peek and lost that initial spark
• You gave someone a sneak peek and let a discouraging word sink in
• You're self-editing and stifling your creativity

Even the most experienced authors can become their own worst enemy midway through the first draft by listening to the negative voices of self-judgment.

That's when many authors find it helpful to try to separate themselves from their writing.  Often, this is attempted by putting the project aside indefinitely (not the recommended choice, because it may never get returned to).  A more advisable method is to become the conduit, rather than the creator.

Steven Pressfield, the author of The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles, is a champion of learning to listening to inspiration.  He writes:

“This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.”

Remind me to look up "accrete".

Zen masters go on long journeys to find themselves.  In truth, they are really attempting to lose themselves.  Achieving the elevated state some call "no mind" may not sound easy to do when you're living with yourself 24/7, but in the creative arts it's well worth the effort (or better yet, just try letting go and not trying so hard).

By emptying yourself of the critical you, you make room for the inspiration and motivation that's trying to get back in.

When your creativity gets stuck, step outside yourself and stop, look and listen for what's just beyond you.  If you're lucky you'll get completely lost, and your story will bring you home.