Intriguingly, the “Printer Richardson” exploited his tools of font, type, symbol, and punctuation to mimic the actual physical form of the letters, deepening the experience of the epistolary form. According to Ian Gadd of the Ambient Literature Project (which supplied these pictures of the text), Richardson claimed, “I seldom read but as a Printer.” This is
My sister Jo and I had academic parents, and we grew up in college towns in Virginia. She now lives in Richmond, Virginia. Last year we realized we hadn’t laid eyes on each other for two years. We decided we’d do a sister trip every year in June. This year, we drove about an hour west
June in the Shenandoah Valley! Read More »
I’m constantly researching medical history these days. No, I’m not heading for med school. I’m just writing a series of romantic mysteries set in the Regency era (early 19th C). One of the main characters is Dr. Holt, a former ship’s surgeon, a current consulting physician, and now a forensic detective. He and Lady Danford
Body Snatchers and Resurrectionists: A 19th C Necessary Evil? Read More »
Originally posted March 2021 [Fatigue was my grade two (moderate) reaction symptom from shot number one. The husband and I both found ourselves taking a lot of naps—although that could also be a symptom of general SARS-CoV2 pandemic malaise. Or that we just like to take naps.] Hmmmmmmm. What do I write about today? Automatic
For Brutus Is an Honorable Man (Repeat 3 Times) Last week we looked at the response of Mark Antony to Caesar’s assassination, and how his central grace and failing –his ability to love—led him to act with trickery and self-abnegation to achieve vengeance. Even in his trickery, however, his words reveal truths. This trick is
Ides of March Part 3: For Brutus Is an Honorable Man (Repeat 3 Times) Read More »
Last week, I discussed how Shakespeare used the Ides of March assassination of Julius Caesar to explore human complexity—moving through skepticism and beyond cynicism to show that it’s in the contradictions that we see the real person. In JC, Shakespeare uses characters’ actions and reactions to reveal their character’s real intent. But more subtly (and
Shakespeare and Caesar and Contradiction: “Elements so mix’d.” Read More »
So Is Hamnet Manipulative, or Meaningful… or Both? I’m afraid I’ll be ending up with more questions than answers here! But let’s use that film Hamnet as an example to work through and consider that Platonic/Aristotelian debate: Is it manipulative and demeaning to craft a story that forces/encourages audiences to experience intense emotion? I use
So Is Hamnet Manipulative, or Meaningful… or Both? Read More »
Last week in the post about the film “Hamnet,” I mentioned the “debate” between Plato and Aristotle about the ability of drama and story to create an outpouring of emotion. I don’t know if they actually debated in person during their two-decade relationship. But the teacher Plato wrote extensively about the weakening effect of drama,
“Hamnet”: Cynical Manipulation… or Just Healthy Catharsis? Could It Be Both? Read More »
Multiplicity There’s a splinter of ice in the heart of every writer. Graham Greene — Do I contradict myself? Very well then, I contradict myself! (I am large, I contain multitudes.) Walt Whitman — From the old joke— Patient: Doctor, I think I’m going crazy. Sometimes I find that I’m talking to myself inside my
Multiplicity and The Splintered Heart Read More »
Cats and Coincidences and Dappled Things By Alicia Rasley Coincidence is trivial, tricky, falsely weird. But… it’s also magical. As fiction writers, we’re told to avoid coincidence as a way to solve the story conflict. Coincidence is too easy, too contrived, too manipulative, too “author-intrusive.” Solving plot problems with a coincidence means the characters don’t
Cats and Coincidence and Dappled Things Read More »
After compiling that memory book for my parents, I realized that there’s something special about the physical representation of memory. I used to scorn my friends who scrapbooked; now I wish I’d been doing that all along, saving the tickets from concerts and films, the cards I’d gotten for my birthday, the scraps of my
Making Memories and Hooking Them Later Part 2 Read More »
