As students, when we first learn "how to" write, our use of detail is something that is often emphasized. It is always pointed out to us in pieces of literature we have to read for class and marked down in our pieces that are turned in. When I was younger, I would always work harder and strive to have as much detail as possible. As I got older, though, I soon realized that a lot of the detail I was writing was just boring and not useful. A little while later, in ninth grade English class, I had to read Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, and that was when I lost any kind of positive feelings I had towards the use of detail. He just rambled on and on about things that ended up not even being important to the book or the purpose of the book, and it just made the book drag. Because of that, it was the only book in High School that I never finished reading for class.
While I was beginning to read this week's assignment in Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, I knew that the point that was going to have to be known this week would be about the importance of detail. The difference between what I was expecting and what actually was, however, was that Goldberg talked about how detail is not just about talking about the little things in life, but really, the big things are just as important, or even more important. For example, she says on the bottom of page 81 "We think of detail as small, not the realm of the cosmic mind or these big hills of New Mexico. That isn't true. No matter how large a thing is, how fantastic, it is also ordinary."
Another topic Goldberg discussed was the importance of pushing forward in your writing, because that is where all the deep, emotional stuff is that people want to read about. She also says that writing is an outlet for us to use to get through things. An example she gave was a girl whose mother died of cancer who was writing about it for class. Goldberg said that she could feel that there was something missing, so she told the girl to keep writing, even if time is out, even if it causes her to cry. Pushing to the end helps a person form detail because it is closer to them than they if they are just writing from what is on their surface. Because it hits so close to them, the reader is better able to understand the author and the piece and have an emotional connection with both, as well.
Although I still am not a fan of over-the-top detail in writing, reading about it this week has helped me see that there is a way to make the detail work so that a person can be drawn to the piece and author and help them understand both better. Goldberg emphasizes the importance of "good" detail, rather than the boring, "describe-the-hairpin" detail that is seen so often in some pieces of work.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
To After That (Toaf) - A Blog
Every author has his or her own style of writing and a voice that is unique. Stephen King is good at writing dark and mysteriously when appropriate. John Green writes from the perspective of young people well. In the case of To After That, Renee Gladman seems to use an almost blogger-type of voice. Throughout the book, it sounds like she is telling a personal story to close people who want to read everything she wants and needs to say. This style of writing helps the reader connect to the author and feel like he or she is part of the life.
One example of Gladman having a blogger-like feel in To After That (Toaf) is she uses nicknames for everyone in her life who was of some importance. Examples include "Chubby"/"Frog" and "M." Both of these people in her life had an impact on her writing. Gladman dedicated her book to Chubby and M. helped her with the book. In many blogs I have read, a nickname of some sort is used for the important characters in the blogger's life. One example is HayleyGHoover, who calls her boyfriend "The Situation," after Jersey Shore, because she wants to keep his actual identity less well-known when she talks about him as her boyfriend, rather than as the musician he is.
Another example of Gladman having a blogger-like feel in the way the book is set up. While telling her story, Gladman goes between different times in her life to explain different things that lead to a part in her book. There is even one time on page 33 where she stopped in the middle of nowhere to correct herself about a date she had mentioned near the beginning of the book that she had not been able to recall at the time. It is also at this part where she has giant white spaces to show how this part of the story is different from the rest. Both of these are not too different from reading a blog. Oftentimes, while reading someone's blog, they will mention something in one entry, and then down the line, they correct themselves, even if it really has nothing to do with the rest of the entry. Gaps in the form of the writing are also common to give the entry some flair and better the understanding of the reader.
Renee Gladman's blog-like style of To After That (Toaf) helps engage the reader more than if she had just written out her story like a novel. By using nicknames for those who influenced her the most and having a form similar to a blog, a reader can feel like he or she is actually part of the life of this woman and capable of just talking to her like any other person on the street.
One example of Gladman having a blogger-like feel in To After That (Toaf) is she uses nicknames for everyone in her life who was of some importance. Examples include "Chubby"/"Frog" and "M." Both of these people in her life had an impact on her writing. Gladman dedicated her book to Chubby and M. helped her with the book. In many blogs I have read, a nickname of some sort is used for the important characters in the blogger's life. One example is HayleyGHoover, who calls her boyfriend "The Situation," after Jersey Shore, because she wants to keep his actual identity less well-known when she talks about him as her boyfriend, rather than as the musician he is.
Another example of Gladman having a blogger-like feel in the way the book is set up. While telling her story, Gladman goes between different times in her life to explain different things that lead to a part in her book. There is even one time on page 33 where she stopped in the middle of nowhere to correct herself about a date she had mentioned near the beginning of the book that she had not been able to recall at the time. It is also at this part where she has giant white spaces to show how this part of the story is different from the rest. Both of these are not too different from reading a blog. Oftentimes, while reading someone's blog, they will mention something in one entry, and then down the line, they correct themselves, even if it really has nothing to do with the rest of the entry. Gaps in the form of the writing are also common to give the entry some flair and better the understanding of the reader.
Renee Gladman's blog-like style of To After That (Toaf) helps engage the reader more than if she had just written out her story like a novel. By using nicknames for those who influenced her the most and having a form similar to a blog, a reader can feel like he or she is actually part of the life of this woman and capable of just talking to her like any other person on the street.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Improving Sentences and Detail
Making the wording in my writing more interesting is something I have been struggling with possibly the most this semester. I am so used to just throwing together facts into sentences and making those into paragraphs that form an essay that I have never really put much thought into how I can switch my wording to make people more interested. That is where reading Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg came in handy this week. This week, we were to read about syntax, showing instead of telling, and being specific, all of which gave me a new perspective of my wording techniques.
The first chapter, "Syntax," provided different exercises a writer could do in order to make his or her sentences more interesting. The example Goldberg provided had the writer write down the three to four consecutive lines or sentences of the most boring piece of writing and then treat each word like a block and just move them around randomly for a third of the page without putting much, if any, thought into it. After that, Goldberg says to put punctuation into the jumble of words without thinking about what is going on. In the end, the writer has the most interesting sentences, some of which make no sense at all, but some that improve the message and sound of the original sentence. This is one of the most interesting exercises I have come across, and I did not think it would go anywhere. In the end, though, I find myself really wanting to try it out when I am editing my next piece of writing, because it gives the piece a certain flair.
The second and third chapters kind of go together in terms of the messages they are trying to get across. The second chapter, "Don't' Tell, but Show," tells the writer that he or she needs to show the emotions of what is going on in the writing, rather than just saying it. Goldberg uses anger as an example. She says to show what anger is, rather than just saying that the subject is angry. Showing the emotion hits home more and it is not as boring. The third chapter, "Be Specific," talks about describing objects and naming them more specifically than just being general. The example Goldberg uses for this case is a flower. She says that a writer should describe exactly what kind of flower the subject is looking at. Goldberg says that she went around for a while and learned what each kind of flower or tree she had in her environment, because it helps one feel closer to his or her environment. On top of that, it hits closer to home with the reader. Both of these have always been difficult for me to do, because I am not one for detail. When I'm reading a book, I like getting the jist of what is going on, rather than knowing every single detail. It is why I cannot bring myself to read Charles Dickens novels. However, I know that the detail is important for others, and I often leave out important details that are necessary to understand what I am trying to say. Therefore, these two chapters have helped me understand the power and necessity of details, and make me want to push it more for myself.
Once again, Natalie Goldberg has managed to make me see writing in a different light. Not only did she make me re-think my phrasing of sentences this week, but she also helped me understand the importance of details in a piece of writing.
The first chapter, "Syntax," provided different exercises a writer could do in order to make his or her sentences more interesting. The example Goldberg provided had the writer write down the three to four consecutive lines or sentences of the most boring piece of writing and then treat each word like a block and just move them around randomly for a third of the page without putting much, if any, thought into it. After that, Goldberg says to put punctuation into the jumble of words without thinking about what is going on. In the end, the writer has the most interesting sentences, some of which make no sense at all, but some that improve the message and sound of the original sentence. This is one of the most interesting exercises I have come across, and I did not think it would go anywhere. In the end, though, I find myself really wanting to try it out when I am editing my next piece of writing, because it gives the piece a certain flair.
The second and third chapters kind of go together in terms of the messages they are trying to get across. The second chapter, "Don't' Tell, but Show," tells the writer that he or she needs to show the emotions of what is going on in the writing, rather than just saying it. Goldberg uses anger as an example. She says to show what anger is, rather than just saying that the subject is angry. Showing the emotion hits home more and it is not as boring. The third chapter, "Be Specific," talks about describing objects and naming them more specifically than just being general. The example Goldberg uses for this case is a flower. She says that a writer should describe exactly what kind of flower the subject is looking at. Goldberg says that she went around for a while and learned what each kind of flower or tree she had in her environment, because it helps one feel closer to his or her environment. On top of that, it hits closer to home with the reader. Both of these have always been difficult for me to do, because I am not one for detail. When I'm reading a book, I like getting the jist of what is going on, rather than knowing every single detail. It is why I cannot bring myself to read Charles Dickens novels. However, I know that the detail is important for others, and I often leave out important details that are necessary to understand what I am trying to say. Therefore, these two chapters have helped me understand the power and necessity of details, and make me want to push it more for myself.
Once again, Natalie Goldberg has managed to make me see writing in a different light. Not only did she make me re-think my phrasing of sentences this week, but she also helped me understand the importance of details in a piece of writing.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Finally, An Impact
Reading Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith was a task I thought was going to be like any other required reading for class - tedious and not worthwhile. When I reached the last page, however, I found it to be neither one. In fact, all the poems in the book both interested me and gave me a new perspective on not only Hurricane Katrina itself, but the lives of both humans and animals who lived in New Orleans.
One way Smith showed a new perspective of the event was she made a couple of the poems from the point of view of Hurricane Katrina. In one poem called "8 A.M., Sunday, August 28, 2005" (page 11), for example, Katrina talks about how she gave some warning for days, but at that time, on that day, she wanted to let it all loose. "Or could this be/ it, finally,/ my praise day,/ all my fists at once?" Having the poems from the way that a hurricane saw what was going on can almost make someone feel for it, because it has been given a personality. On top of that, Smith is putting into the poem what had actually been going on, so it helps preserve some history in there, too.
Another way Patricia Smith made me look at the hurricane in a new way was she put in the story of a dog throughout the book. For example, the first time we see the dog, Luther B, is in the poem "Won't be but a Minute" (page 10). In this poem, a parent is explaining that they have to leave Luther B behind, but that he should be okay tied to the tree. He is seen again in "Luther B Rides Out the Storm" (page 21), where he is experiencing. The final time he is seen is in "M'Dear Thinks on Luther B" (page 30), where the owners think about him. It may very well be the animal lover in me, but the story of Luther B killed me. I felt for the humans, of course, but I felt horrible that he was unable to even try to move because they tied him to a tree. The poem where he is experiencing the storm was so visual, too, that it was impossible to avoid the heartbreak of the event and feel crushed by the end of it.
All in all, reading Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith was one of the best ways I have spent my time this year. I'm not saying that because I want to make it sound like I'm a good student or because I want a good grade, either. When I finished the book, I felt like I had a better understanding and connection to an event that is so well-known in the country. When it happened, I understood how terrifying it must have been and how terrible it must have been for the residents of that area to lose their homes. Years later, however, I am just now feeling an actual emotional toll because of the strength of the words in all the poems and the strong characters. This book was definitely worth every penny I paid for it, simply because of the understanding I gained from it.
One way Smith showed a new perspective of the event was she made a couple of the poems from the point of view of Hurricane Katrina. In one poem called "8 A.M., Sunday, August 28, 2005" (page 11), for example, Katrina talks about how she gave some warning for days, but at that time, on that day, she wanted to let it all loose. "Or could this be/ it, finally,/ my praise day,/ all my fists at once?" Having the poems from the way that a hurricane saw what was going on can almost make someone feel for it, because it has been given a personality. On top of that, Smith is putting into the poem what had actually been going on, so it helps preserve some history in there, too.
Another way Patricia Smith made me look at the hurricane in a new way was she put in the story of a dog throughout the book. For example, the first time we see the dog, Luther B, is in the poem "Won't be but a Minute" (page 10). In this poem, a parent is explaining that they have to leave Luther B behind, but that he should be okay tied to the tree. He is seen again in "Luther B Rides Out the Storm" (page 21), where he is experiencing. The final time he is seen is in "M'Dear Thinks on Luther B" (page 30), where the owners think about him. It may very well be the animal lover in me, but the story of Luther B killed me. I felt for the humans, of course, but I felt horrible that he was unable to even try to move because they tied him to a tree. The poem where he is experiencing the storm was so visual, too, that it was impossible to avoid the heartbreak of the event and feel crushed by the end of it.
All in all, reading Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith was one of the best ways I have spent my time this year. I'm not saying that because I want to make it sound like I'm a good student or because I want a good grade, either. When I finished the book, I felt like I had a better understanding and connection to an event that is so well-known in the country. When it happened, I understood how terrifying it must have been and how terrible it must have been for the residents of that area to lose their homes. Years later, however, I am just now feeling an actual emotional toll because of the strength of the words in all the poems and the strong characters. This book was definitely worth every penny I paid for it, simply because of the understanding I gained from it.
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