FRIDAY
never again
mark fiore cartoon on darfur
talk about hellhounds
philosphy of the writing life; by ruth mirian garnett
(ruth sent this out as part of marketing her workshop in st. louis)
"in my workshop, it is important to me to review equally the three points that make up the writers life: craft, regimen and marketing
the process of writing is always scary, because facing the blank page, always the first thing one does, is like repeatedly jumping off the proverbial bridge. it entails a fear of the unknown, and one has to cosntantly embrace this fear, and this is always a profound thing. ironically the process, which occurs in isolation, usuprs the private life, because the content of ones work, even for the most introverted and reclusive writer, is intended to be shared. what occurs is a peculiar balance and what is, for better or for worse, a peculiar life
in addition, writers must embrace what i call 'the antisocial necessity' and construct a writing regimen that works for their productivity. maximizing the time available for interior, meditative work, not answering the phone, sacrificing a degree of socializing and avoiding television, in general, hibernating, are essential components of this lifestyle. the people i am closest too understand what i have taken on and the eccentricity from the standpoint of our culture, that results, or at least i hope they do
another task, even more uncomfortable, is self promotion. this is an ongoing, consuming and not altogether pleasant shifting of gears from examining the interior self to emphasizing the exterio, indentifying ones selling points to gain public exposure and increased readership. in our celebrity culture, it makes for some strange bedfellows, lumping art products of varying description and caliber together in a messy, albeit democratic mix
people who want to create lasting work that will hold up for decades under critical scruntiny, work that rings of truth and is transforming to audiences, have to increase their marketing savvy without adopting self alienating postures anathema to their art, or any art. this is tough to work out, but it is heartening to remember that black people on the lowest runs of america societal ladder, slaves working in cotton fields, created great art, sensuous and riveting art, still lauded by people all over the world."
now personally my big three has always been living it, thinking about it and writing it
- no life experiences and you got nothing to write about
- no time spent pondering it and what you have to say is shallow and of no import
- and if you dont sit down and write in a disciplined manner, whats the point
but i would have to put promotion in there too, she absolutely right about that being
one of the critical skills of the 21st century literary life (rootsblog began strictly as a promotional tool)
ruth is doing two workshops this spring, one in st louis, and one in harlem, you can get information about ruths workshop by emailing [email protected]
LATER THURSDAY
(while working on rest for the weary)
bid em in bid em in (for oscar brown)
morning gentlemen
got prime coloreds for sale this here fine morning
yall know me, yall know I dont handle nothing
but the best stock, my merchandise is prime goods
and fully guaranteed
first up is a fine black buck nama armstrong
he dont go for very much cause he weak
in the head but he strong in the arms and
do anything you tell him to
make a good driver, already broke in to his masters voice
what do I hear for armstrong
400 dollars from the gentleman in the rear there, how do sir
come on gentlemen this is a prime buck here
400 dollar 400 dollars . . 450 now and going strong
500 dollar cant be wrong,
450 going once . . .450 going tw . . 500 dollar
500 dollar for armstrong . . going once
going twice . . gone . . . to the colonel sir
take em away, take em away, i got nothing but bargains today
tell you what colonel, sell you young ford here as a package deal
o what the hell I will throw in young harold for free
make a good houseboy maybe but the fields would kill him
take em away, take em away, i got nothing but bargains today
ohwee, lookahere, what about this one
fine young filly with a gap in her mouth
you know what they say about them gap toothed negresses
this one keep you warm boys on those cold winter nights
make a fine ladies maid once shes properly whipped
we call her condolezza but you call her what you please
strip her down roy, let em they see what they getting
turn her around roy, let em look at her flanks
bid em in bid em in
600 dollar from a man whos thrifty
625, can I hear 650
650 i got - once twice and gone
take her down roy, bring the next one on
bid em in
THURSDAY
flat on my back
been a little offstride lately
had back to back operations
still recovering from last one 2 days ago
and recently found myself surprisingly shook
over their eyes were watching god movie last week
always had this vision of halle doing melvira dupree
but i guess thats shot
and susan lori parks doing the screenplay nooked me too
another dream shot and everybody getting play but rick
i couldnt even watch it, i just wasnt ready
and edward p jones is on campus today
would have liked to meet him but im laid up
so chris asked if jones could use my classroom to speak to the students
who are all excited about meeting him and here i am flat on my back
and in a world of pain
and this all seems so indicative of my literary standing these days
everybody kicking it but yours truly
ohwell, just more pressure on me to get my own novel done
i will take motivation wherever i can get it
i got hellhounds on my trail
black commentator - hanging in there
black commentator did a piece this week on the republican strategy
for replacing black leadership that was very enlightening
because i keep reading about all these conservative blacks and im
wondering why i dont seem to know any of them
and why am i so out of the loop on this
but black commentator makes a good case on the repubs
throwing money at black preachers and the like thru the faith based
programs and school voucher initiatives as a political strategy
to replace progressive black leadership
if anything black commentator was restrained because the
more we understand about the gop strategy on blackfolk
the more we understand how comprehensive a strategy
they have implemented to co op or neutralize the black vote
those of us who consider ourselves true voices of the people
got to keep exposing the game, however and whenever we can
whether we get paid or not
when im tempted to jump ship its pieces like this that reaffirm
my commitment to the struggle thru rootsblog
every voice counts in these perilous times
rootsblog and my other political initiatives getting shorted these days
my primary commitment has to be toward getting rest for the weary done
i figure im working too hard to get some play, much too much begging
for my taste - i got to get my novel done, i got to manifest my vision
just this morning i decided to try to work this myth in there
of the illuminated children of the sun
been fiddling around the edges of it for awhile now but i decided
this morning, feeling all unappreciated, to go for broke and make it happen
to do what i do best - a delta mythmaker, thats what i am, thats what i do
me and my colleague george saunders talking about style one day
and he say whats the point of doing what anybody else can do
best to do what only you can do
and on that note im outta here
gon get on up out of this sickbed and
clock me some novelhours this morning
hanging tough
rickydoc flowers
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