What's Going On?

It's been a while since I've expressed my frustration with education.  I'm a bit more separated from it, but now that I've got a little java bean to think about, I find myself thinking about education options (public, private, religious, home education) for the (near) future.

Let me give you a little background.  Growing up, I always went to public schools.  Then, after a couple of years in a community college, I went to a small, private college loosely affiliated with the Methodist church.  (At the college, I was able to minor in Liberal Arts, which I greatly enjoyed.)  My husband also always went to public schools.  Then, for college, he went to the same small, private college as I did.

So Hubby and I don't have an elitist private school background or anything like that.  We went to public schools from kindergarten through high school graduation, and we did well all the way through college.

And yet, I was disturbed when I read this.

Here's the deal.  

I'm not trying to convert anyone to anything.  

Whether you're Christian, atheist, Muslim, humanist, or whatever, the simple fact is that history, art, music, literature, and even sociology and psychology has been shaped by Christianity.  And without some knowledge of Christianity, specifically the Bible, many of the lessons taught in English Literature, history, art, or music courses are flat, or even missed completely.

Regardless of your religious beliefs (or lack thereof), it's important to have some knowledge of religion in order to understand other things.  Just as I wouldn't read works by great scientists without first having a base understanding of their fields, you can't delve into literature without a base understanding of the mindset of the author(s).  And in many cases, this includes Christianity.  In the BBC article linked above, Poet Laureate Andrew Motion says:

'I've always been concerned about the levels of not-knowing since I started teaching, but quite recently I had a very bad experience of trying to teach some of my, in other respects, extremely good students about Paradise Lost.

They knew so little about the context in which the poem was written and about the references that the poem itself makes that it was very difficult even to get beyond go in talking about it.' [sic]

If you don't even have a frame of reference for Paradise Lost, how can you get more subtle references that give you a little extra depth for getting them?

However, you shouldn't limit yourself to the Bible in order to "get" literature, history, art, and music.  There's a whole wide world out there of different religions, philosophies, and schools of thought that have greatly influenced the minds of the world.  And in order to appreciate what those minds have to offer, it's important to first appreciate what those minds took the time to learn.

Fiction is great.  But every once in a while, it might be a good idea to pick up some nonfiction, too.

Motion says about Biblical references:

'...these stories achieve archetypal status because they tell us recurring truths about human nature that is a pleasure and an important thing in and of itself.'

Even if you don't believe that the stories in the Bible are true, they have become like the ancient myths that serve as a jumping-off point for many other stories.  The characters in the stories have become standards by which other characters are measured.

Think about it.  What comes to mind when I say someone's life is Job-like?  What do you think of when I call someone "a Jezebel"?

If you have no familiarity with the Bible, these character references mean nothing, and how can you understand the image I'm trying to portray?

Sorry, folks, but there's more to literature than meets the eye.  It's not just poetry that has deeper meanings.

New Design

I've been looking for new designs for my blog.  

I liked the plain design I had before, but after Chef Frazzoo has been changing things around on her blog, she inspired me to do the same.  I have this one for now, but if I find something I like a bit better, you'll see another change.

Enjoy!

Writing for Others vs. Writing for Yourself

As a freelance writer, I've gotten some odd requests for articles from clients.  I've written articles on mangosteen, grappling shorts, and even the history of chandeliers.

And one of the things I've learned is that freelance writing sometimes means setting aside my own writing style to fit the clients' needs.  It's not that I abandon my style, but when you're writing for someone else (especially ghost writing), you have to let the other person's style be the one that shows in the article.

This has been an adjustment for me, and one that I'm still working on as I write for clients, especially if I go from writing fiction to working on freelance projects.  Who I am tends to peek through, so then I have to go back and edit me out.

Writing for yourself is a different experience than writing for others.  In writing for yourself (and by this, I mean writing your own pieces such as fiction), you're expected to have your own "voice," a distinct writing style.

When you write for yourself, you're putting yourself on the page more than you do in freelance writing.  I think that's why I spend so much more time agonizing over word choice when I write fiction.  In writing fiction, every word choice is a reflection of me, and my writing style.  So it's far more important for me to make sure I give the right reflection of myself in my writing.

I think that's why I haven't been working on fiction lately.  I've been so concentrated on writing for others that I'm lost in them instead of sharing myself through my own writing.  

So I think I'm going to pick up the coffee house book again and let myself shine through on the page.

Planning Your Menu?

A very dear friend of mine has a great foodie blog that uses her own weekly menus to share great recipes, her changes to them, and how they went over with her hubby.

So if you're looking for a new recipe to try at home, or something to take to a potluck dinner, be sure to check out

Adventures in Home Cooking

Coffee-Stained Nightstand: Next Up

In keeping with my two-books-a-month goal, I'm starting another book for February, which should give me more than enough time to finish it.  It's one that intrigued me when I first saw it on the shelves, so when I saw it on the bargain books rack yesterday, I picked it up and brought it home.

This evening I'll be starting The Heroines by Eileen Favorite.  According to the inside cover:

Although a true lover of books, Anne-Marie Entwhistle perfers not to read to her spirited daughter, Penny, especially from the likes of Madame Bovary, Gone With the Wind, or The Scarlet Letter.  These novels, devoted to the lives of the Heroines that make them so irresistable, have a way of hitting too close to home--well, to the Homestead, actually, where Anne-Marie runs the quaint family-owned bed and breakfast.

In this enchanting debut novel, Penny and her mother encounter great women from classic works of literature who make the Homestead their destination of choice just as the plots of their tumultuous, unforgettable stories begin to unravel.  They appear at all hours of the day and in all manners of distress.  A lovesick Madame Bovary languishes in their hammock after Rodolphe has abandoned her, and Scarlett O'Hara's emotions are not easily tempered by tea and eiderdowns.  These visitors long for comfort, consolation, and sometimes for more attnetion than the adolescent Penny wants her mother to give.

Knowing that to interfere with their stories would cause mayhem in literature, Anne-Marie does her best to make each Heroine feel at home, with a roof over her head and a shoulder to cry on.  But when Penny begins to feel overshadowed by her mother's indulgence of each and every Heroine, havoc ensues, and the thirteen-year-old embarks on her own memorable tale.

Being a lover of Fforde, the idea of these heroines escaping their own drama definitely caught my eye.  I'm beginning this book with great interest, and hopefully, I won't be disappointed as I was with my last literary endeavor.

A Brief Departure From the Professional

I try to keep this blog separate from my personal blog.  I've mentioned bits of my personal life, and reference the Hubby from time to time, but for the most part, this blog focuses on my life and career as a writer.

For this post, though, I'd like to step away from that to give you some insight into why my blogging (and emailing) have been a bit wacky.

Of course, some of it has been due to my little java bean.  I've been feeling better lately, but between morning sickness and exhaustion, some days I'm so wiped out I barely have enough energy to get my work done, let alone email or blog.  Now that I'm in the second trimester of pregnancy, though, I hope that things will normalize more on that front.

Another reason, and an important one, has to do with my personal situation and my Hubby.  I won't go into details about it here, but Hubby has needed me to be here for him lately.  And there have been many days that he's needed my full attention.  And as important as writing is, and as much as I care about my friends and want to keep in touch with them, my husband is one of the most important things in my life, and he comes before computer time.  His well being is more important to me than I can explain, so, unfortunately, some of my friends may not get calls or emails as often as I'd like.

For those who deserve that connection, I apologize.  I really do.  And now that things in my personal life are getting better, that should change.

I do want to tell you that just because I can't email you as often as you'd like, or because we haven't talked in a while doesn't mean I don't care about you or miss you like crazy.  And it doesn't mean I'm avoiding you or whatever.  I do care about you.  And I miss you.  And I wish we were still taking classes from the Big Seuf in our pajamas together or emailing about homicidal cats almost every day.  Again: it's something I'm working on.

I hope you will understand that when my life is in chaos, as it has been, I can only focus on fixing one aspect of it at a time.  Now that it's getting fixed, I can work on fixing other aspects of it.

You're next in line, I promise.

Writing and Life

I fear I've been neglecting my fiction lately.  Between finding out about my little java bean, chaos in my personal life, and freelancing, my coffee house book has been left alone for a while.  I do feel bad, and I miss writing fiction, but there are more important things going on in my life right now that need more attention.

So I've been thinking about my coffee house book, doing research, and taking notes, and when things are more normalized, I'll be able to open the file again and get back to work on it.

When I was working on my writing goals for 2009, I wanted one of them to be that the coffee house book would be finished, edited, and that I'd be querying agents.  But I decided recently that I don't want to put any pressure on myself.  It's not that I don't want to get it done, but I'd rather take my time and make sure it's right.

I know I can write a book.  NaNoWriMo has proven that the past two years.  But that doesn't mean that what I write in a month should be handed out for public consumption.  Do you know how much it takes to edit a story?

I have a friend who has been writing.  She's been reworking her first book, and is starting to see what really goes into preparing a book for people to read.  I doubt her book is even ready for beta readers (though she knows that when it's ready, I'm happy to read for her!), and she's been working on it for a bit already.

My coffee house book is important to me.  And when I'm ready to send queries, I want my book to be the best I can make it.  That said, I'm lifting my 2009 expectation of completing it, and I'm just going to keep working on it until it's ready.

But hopefully, I'll be able to give you updates on how the writing is going soon!

Coffee-Stained Nightstand: a Reflection

I finished reading The Meridian Anthology of Early Women Writers: British Literary Women from Aphra Ben to Maria Edgeworth, 1660-1800, edited by Katharine M. Rogers and William McCarthy.

I went into the anthology with interest.  I didn't know the names of the authors in it, and was looking forward to learning about them and perhaps discovering a good writer I could read more of later.

I think there's a reason I haven't heard of any of these writers.

I don't mean to be snobby or elitist about it.  After all, it's been a while since I've been in my academic reading mode (maybe I'm just out of practice), but I had to force myself through many of the pieces.  In fact, I had to force myself through some of the author biographies!

I think I'll stick to my Norton Anthologies.

Do You Love Words?

If so, did you know you can actually adopt a word?  That's right, folks.  If you adopt a word (my favorite author adopted "linoleum"), not only can you show your appreciation for "gamut" or "moot," but you can actually help kids at the same time!

Show your love.  Adopt a word.

It's amazing...

...how little gets done when a freelance writer doesn't have Internet access for two days.

And how much work it takes to get caught up when you get it back!