Mildred Pierce HBO

In early spring I saw Mildred Pierce HBO, the series, and no, it was not the best movie I’ve seen on HBO. I didn't think it was engaging but I watched expecting that I would enjoy it. One of the things I respect about HBO is that they don't sugarcoat period pieces. Bad things happen, people are disappointed and love matters.

But, that’s not my point.

As I was watched the five part mini-series and compared it to the Hollywood classic — a movie that is both a melodrama and film noir, with Joan Crawford and Ann Blyth, at the very peak of their considerable talents, I was struck by the fact that the new version looked so different from the original. Although each scene looked like it was from that era; the lighting was dark and flat; however, I preferred the black and white version that was more vibrant and glossy. 
 
The thing is that the HBO version did not have a portrayal of an interesting character at its center, Kate Winslet gave an earthy performance, whereas Joan Crawford was more angry and insecure, which brings me back to something I often say in class– the best stories are character-driven. Yes, I loved the details about the costumes, and interiors, but the reason I prefer the original Mildred Pierce is that I believed Joan Crawford's portrayal of the character. I think that writers in general, and dramatic writers in particular, often fall into the trap of thinking that if they get the details right, the story will fall into place. But I think that’s wrong. You need to start with a convincing character. 
 
A strong character is what your audience will remember most. In my next blog post I'll deconstruct another aspect of writing, so stay tuned. 
http://www.hbo.com/mildred-pierce/index.html 

A Unique Jewel

Montebello, CA  Original Library

Last Friday I went to my local Borders bookstore and stocked up on books. While standing in line, it occurred to me that it was a matter of time before libraries would cease to exist. Then I had déjà vu and I was a kid again at the Montebello Public Library I recalled the two Italian glass mosaic murals that flanked either side of the entrance; one representing Science the other, the Humanities. From that very first time in a library, I fell in love with the sights and sounds that struck me as a child.  

Years later when my family moved to another city, that I disliked, we left our large and beautiful custom-built house that my father built, my friends, school and all that was familiar to me. During that transition I also lost my maternal grandmother and cat within months of each other. I was grieving, with no way to express it other than through sketching with my charcoals. At our new place my mother went to work, feeling stranded and lonely that summer, I'd ride my bike to the library, a place where knowledge was openly available to all without the need for a companion or money as the key to access. Having an attraction for elders, I befriended the librarian, she was my saving grace and inspiration–she introduced me to a world of books and welcomed me with a smile on her face.

A library not only signifies a magnificent repository of books but it's charged with collecting knowledge, as a place of learning. Libraries as a receptacle hold books that feed the soul: through arts, culture, intellectual growth, knowledge, and other activities that enhance a life, a community, a civilization.

Over the weekend I heard the Mayor of Toronto wants to sell off the city's public library one of the largest on the continent, to cut city costs (Toronto Library).

I would like to offer the mayor a piece of advise– never give away the crown jewels or you'll be left holding nothing of value.

Make your world

This week I had a former student ask me if he could use the title of my book. I pointed out how as a native-English speaker, he could come up with his own title. I neglected to point out that I've had a copyright on it with the Library of Congress since 2008. As an exercise in my creative writing class on characterization, I read students a sample paragraph and asked them to write on the facial features of a character they know well. Some choose to use the same words in the same context I had read aloud. The problem is, we tend to be blind to our own mistakes — and without a teacher or an editor, we keep making the same ones over again!

According to the Global Language Monitor, published May 18, 2011, there are over one million words in the English language. And while I understand that many works of art are derivative, such as a blog, where we link to one another, commenting on something that has been said or done by someone else, adding our bit of wisdom, but borrowing from one another, I ask– where is original thought?

Art is a noble quest. I know a few writers who won't read while they in are in a writing mode just so they can be assured that their words are uniquely their own. I'm a believer that as part of the race of man we share some of the same creative ideas on the spiritual plane. But how we choose to interpret what the Universe gives us makes us distinct and adds style. Good writing involves a love of language. Using your own words comes down to original thought. A thought is tied to a string of personal memories, biased and uniquely yours. Original in every sense. And isn't creativity whereby a person creates something new–from what is inside them?

It takes work to reconsider what you are trying to say. It involves the need to improve the content of your material, looking for a whole new aspect of the issue, and in the end, to express it in a fresh way.  

The song is ended, but the melody lingers

I don't know if others feel this way, but hearing about Borders Bookstores closing made my heart sink. It was one of my regular haunts. I have many warm memories of the times I spent in Borders on South Lake in Pasadena, being at book signings, putting on a headset listening to music, hearing local bands play on Sunday afternoons, meeting people, the coffee shop, and participating in local store events.

Borders, like the Barnes & Noble stores, was notable in the 1990s for, essentially, putting many of the smaller boutique bookstores out of business. Although I love the independents, they had more books, more magazines, more media, comfy areas to sit and — they had coffee.

I can’t count the number of happy Saturdays spent browsing among the stacks. I never seemed to be able to get out of there in less than three hours, for there was always something delightful or interesting I just had to read.

But the Internet has eclipsed all that. There's now a generation of people who rely on the convenience of Amazon Prime. Readers who will trade in their print editions for digital Kindle books, which places the days of the great community bookstores clearly behind us.

Borders, was a slow sink. They tried to keep up, but, like today’s newspapers, another relic that I favored, they were tied to old business models and those models eventually pulled them underwater.

A bookstore has been a longtime faithful friend and companion to me. Saying good-bye will mean going through a moratorium.

So, for all those good times, I thank Borders.

What is it about?

Last week in class I spoke about a blurb being the book description you find on the back of a book to describe a book's contents. I included my professional stint at Newsweek http://www.newsweek.com/ in New York http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York as a temp and how I'd see a pile of books amassed in a corner waiting for someone's endorsement. 
 

Blurbs similar to a jacket are an important selling tool for a book; written as a review by either a newspaper, or someone well-known aimed at grabbing the reader's attention.

During my short tenure at the magazine, when the book “Bridges of Madison County” came in, it had been scoffed at by the publishing elite in New York City, like a stray cat it sat on the windowsill.

The story is about two people, one is married the other is not, who find the promise of perfect personal happiness, and understand, with sadness and acceptance, that the most important things in life are not always about making yourself happy.

I asked to take it home to read and offered to report back on it. One person noticed my literary enthusiasm; an influential columnist, and we became friendly. She trusted me and eventually offered me a job working from her home in Westchester County. Although I appreciated the offer; remaining honest with myself, I turned it down, since it was in an area that wasn't in the arts which would have a better fit for me.

So how can you condense all that important information?

Here's what I did.

Introduce the hero and heroine, giving a simple plot set up or conflict. Next what is the exterior conflict of the novel? What must both achieve or defeat and what do they have to lose?

Reread paragraph four–and there you have it!

Under the covers

It is not once nor twice but times without number that the same ideas make their appearance in the world.

–Aristotle

Last night I asked students what mechanisms they use to determine whether or not they will buy a book. The majority said they read the inner flap. So what is flap copy?

Flap copy is the blurb that appears on the flap of the dust jacket for a book. It’s written by the publisher or most likely an editorial assistant, often as a “hook,” trying to persuade the reader that they will enjoy reading this book, so buy it! Sometimes, it’s referred to as jacket copy.

It is the second most important marketing tool for a book, and as a reader, it's used to influence you. As a writer, you probably want to monitor what the publisher writes and suggest revisions as needed. Sometimes, writers also play around writing flap copy as a way to help focus a story. I've actually seen on a few literary agent websites an area where a writer is asked to write their own flap copy, in an effort to get a writer to think about marketability before sending their manuscript off to them.

The last Harry Potter book, published in the U.S., was remarkable for the absence of any flap copy. They didn’t need to persuade the reader to read the book with teases about the story. Those who would read Harry Potter were going to do it anyway.

On the porch swing

I'll be teaching Creative Writing this summer for CSN, one of the trickiest and most enjoyable classes I teach. The classes tend to be small, and students tend to be at various levels, which means gauging backgrounds and lots to discuss. But that’s not the problem.


The scope of the critiquing is difficult in a small class. Not only are we reviewing the pages under submission, but we’ve got to consider them in the context of what came before and what should come after. If we’re discussing lesson four, for example, you really need figure out how that builds from lesson one, which we engaged in three weeks ago. However, even that’s not the problem.

The problem, at the moment, is that I added to the lectures and exercises, a discussion of Harper Lee's book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Everyone writing today should be familiar with To Kill a Mockingbirdhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_Kill_a_Mockingbird. Certainly if you’re writing a literary novel. This has been widely reviewed as one of the 20th century classics for it's excellent writing.

But how on earth to incorporate reading a novel into a ten-week class? This has been what’s preoccupying me over break. I can’t assign the entire book to read. There’d be an insurrection. We could read part of the book. Normally I’d suggest reading the opening 50 pages, but I think the beginning of Lee's book while interesting is not necessarily the most inviting part of it. Quite honestly, I think only think she as a Southerner could get away with a slow paced beginning. I considered having each class member read a different twenty pages and report back, but that would deny us all a certain narrative thrust. So this summer, I will be re-reading along with my students one of the great American classics.

The home of the brave

Life in the United States has taken on a different meaning since 1776. Today its walking around with your iPhone, and checking the internet right on the street. Having a career your parents never heard of and they don’t understand what you do. Internet investing and/or dating. Driving a Hybrid and for some it is growing their own food and living green.

People around the world are in various stages of independence, some predating the kind Americans sought in 1776; freedom from over taxation and religious discrimination. In today's world–food, medical care, poverty, child and marital abuse, women’s rights, education, religious and spiritual misunderstandings and differences, are still unresolved issues.

What can we do about it? Start with yourself. Just as the Gottman Institute calls for five praises for one criticism for a healthy marital relationship, let’s use that five to one ratio in other ways.

Five steps of action for one neglect. Five amends for a mistake. Five good thoughts for one that doesn’t meet your standards. Five good words for someone you dislike. Five real smiles for a stranger.

Live your good intentions, now. That’s true independence– the independence from yourself to be yourself, right before your eyes!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pG1W7JDWv50 

Oedipus strikes again

                                        

Yesterday, I was expecting to see another televised wedding. Disappointed, I went on the Internet to quell my curiosity about the Grace Kelly swan(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Swan_%28film%29) look-alike marrying the all-time bachelor of the Monaco royal family.

When my expectations were not met, I found photos which got me thinking about men marrying their mothers.

There is a psychological theory that men marry their mothers, or maybe they marry their mothers and fathers. I once heard in a psychology class that a man and woman sharing intimacy is really like four people in bed since each one brings their parents to a relationship.

Men are often attracted to the physical type that their mother is– because that's the physical image of the woman they grew up with. The theory is that you try to create a home life with your spouse that is close to the home life you grew up in.

Unconsciously there is more than meets the eye. Let's assume a man marries a woman who doesn't act or look like his mother and has a completely different personality than his–this is what is known as our 'sexual personality'.

In relationships that flounder, when a couple seeks counseling, it is highly likely that a discovery will be made; that both parties will have the same, or at least very similar sexual personalities. As problems arise the couple need to understand why a clash is happening. It is likely that these similarities are the cause of the marital conflict. Only when this is understood can there be a more free-flowing understanding and/or tolerance of one another's behavior.

So the reference to men marrying their mothers, is really not a mystery after all.