Bobbing Around
Volume Five, Number Eight
Bob Rich's rave
May 2006
bobswriting.com/ anxietyanddepression-help.com/ mudsmith.net/ other issues
Bobbing AroundVolume Five, Number Eight
Bob Rich's rave |
| *About Bobbing Around
subscribe/unsubscribe. guidelines for contributions *Politics * Iran's President writes to George Bush. A Treasurer who is behind the times. 'Sea of Orange' campaign by Australian ex-servicemen. *Punished for Permaculture. *Psychology Traumatic Incident Reduction. Psychotherapy affects the brain. The desperation of young people. *Ergonomics: More Watts for Less. *Philosophy: Elaine on intention. *When is a book more than a book? *For writers Will Greenway on description, part 2. Another response to 'What is poetry?' On scenes, by Shirley Martin. *Just to let you know... Joyce Faulkner's 'In the Shadow of Suribachi' has excellent reviews. Carrie Lynn Lyons signing her book. Concepts to Make Bookfairs Work for Authors. Conference: from stars to brains. 'Hugs, Hope and Peanut Butter' by Marsha Jordan *Poetry 'The Cost of Growing Up' by Larry Pontius. *'Beloved Clown', a story by James Choron. I am responsible for anything I have written. However, where I reproduce contributions from other people, I do not necessarily endorse their opinions. I may or may not agree with them, but give them the courtesy of a forum. Bobbing Around is COPYRIGHTED. No part of it may be reproduced in any form, at any venue, without the express permission of the publisher (ME!) and the author if that is another person. You may forward the entire magazine to anyone else. Several of my books are now available in paperback within Australia (elsewhere too, if you are willing to pay the shipping costs). You will find them at the Australian Online Bookshop. These are: I can send you a unique, personalised book plate to convert your copy into an autographed one. This earns you a second book, free. |
Not too late to enter the drawPeople who buy a copy of the new, electronic version of Woodworking for Idiots Like Me have a chance of winning an autographed paperback copy of Anikó: The stranger who loved me Colleagues write:Hi Bob, I thought I'd mention, in case I haven't before, how much I enjoy your newsletter. It is different from other ezines in that there are articles about really important issues, as well as good things for writers. I enjoyed reading about Democrats in Australia, nuclear power, as well as "What Is Poetry" by Cheryl O'Brien. I have printed out the 4 Tolteic rules to post on the wall by my desk. Kathe Gogolewski.
Hi Bob. Hope all is well. Don't know if I mentioned this to you, but I saw Jessie Wise last weekend at a writer's conference and she raved about your editing. She was delighted with the depth and quality of your work, the fair price you charged, and the quick turnaround. Don't be surprised if you find yourself listed on the acknowledgement page. She's telling everyone how great you are, so suggest you finish off the mud house, set aside the newsletter, and prepare yourself for an avalanche of work. I have to say "ditto," for your editing suggestions helped me win an award for my second novel, Night Before August. Hopefully, I'll soon be able to say the same about Castles of Deceit. Looking forward to working with you on my next novel. Take care,
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Iran's President writes to George Bush'
A Treasurer who is behind the times.
'Sea of Orange' campaign by Australian ex-servicemen.
All of us are vitally affected by the possibility of a new war, one that could become nuclear. Therefore, I am sure you'll be interested to read a letter Iran's President has written to the President of the United States.
The following is a press release from the Australian Greens:
The Treasurer, Peter Costello, has rebuffed Greens Leader Bob Brown's offer to brief him on budget measures to meet Australia's growing climate change liability.
"I offered to brief the Treasurer on badly needed initiatives to gear up against climate change and its huge economic and social price tag to Australia," Senator Brown said.
"Climate change looms larger than the financial risk of our ageing population. Its problems include falling rainfall over our wheatfields, coastal erosion, extended summer heatwaves, and the spread of tropical diseases further south."
The options, which can easily be funded by a carbon tax, include better energy efficiency, renewable energy, public transport and coastal planning.
"I'm worried by the Treasurer's ecoblinkers. The British Treasurer, Gordon Browne, referred to climate change 14 times in his latest budget."
"Mr Costello has not referred to it in his last 10 budgets. He is way behind overseas recognition of the climate change nemesis and the growing impact it is having on Australians," Senator Brown said.
Further information: Ebony Bennett 0409 164 603
For over three decades War Veterans, Currently Serving Military Members, Former Service Personnel, Reserve and Full Time and even Cadets and the families of all of their members have been systematically abused by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Government of Australia.
Applications for help, assistance, medical treatment and rehabilitation to the DVA are totally ignored or disallowed. They are only ever followed up by the Department with the assistance of either an Advocate or a Solicitor paid for out of our own pockets.
Even then, only 60% of all applications are accepted, only after traumatic applications to the Veterans Review Board, the Appeals Tribunal and even the Federal Court. These appeals aggravate disabilities and injuries because of the great stressors involved.
Our children suffer with disabilities and even deformities. Their family’s cries for help are ignored or rejected in many, many cases. The children are the innocent victims of their parents’ service to this nation.
Many former Service Personnel suffer the horrible effects of chemical poisoning, from chemicals and toxins such as Agent Orange, radiation from Atomic Testing, beryllium poisoning and chemicals used to clean the tanks of aircraft and now from exposure to Depleted Uranium in Iraq and Afghanistan, to name just a few examples.
Suicide is rampant amongst our East Timor Veterans and is still occurring with our Vietnam Veterans, Atomic Veterans and many others and we now have to face the horrors of the Wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. This all has to be faced with disgusting lack of support and understanding from the politicians who sent our countrymen away to fight their political wars in the first place.
Governments are good at flag waving for political reasons when troops are sent to War but sadly they are also good at denying full and proper compensation and health care when the troops return home. Wars do not end when that last shot is fired. Because of these reasons and many more, we will unite as one and speak with one wholly united National Voice.
Our intent is to show the people of Australia that we have and do suffer at the hands of the Government and to show the Government that all of us have had enough.
To date we have received over 1800 E Mails of Support for our campaign and we have earned the backing of three ESOs and the edification of many more.
Many Politicians have offered us their total support. The members of the Australian Army widely support us to the last man and cry out for our help as they have no public voice.
All business is carried out in the Public Forum of the Aussie Digger Web Site.
Forum Address:
http://pub23.bravenet.com/forum/show.php?usernum=1925085003&cpv=1
Paul Dignon
National Coordinator
The Sea of Orange Campaign Telephone: (08) 8277 2069.
We are Cat, Adrian, and Dan, three tenants of a house we rent in Clayton, South-East Melbourne. We are passionate advocates of permaculture, an approach to designing sustainable human habitats that model natural ecosystems.
Part of permaculture is an emphasis on growing more of the food you eat where you live. Growing your own food is an alternative to dependence on energy-intensive agriculture in which food is grown with the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides before being transported large distances.
We have an extensive edible garden. During the summer when the garden was really pumping, we grew about 75% of our own food. Although that percentage has dropped with the colder and shorter days of Autumn, we are constantly getting better as we learn more. With the use of chickens, composts, mulching, and a wormfarm, both the quantity and fertility of our topsoil are always on the rise.
The garden has become well known in the local community. We host various open days and skill-sharing workshops, and coordinate a regular series of permaculture makeovers for members of CODEMO, a local community group. It has been exciting to see seeds, plants, compost, and skills literally flowing out of our garden into the lives and gardens of others. So exciting, in fact, that we are developing a little business whereby we might draw an income from doing what we love.
Now that's all well and nice, you might think, but why are you telling me? We received a "Breach of Duty Notice" from the agent representing our landlord. It stated that we have breached our duty as tenants because we "have altered, renovated or added to the premises without the [landlord's] consent. The loss or damage caused: The property was lawn from fence to fence. The tenants have dug up approximately 70 percent of lawn and put it under intensive permaculture with associated ponds and mulch supply."
The notice then stated the requirement that we restore the lawns and remove the ponds and mulch supply within 14 days of receiving the notice or that we pay the landlords $2100. In addition to informing us that we must not commit a similar breach again, the notice closed by letting us know that if we did not comply with it, that "the landlord may apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal" for a compensation or compliance order.
Despite our concern over the prospect of either raising the requested sum or being taken to court, we were at the same time impressed with the opportunity this situation represents. In permaculture, one common saying is "the problem is the solution." The idea is that happenings which might initially seem to be a bad thing, such as too many snails, can be transformed into good things, such as free duck food. We are taking this approach to the notice, viewing it as an excellent opportunity to publicly highlight the issue of whether people renting should be able to grow some of their own food at the expense of pre-existing lawn. We understand the position of our landlord, who is naturally concerned that future tenants may be harder to find given the large garden which does of course require some ongoing maintenance. Then there is our position, which is that given the state of the planet and the emerging energy crisis, it is imperative for people to grow more of their own food at home. Have we really caused loss or damage? Or in improving the topsoil and the self-sufficiency of the property, have we added value? Should we be punished or should we be praised? Whatever your position, we think it high time these issues were being publicly discussed.
If you too are passionate about the right of tenants to engage in urban permaculture, then we would love to hear from you. If you're interested in participating in a campaign, contact us with any ideas you have. To those of you that have visited our garden, a quotable statement would be fantastic. It would also be great to hear from those of you with links to different media outlets about any possible interest in running with this story.
You can leave a comment on our blog, or phone Dan on 0422448933. Feel free to forward this email on to anyone you think might have an interest.
Best,
Dan, Adrian and Cat.
Originally from New Zealand, Dan Palmer completed a PhD in philosophy and psychology at Monash University, became completely disillusioned with academe, and is now a passionate student and practitioner of permaculture –- a holistic system for sustainable design. See Dan’s personal blog and the business he is part of.
Traumatic Incident Reduction
Psychotherapy affects the brain
The desperation of young people
I know about Traumatic Incident Reduction (TIR) because I edit all the books published by the organisation that oversees the use of this technique. Although I have not yet done any of the formal courses yet, I have used TIR with several of my clients, always with some benefit, and occasionally with remarkable results.
Psychologists are familiar with the idea that when a trauma leaves lasting effects such as nightmares, avoidance, hypervigilance or phobias, this is because the sufferer has found it too painful to face up to the traumatic events, and has not processed the emotions it aroused. Another way of saying the same thing is that a one-trial classical conditioning situation arose, and the resulting conditioned response needs to be extinguished.
This is why exposure therapies work.
While TIR is an exposure therapy, it has considerable differences from others like systematic desensitisation or EMDR:
TIR is easy to learn for someone already familiar with Rogerian reflective listening plus cognitive-behavioural therapy. As I said, I picked it up from a book, and am doing it competently. However, others will find a course to be essential. Wherever you live, you might find a course run within reasonable distance by checking out http://www.tir.org/. Currently, the only qualified trainer in Australia is Elizabeth Clark, who is in Sydney.
I was prompted to write about TIR because Elizabeth let me know that she is organising her next course. It will run 23rd -26th June 2006. Cost for the 4-day course is $695 if you contact her before 13th May, though if you let her know you got the details from me, she may well extend this. After that date, cost is $825. Location is in Campbelltown in Sydney.
If you are interested, email Elizabeth, or phone her on 0409656979/ 0246843541.
My thanks to Dr Greg Coman for drawing my attention to this.
If you will go to my web site, you can read an article that describes how the myth of 'depression is nothing but a brain chemical imbalance' arose, and has been perpetuated for profit. Now, there is a new research study that nails the coffin shut. Sure: like everything else a human does, depression involves an identifiable brain profile. What this paper shows is that this brain profile is changed by cognitive-behavioural therapy.
CBT is one of the psychological treatments that has known power to help people who are tortured by depression. I am willing to bet that any intervention that lifts depression will achieve the same brain changes.
The article is: Goldapple, K., Segal., Z, Garson, C., Lau, M., Bierling, P., Kennedy, S. & Mayberg, H. (2004). "Modulation of cortical-limbic pathways in major depression". Archives of General Psychiatry, 61, January, pp. 34-41.
The abstract states: "Like other antidepressant treatments, CBT seems to affect clinical recovery by modulating the functioning of specific sites in limbic and cortical regions. Unique directional changes in frontal cortex, cingulate, and hippocampus with CBT relative to paroxetine may reflect modality-specific effects with implications for understanding mechanisms underlying different treatment strategies."
Hey, Bob, my name's Crissie, I'm 15, and I desperately need your help, although I have to admit, I feel guilty loading a stranger with my problems...I feel guilty loading them on anyone at that. Anyway, here's my problem: I have no joy for life. I don't believe in any god, I'm an atheist, and life seems totally pointless to me, and completely devoid of meaning. I'm turning 16 next week, and frankly I'm amazed I've made it thus far without jumping infront of a bus. I feel numb, and worthless, and empty. I think I'm having what people call an existential crisis, and, now that I've reached it, it feels like the ultimate truth, that all those things I enjoyed in the past were distractions from the pointlessness and absurdity of life and existence. I wouldn't care if I were alive or dead, and I've felt this way for well over a year. I feel like every day I'm alive is just a depressing wade through time, which doesn't exist anyway, it's just a concept, an illusion like everything else, like romance, and society, and purpose.
I want to be a psychologist when I grow up, if you manage or care to persuade me that there is something to live for, because I feel like I'm in touch with the madness. No one understands me, they can't see the bigger picture, they can't see their existences from a higher perspective, but I guess it's better that way, because then they can get lost--no, remain lost--in the oblivion, and not worry about these things and enjoy life... It's too late for me though. And I'm a mess... I'm impatient, and I can't have small talk, I can't bare to have to think about things that now seem completely irrelevant. Everything seems superficial and shallow, and I've lost trust in the world-but perhaps trust is a euphemism for naivety...
Everything seems so predictable, and stupid, and selfish and cruel, and insane.The reason I'm telling you all this, is because I think you're the only one who could understand me, and I really hope you do. I feel so alone, and everyone is turning out to be disapointing.
so, goodbye, I hope you reply
much love, genuine love,
from me
Dear Crissie,
What you don't realize is how intelligent you are. I suspect, just from this brief note, that you have the ability to do anything you put your mind to.
This has (rightly) led you to question all the falsehoods of society, including the hypocrisy of those who claim to worship God but do the opposite of what their religion commands.
Most people who go though an existential crisis do so in adulthood. You have reached this turning point before 16 years of age. This is an amazing achievement.
Now it is time to move forward.
By the way, I don't mind you asking me for help. I feel privileged that I get such calls of desperation several times a month, and often I am able to make life a little easier for the other person. In my everyday life, people pay me in order to deal with similar issues, but there again, my joy is in their success, not in the money I earn (although that is useful for paying the bills).
Based on the evidence you have considered so far, you have rejected religion. But that does not mean that life is meaningless and has no purpose.
Suppose there was no God, nothing but us, as byproducts of existence. Well then, we are still capable of creating meaning and purpose. If there is a God, and God is good, then my purpose in life is to be the best human being that faulty, limited little me can be. If there is no God, then the best thing I can do is still to be the best human being that I can be.
A plant grows deep in the forest. It sets flower, but the flower bears no seed. All summer the flower is there, but no-one sees it, not even a bird. Comes the autumn, and the flower dies.
It was still beautiful. It still existed, and had a right to that existence.
To be a good psychologist, it is necessary to have suffered. Otherwise, how can you have empathy for sufferers? You can do no good by being superior and pitying, only by feeling like an equal to your client, although further along the path to a good life. So, look on your current stage as an apprenticeship. You are learning what it is like to feel depressed, to drift rudderless, so that later on, once you have finished your education, you can help others.
Crissie, I also reject organized religion. And I don't believe that there is a Father in the Sky, a Person who pulls the strings of earthly puppets. But I have found a great deal of evidence that there is a God, that there is purpose and meaning. God is not out there, but within in your heart and mine. It is the God within you that looks at society and rejects the craziness. Since that's all you have encountered in your short life, you have rejected everything. But there is more than greed and selfishness and aggression and competition. There is also selfless giving, and hope, and beauty. Look around you. Apart from the creations of humankind, we live on a beautiful planet. And us humans have created beauty too, in visual arts, and music, and dance, and the music of words.
So, Crissie my dear, don't look for meaning and purpose out there, supplied by someone else. Do what I am doing, and look within your heart. It is there.
For me, part of the meaning of my existence is all the kids in the world. You are all my grandchildren.
:)
Bob
Dear Bob... thank you. Thank you so much. For taking your time to write something that has and will continue to change my life, and broaden my mind... You know, I don't know what else to say... I could stop there or I could write you a novel.
You've made me feel happy, something I haven't felt in a long time. You've given me hope for the people in this crazy world by your kindness and selflessness... All the things you wrote have actually altered my perspective on life... Maybe those words were what I've needed.
I'm so grateful to you, and I need you to know that. You're wonderful, and you're also human, amazingly!
Thank you,
With much love, genuinely,
from Crissie
Dear Crissie,
My dear, in turn I thank you. You have made my day. :) We will never meet. I don't know what you look like, where you live, but I know we are two of a kind, kindred spirits doing the same work. Only, I've been around a little longer, a brief eyeblink on the scale of the universe.
When I was your age, I was also terribly depressed, only I didn't even know it. I just 'knew' that I was ugly and stupid and couldn't ever do anything right, and no-one could possibly love me. I filled the gaps in my life by studying hard, and with distance running. And yet, I have built a wonderful life for myself. My wife and I have been married for almost 39 years, I have three wonderful children, and grandchildren you would probably love to have as your friends. I live on a magic mountain in the midst of beauty. Lyrebirds sing and dance outside my window, this year we had so many apples that we couldnt' pick them all, and now the walnuts and chestnuts are falling off the trees.
And add to that the feeling that I have the ability to make a difference for others who are suffering. I am content. And I am confident that, with entirely different details, you can achieve the same.
With genuine love,
Bob
PS , would you give me permission to reproduce an edited version of our correspondence in my newsletter http://mudsmith.net/bobbing.html? Naturally, I'd remove your name and other possibly identifying details. But what we are sharing may help other people too.
:)
Dear Dr. Rich
My name is A. G. I am a 22 year old student in London, UK. I got your email address from your website, the same page that contains Allison's account about an existential crisis. I have similar problems and I was wondering if I could please get some help from you too.
Until August 2005, I was hopeful of a good career lying ahead. I had just completed my exams in university after a long, tense, year. In 2 years I was to become a doctor. I was about to enter one of the more critical years of study, full of confidence. Then it all changed one night. There was no particular event to trigger it.
I was just watching my usual evening tv (the same shows for years) when suddenly i felt that everything around me is temporary. Do i really exist? What is time? We don't know what happens from one moment to the next. ANYTHING can happen. That night, when i went to bed, i was too scared to sleep. What if i don't wake up the next morning? I don't want to go yet. I still have dreams to fulfill!
Even more scared was I for my family. I am very close to my parents. My mind began to endure all the unthinkable thoughts! I couldn't think of anythng else. I found no peace of mind. My studies have been a HUGE struggle. I can't concentrate. If I try, I think 'what's the point?'
I had a very STRONG belief in God. I am Hindu by religion, and I had a strong faith. Admittedly, after over 8 months of struggle, my faith is beginning to waver. I can't honestly say that I have that same faith that I once did. That has gone. Although I am still clinging on by the skin of my teeth. I feel guilty and scared of letting go of religion. Our scriptures, that once gave me incredible peace of mind, now freak me out. The whole concept of God now freaks me out. The uncertainty freaks me out.
Now i have my big finals in a few months time. If i was to snap out of it soon, then i can still fulfill my ambitions by working hard. But at the moment, rather than worrying about those, I'm worried about so many other things, like existence, consciousness, time, etc.
It seems there is no way out. I havent' told my parents. They still think I am my same usual self, but just that I have become a bit more irritable. I don't want to worry them unnecessarily. I haven't confided in anyone since they may refer me to a psychiatrist. I can't sleep at night. I am tired in the day.
It is real agony at the minute. Each passing day and each passing hour seem sooo valuable, yet wasted.
I am really stuck. I don't know where to go. To whom shall i turn? Please advise me and help. This is more a plea of desperation rather than a request.
Thank you for your time and consideration in reading this long account. I really appreciate it. Thanx a lot
from
a. g.
Dear A,
By incredible coincidence, I have had a very similar email from a young girl in America. She wrote that she wants to be a psychologist -- if I can convince her not to commit suicide. This is what I answered her: [Here I reproduced my email to 'Crissie'.]
Dear Dr. Rich
Thank you soo much for your e-mail. That you replied is very much appreciated, and I can't express how grateful I am.
I was interested to read about C. Amazing that she had a similar experience at an even younger age than me.
I never thought of it like that, that my suffering now is what can help me in future. I spent so long worrying about whether or not there will be a tomorrow or a future or is my lifespan ending. But as this has been going on for so long (about 8 months) I am now beginning to realise just how much time i have wasted in worrying. worrying that, in hindsight, has been pointless. If I had spent more time focussed and less time worrying, indeed that time could have been used so much better. So, I found it very encouraging to look at it in that way, that all this will only serve to make me a better doctor myself.
thank you once again.
With regards and best wishes
A. G.
If you do it right, you can boil a kettle on a gas flame, and convert 75% of the energy of the gas into heat in the water. Doing the same with an electric jug will use about 95% of the electricity, wasting only the little heat the jug radiates to the air. All the same, the gas is well over THREE TIMES as efficient.
This is because there is approximately 75% loss during transmission from the power station to your meter box.
A gas fired peak load power station may be able to convert 85% or more of the energy in the gas into electricity. This is then transformed into a very high voltage (to minimise transmission losses). The power is carried over the grid, which consists of tall steel towers that are necessarily anchored into big concrete structures, and a set of cables. When the grid was expanding worldwide, the need drove the price of copper so high that many countries switched to aluminium, even though that has higher power losses, and an incredibly high energy use of manufacture.
At the other end, the voltage is stepped down, then distributed to neighbourhoods, where it is stepped down again. So, by the time it reaches your house, only an average of 25% remains.
Without doubt, the grid is convenient, in equalising power production and matching it to use. It allows for loss of production in one place without disastrous power outages. All the same, in a world of diminishing energy resources, can we afford the convenience at the cost of losing three quarters of the electricity generated?
The obvious solution is to make electricity as close to the point of use as possible. The grid is already there in most places, and can still be used for emergencies. Even if relatively small, dispersed power generating devices are less efficient in using primary energy, the saving in transmission losses more than makes up for this.
A couple of examples are solar power and cogeneration.
The technology now exists for roofing part of a building with photovoltaic panels. Imagine if all the sun-facing roofs of a city (north in the Southern Hemisphere, south in the Northern Hemisphere) were made of solar panels. Currently available ones are pretty good already, but I recently read a research report that nanotechnology has the promise of increasing their efficiency by a fact of three. Each block of houses could have a large interactive inverter, so that electricity can be shared. These inverters are expensive, because they are still a rarity. With widespread use, their price will plummet.
A great many industries generate large amounts of heat. Plastics, glass and ceramics, various metal smelting and processing industries, food preserving and preparation, paper manufacture... for them, getting rid of excess heat is an expensive and potentially polluting problem. This heat can be used to drive turbines.
We need to wake up to the end of cheap energy. Individuals can do lots, but even more is up to business and government.
Intention must always be freed from expectation.
The expression of a good intention must be unconditional.
If intention is associated with expectation, there is no gift in giving, there is no good to be consumed.
Expectations always leads to disappointments, heartache and ultimately to unhappiness.
Just as we must strive to express good intentions, as in giving without condition, we must also learn gratefulness in receiving. Intention once created, flows as if having a life of its own.
While one may give with good intentions, without condition, others may use this intention for their own self-centred reward.
However, one cannot be and is not responsible for the misdirections and ill intentions of others. One may with good intention, give to another and yet the other may not have learnt gratefulness.
Yet, we must not let the other’s ungratefulness deter us from giving, for if we expect gratefulness, our good intention has not escaped expectation.
To many people, a book is a rectangular thing made up of paper with black squiggles on it. Of course, it wasn't always like that. When Gutenberg produced the first printed Bible, it was treated with contempt. A REAL book was made of parchment, meticulously written and illuminated by hand, and unique.
We are in the middle of a similar transition, one I am taking advantage of.
There is a new form for books, one that allows all sorts of new ways of presenting the contents. In principle, you could have theme music, as with a movie. You could have a short book that leads you to more information than a library full of encyclopedias. You could have historical fiction that raises your interest about a time and place--and allows you to learn about the period, its customs, people and events almost instantly.
I am talking about electronic books. You may have gathered that I am enthusiastic about them.
E-books are not just a new, passing fad. In March, e-book publishers reported increases in sales over the same quarter in the previous year (Q2 2004) with a 36% increase in e-books sold and a 69% increase in revenues. Also, publishers reported a 24% increase in titles published over Q2 2004. Publishers reported 484,933 e-books sold and $3,182,499 in revenues for the second quarter of 2005. They also reported 1024 e-books published during this time.
Until now, one of my 13 books was out of print. I have reissued it as an electronic book that if far more than the paper version was.
The book is Woodworking For Idiots Like Me. It is a series of amusing stories, that teaches woodcraft as well. This combination made it difficult to find a publisher initially, but the lucky one made lots out of it: the book sold tens of thousands of copies over a 5-year period. It is now back, at half the price (because costs of production are less for an electronic book), and it uses the logic of the internet to be far, far easier to use.
Have a look at it at http://mudsmith.net/woodcont.html.
Will Greenway on description, Part 2.
Response to 'What is Poetry?' by Dave Mack.
Shirley Martin writes on scenes.
In the last issue, I reproduced with permission Will Greenway's essay on how to use description in writing. This is because his account is so excellent. In this second part, Will gives examples that implement the principles he has described.
There are many effective describing techniques, depending on what you are describing.
The first and most common is the inverted pyramid. The basic idea is that you start with a broad visual, then narrow down to increasingly more specific details. The broad part of the description usually serves as a transition into a descriptive passage and is an introduction to the framework of the description itself. The inverted pyramid is usually for descriptions of places, though it works for people and objects too.
Example construction:
[ Note: This would normally be all in one paragraph but for purposes of illustration and discussion I put each sentence on a separate line.]
(1) Swinging her bucket, Jane stepped out into the bright afternoon light feeling the warmth of spring on her face.
(2) A cool breeze thick with smell of pine sighed in her face.
(3) Tufts of cirrus made streaks overhead like fine strokes from a painter's brush.
(4) Jane's feet crunched on the sandy trail as she followed it down to where the stream gurgled through the rocks.
(5) Crouching to dip the bucket in the water, she paused to enjoy the chorus of chirping birds flitting through the boughs of the trees that leaned over the clearing.
(6) With the bucket full, she was rising to turn back to the house when she caught sight of threads of dark smoke rising up from the stubble of hills across the valley.
(7) Jane felt a twist of unease in her stomach.
(8) It had been months since strangers were in the valley; she hoped they weren't bandits.
This is a fairly elaborate description (150 words), setting up the environs of where the character Jane lives. It starts with a broad introducing passage and ends with hook to tie in to the narrative. The "point" of the pyramid is the detail of the smoke rising in the hills.
-1- The broad introduction, it provides the bucket as a visual prop and gives us the time and the season when this event is occurring.
-2- Two coordinating sensory details (smell and touch).
-3- A decorative joining passage.
-4- Here we move the character in the scene and add another detail (the stream).
-5- The character acts again and we add a third sensory detail (sound).
-6- Action, detail, and a story bridging detail.
-7- Foreshadowing with a physical register.
-8- Coordinating internal narrative that moves the story forward.
The series of three is a "quicky" one-liner type of description that can be surprisingly effective. The idea of this kind of description is to capture a snapshot of something and leave the bulk of the details to be filled in later. It's useful for ancillary walk-on characters, trivial locations and objects.
Example construction:
George was the epitome of a geeky loser, short, round, and bald.
NOTE: With people, the "setup" before the three details is key to the success of this method.
Maleth manor was an enormous monolithic structure with high sloping roofs, massive oak doors, and tiny slit windows.
Rick's new car looked fast--it was long and sleek, with shiny chrome-moly rims tucked under wrap around fenders.
This is another kind of one-liner description used for people. It is a "nutshell" description to capture the essence of a character's personality. It has a simple format "(He/She) was the kind of person who ." The creative part is the nutshell detail given.
Example construction(s):
She was the type of girl who cried at weddings and funerals, loved puppies and children, and would have died before violating her oath of service.
He was the kind of man who thought with his fists and thirsted for pain.
He was the kind of man who put himself before others, slow to anger, but quick to smile.
Another mechanism for snapshots of people, this technique uses a simile to give a quick descriptive "kick".
Example construction(s):
Hugh was a knuckle-dragging ape of a man built like a fire-plug. He had a square face with the lifeless eyes of a shark and the sallow-gray skin of vampire.
Mary was a pixie of a woman with big eyes and a tiny voice.
The first thing the came to mind when seeing Jack was an unkempt wolf, shaggy hair, long face, and shabby clothes.
Here the writer usually uses an already established character as a foil, typically by describing how the two people are alike / unalike. This can be particularly effective in-character with a protagonist making a comparison to another. It is most often done is narrative exposition however.
Example construction(s):
Unlike busty blonde Sally, Rita was dark-haired and petite, with I-dare-you blue eyes.
John towered over most men, he felt cramped in doorways and the majority of beds; a veritable bull in the china-closet of life.
We went through 5 mechanisms and these examples (or combinations thereof) pretty much cover most of the types of description you may do as writer. The key thing is not the descriptions themselves, but making them work in the framework of your story.
First published in 1983, Will Greenway started his creative career wanting to draw and script comics. After a number of years, he found writing better suited to his skills. Aside from writing and art, Will is a self-taught programmer, PC technician, and network troubleshooter. He enjoys skiing, racquetball, Frisbee golf, and is steadfast supporter of role-playing games. To date he has completed eighteen novels, more than twenty short stories, and numerous articles on writing. He resides in the Spring Valley suburb of south San Diego.
Two issues ago, I wrote an essay about my understanding of poetry. Cheryl O'Brien responded in the last issue. Here is another contribution.
I wish to say a few things in response to ‘What is Poetry.’ Late in life, I was given the opportunity to study poetry. Until then, poetry was not poetry unless it rhymed. I was required to read contemporary work and, at first, I found much of it to appear prosaic. I think the reason was, subconsciously, I was looking for the end rhyme that I was conditioned to. However, gradually, I started to hear the poetic rhythms and now I am addicted.
In the hands of a poor poet, rhyming poetry is stilted and doggerel; and poor contemporary work can seem like chopped-up prose. Composed by a good poet, both flow. In prose, poetic devices are lost in a sea of words, while in poetry, their intended use rings out subliminally. The poet takes an idea, condenses it, takes its basic elements and constructs a poem, so that when read it renders more for the reader than the sum of its parts. This is true of all good poetry. So, what is this free extra we, the reader, get from the words? As with all art it is difficult to define: it is a matter of taste. Like music, or a fine mosaic, it is what appeals to the inner senses, the soul.
Forgive the poem (I didn’t say I was a poet), but it details devices used in a considered and deliberate way by poets. While prose writers use some of them, they are the main toolbox used by poets to make poetry poetry.
Thoughts on Poets and Poetry.
The poet needs to send the senses singing,
with metered beat and tempo ringing
through all the corridors of his creation,
or enjambed lines that shift and speed
and when the need, slow and heavy punctuation,
bringing to the new creation a sad
and sombre dirge.
By the craft of his design,
he must plant emotions in the mind,
animated with assonance and alliteration,
that hails our hearts with evocation,
teasing the mind with strong metaphor,
shouting onomatopoeic roar,
or using simile, so we see with clarity,
the complete meaning of the story.
The poet in his scheme must paint a picture,
plan the plot and play the music of the theme,
so to let the reader see the sadness,
gladness, madness of his dream. Thrusting
stark images into view,
or trusting the reader to construe,
by shade of nuance,
the spectres that lurk beneath the shell,
so on the lifting of the blind, we dwell
in the poets very mind and realize
that from his verse his visions, too, we visualize.
A scene is a unit of action within a chapter. By action, we don't necessarily mean a gun fight or a battle, although it can be either. But something has to happen within a scene. It has to affect an outcome that changes the thrust of your story. At the end of a scene, something has to be different than it was at the beginning. The scene must deal with either goal, motivation, or conflict. It can deal with all three, but it must affect one of these components. Besides that, a scene should have at least two other reasons for inclusion in a chapter. These reasons can be to introduce a new character, a crucial fight or battle, comic relief, a love scene that changes the hero's feelings for the heroine or vice versa. There are many other reasons for scenes. You need use only your imagination to think of them.
You can't have two people discussing the weather unless the weather influences the plot. If the characters are discussing the weather, there must be a reason. They are planning a crucial night mission and need dark clouds and no moonlight. Nor can you have two people driving around admiring the scenery, such as I read in a critique group. You might have a character pointing out the mountains and telling the other that those mountains hold many caves, "a good place for stashing our supplies."
A chapter can be just one scene or more than one. Please don't make the same mistake as I did with my first couple books and have many short scenes. You should never pad a scene, but at the same time, it should have enough substance to it that extends it for more than just one or two paragraphs. Occasionally you will see one short scene within a chapter, and that's fine if it accomplishes some purpose. But avoid, as much as possible, many short scenes. By the same token, a chapter can have as many scenes as the author considers necessary to get his points across.
When writing a chapter, at the beginning of each, make a list of what you want the reader to know. Most likely, this list will lend itself to scenes, and you can build your chapter from that.
Shirley Martin loves to read and write. Her novels include historicals, a vampire romance, time travel romance, and fantasy romances. She lives with her two cats in Miami Shores, Florida. Walking is a favorite exercise, and she enjoys growing orchids and other plants. She has three grown sons and three grandchildren.
Check out her website at http://www.shirleymartin.net.
In the Shadow of Suribachi
Dream Pictures
Concepts to Make Bookfairs Work for Authors
Conference: From stars to brains.
Hugs, Hope and Peanut Butter
“In a way, I began writing In the Shadow of Suribachi when I was a child and my father suffered a nervous breakdown,” author Joyce Faulkner says. “Twelve years after the Battle of Iwo Jima, the stress of those thirty-six days haunted his days and nights.”
A book that crosses many lines, In the Shadow of Suribachi is a literary novel, a great war story and carefully researched historical fiction. It’s also a heartrending journey into the souls of America’s warriors.
"This is a book that will remain etched in the reader's own memory, for many years to come." ~ Hugh Rosen, author of the novel, Silent Battlefields.
"Ms. Faulkner's book is a literary novel of the first class. It appears that nothing is impossible to her pen, and no feeling, impression, or picture is beyond the power of her words. Your heart will ache for these young men and break when confronted with their deaths." ~Sylvia Cochran, Roundtable Reviews
"...one of those rare books that compelled me to read almost non-stop...[it] should be required reading for upper grades in high school and college. As a veteran of the Pacific Theatre of Operations in W.W.II, I can vouch for the portrayal of painful conditions in that theatre... a masterful accomplishment" -- A. J. Harris MD, FACS
If you read nothing else this year, read this book.
www.intheshadowofsuribachi.com.
Las Vegas, Nevada -– Local author Carrie Lynn Lyons will be signing copies of her debut novel, “Dream Pictures,” at B. Dalton Booksellers in the Boulevard Mall, 3680 South Maryland Parkway, on Saturday, May 27, from noon to 3:00 PM.
“Dream Pictures,” published by Mundania Press, is the story of a young girl with psychic powers who is swept up into the strange world of a traveling carnival after the brutal murder of her parents. It is book one of the “Carnival Soul Trilogy.”
“Dream Pictures” is available in stores and on Amazon.com. and other online venues. Lyons will make promotional copies available to all interested reviewers and media outlets.
Carrie Lynn Lyons grew up in Southern Utah and has lived in Las Vegas since 1977. She is also the founder of the online Writers and Readers Network, as well as the editor of the Writing Road newsletter.
Sometimes big ideas start small and grow up. A loosely knit group of cooperating authors came together in 2003 at a bookfair; they found their cross-promotional effort worked better than previous endeavors but still left much to be desired.
Since then one of those authors, Carolyn Howard-Johnson, put this learning experience and hundreds more promoting her own books into a nitty-gritty how-to book for authors called The Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't. When she found her readers wanted more direction, she published an e-zine that keeps them up-to-date on new promotion ideas and book news. That grew into Authors' Coalition where writers and publishers come together to learn in an ever-changing and puzzling industry.
Now a formal entity with a website of its own, Authors' Coalition introduced themselves--formally-- to writers in Southern California at the LA Times Festival of Books in April of 2006.
The group's booth -- itself a model for authors -- included more than 30 authors. Unlike most booth concepts, this one showcased authors using value-added efforts to make it a success. These include a catalog of the featured books for booksellers, and a promotional CD that given to booth visitors and the media. The booth also limited the number of featured authors so that each could be highlighted.
Authors' Coalition also serves as a web-presence for its members with ad space and reviews for participating authors. The organizations educate with a blog, offers short-run support materials that can be tailored to a specific event, free writing-related e-books and more.
Authors' Coalition founder, Howard-Johnson, is an award-winning literary author and poet and her how-to book won USA Book News' "Best Professional Book 2004" and the Book Publicists of Southern California's Irwin Award. She also co-produces a series of audios for writers published by Double Dragon Press.
Principals in the organization include Joyce Faulkner and Pat Avery, editors and publishers of Red Engine Press, and Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author, publicist and instructor for UCLA Extension's Writers' Program. The growing support team also includes Kristie Leigh Maguire, publisher of JadaStar Publish.
More information on the participants can be found at:
http://redenginepress.com
http://www.tlt.com/authors/carolynhowardjohnson.htm
http://starpublish.com
More information on the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books may be found at. http://www.latimes.com/extras/festivalofbooks/.
The Australian National University and the Australian Academy of Sciences are co-sponsoring a conference to honour Professor Paul Davies.
'From Stars to Brains: pathways to consciousness in the natural world’ has an impressive list of speakers. If you can be in Canberra on 20-21 June, 2006, you might want to look it up on the Manning Clark House web site.
DISCOURAGED? NEED A LAUGHTER BREAK?
"Hugs, Hope, and Peanut Butter" hits the spot.
Who hasn't faced tough times, disappointment, and discouragement? Author Marsha Jordan has; and she shares her secrets to coping in her new book Hugs, Hope, and Peanut Butter. Jordan created a nonprofit charity for sick kids, The Hugs and Hope Foundation, and her book of inspirational, humorous essays is illustrated with forty heart-warming drawings by sick kids.
Jordan (a.k.a. The Peanut Butter Queen) has battled chronic illness herself for most of her life. In her book, she combines hope with humor while sharing her experiences and the lessons she's learned from them. "I want to give readers hope in tough times and courage to persevere," Jordan says. "I want to uplift and encourage anyone dealing with the difficulties of life. And isn't that EVERY one?"
"Pain is never easy," says Jordan. "But it's more bearable with the healing power of laughter." Hugs, Hope, and Peanut Butter recounts with hilarious commentary the author's search for the perfect purse, camping adventures, her badly behaved toy poodle, and her experience with a new magnifying mirror. Other essay topics include everything from spouses, wild bears, and a day in the emergency room, to in-laws, car accidents, and pet pigs. Some chapter titles include, "Limburger Attitude, "The Joy of Shopping," "Is Broccoli Hazardous?" and "Life in the Manure Pile."
The book also addresses some serious questions like why bad things happen to good people. Drawing upon her own life-long battle with the illness, Jordan outlines ten tips for fighting depression.
Hugs, Hope, and Peanut Butter is available for $15.95 through the Hugs and Hope Foundation's web site at www.hugsandhope.org/pb.
I never wonder
What happened to the child
I used to be
He simply grew up
And became the man I call me
But what happened
To all the butterflies he used to chase
And all the grassy hills
That used to scratch his back
While he watched elephants and tigers
Float across the sky
In a cotton candy race
What happened
To all those warm winter days
And all those double feature cowboys
Who rode across the popcorn dark
From noon to four on Saturdays
What happened
To all those Tarzans
Who had to promise his mother
They wouldn't get grass stains on his jeans
And all those white sheet ghosts and goblins
Who ate all the candy
On the day after Halloween
Did they grow up, too
Or did they die
All those elephants
And goblins and butterflies
I know I wanted to be
A grown man someday
But it still seems like a terrible price
For a little boy to pay
Larry Pontius
Waking Walt
Is Walt Disney still out there somewhere in cryonic suspension?
www.wakingwalt.com
He is gone now, for almost ten years, but he won't be forgotten. Yuri Vladimirovich Nikulin was born on December 18th 1921 in Moskovski Oblast (Moscow Region) into a poor family. He died on August 21st 1997 in Moscow. At the time of his death he was the most famous clown and comedian in Russia, and one of the best known entertainers in Eastern Europe. Over 100,000 people stood in line for hours to pay their last respects as he lay in state... not in the grand hall of the Kremlin to which he was entitled, but in the center ring of the circus that he loved and devoted his life to. To millions alive and millions yet to be born he will always be "our beloved clown".
Nikulin served in the Soviet Army during the Second World War, rising to the rank of sergeant. Once the war ended, he applied to several acting schools and theatres but was rejected due to "lacking artistic talent". In one case he was rejected by a school on the grounds that he had a "stupid face". One prominent film director went so far as to recommend in a very caustic manner that Nikulin apply to the school of Circus. Yuri Vladimirovich took this seriously and upon application was immediately accepted into Moscow School of Circus. Upon graduation he obtained a position at the Moscow Circus on the Flower Boulevard (Tsvetnoi Bulvar) and remained there for more than 50 years, rising from clown to CEO. Ironically, for years this director attempted to obtain Nikulin for a series of movies. Nikulin refused each request, citing his own "lack of artistic talent" and "stupid face". Nikulin considered himself a comedian rather than a "clown" and popularized the style of clown which does not utilize the traditional heavy "clown" make up, but relied on the talent of the performer to obtain laughs form the audience.
His most popular films include comedies Brilliantovaia Ruka 12 Stulyev, Stariki-Razboiniki, and many others, but he was also acclaimed for his roles in Andrey Tarkovsky's Andrei Rublev and several films on the Second World War themes (Sergei Bondarchuk's They Were Fighting for Homeland). In Russia, he's also well-known for his playing 'Balbes' in a popular film series about a petty criminal trio. The most notable of the films in this series "Prisoners of the Caucassus" was awarded high honors and much critical acclaim at Caans when it was released in the late 1950s.
Yuri Vladimirovich Nikulin was awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR in 1973, and of Hero of Socialist Labour in 1990. In 1992 he was awarded the title "Hero of the Russian Federation" for his participation in the August Revolt of 1991. In 1995 he was awarded the title of "People's Artist of the Russian Federation" in recognition for lifetime achievement He was succeeded in his office at the Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoi Bulvar by his son. There is a bronze monument to him in front of the circus, which now bears his name.
In the years before the demise of the Soviet Union when the word "Nomancultura" (the hidden class) had meaning, Yuri Nikulin would most definitely have fit into this category. By all local statdards he was a rich man. He walked in the halls of power, and associated with those who held the reins of power in one of the largest nations on earth. He was a man who was entitled to privlege and prestiege and could have had all of the trappings of the "elite". Instead, Nikulin remained a simple man. He chose to live in the same building, in the same apartment that he had first moved into with his wife at the end of the Second World War. He refused the ZiL limousine and driver. He was a common sight, not in the "special" shops for the elite, but in the same neighborhood shops and stores used by everyone in his block, chatting with old friends and carrying his purchases home in brown paper bags.
Nikulin was a man of note, but he avoided notoriety. He was never seen in any of Moscow's many famous bars and clubs, but was often to be found sitting quietly in the courtyard of his apartment building, sharing a bottle of vodka or having a beer with his old friends from the war or some of his neighbors. While many men of his stature, even at an advanced age, would often be seen in the company of a bevy of young starlets and those seeking fame by being seen with the famous, Nikulin would be seen sedately walking around the block, with his wife of sixty years, and their little dog.
Yuri Nikulin was noted as a humanitarian, and even years after the end of State subsidies to his circus, would go personally to each orphanage and children's hospital in Moscow Region to distribute passes to the circus to each child and to arrange for traveling troups to entertain those children who were not physically able to attend a performance. It is perhaps the most fitting testimonial to this great comedian's character that in the half century in which he was affiliated with the Central Moscow Circus, no child wishing to see the circus was ever turned away from the doors of the Moscow Circus for lack of money for a ticket. This, more than anything else, speaks for the life of Yuri Nikulin, the entertainer and the man.
He is gone now. He has been gone for almost ten years. But, he will not be forgotten. In a way, he will never die. Yuri Vladimirovich Nikulin will live as long as there is Circus in Moscow and those who love and enjoy good, wholesome, clean entertainment. He will live as long as there are those who understand that dignity, honor and humility in the human spirit transcend fame and fortune. To millions alive and millions yet to be born he will always be "our beloved clown".
Dr. Jim Choron will be well known to subscribers, because he is a regular contributor to 'Bobbing Around'. He was (I think) a Lieutenant Colonel, and has been a long-time journalist residing in Russia. While a patriotic American, he also has a deep love and understanding of the Russian people, and sees himself as a bridge between the two cultures.
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