It's inevitable, I guess, that anyone who's involved with stories and story-telling will run into Scheherazade from One Thousand and One Nights fairly regularly. She gets around - is a wonderful character/icon/role model/mentor [select whichever you prefer]. Last week she seemed to be popping up everywhere and I even bumped into her a couple of times when I was down the street.
The first time was when I was browsing Eva Luna by Isabel Allende in the local bookshop, which got me thinking about how often her tale is used by story-tellers, but then, just a few hours later, she appeared at a book launch on the other side of the street.
Brian Edwards' latest collection of poetry, In the Real World (Papyrus), was launched at Wishart's Art Gallery, and not only is Scheherazade made the subject of the last poem in the book - given the last word in effect - but she's also featured on the cover (from an Arthur Streeton painting).
It was a fine evening because it's always good to meet new people and talk about literature and art, and to hear a few poems being read over a glass or two of something. I've only just started dipping into this collection of what seem to be prosaic poems on the whole, but am looking forward to the journey that Brian Edwards' writing seems set to take me on.
On the subject of local writers, I read Jodie Honan's A Natural History of Port Fairy and District last week. It's a dry title, but the writing is far from dry and Jodie Honan tells a tremendous story - entertaining, informative and superbly written.
Was flat-chat across the weekend editing At the Rawlings' Place for Ten Journeys (Legend Press) and have decided I'm a big fan of the Review aspect in Microsoft Word. Haven't used this program much in the past, but all the edits I've been working through lately for The Grease Monkey's Tale and At the Rawlings' Place have made heavy use of this feature and it's making the process a comfortable one.
3 comments:
Paul:
Some time I feel so ignorant when I read about a certain book in your posts that I have never heard of. And that's reason number one for why I read your blog, enlightenment.
As to short stories, I have read a lot of Capote, Stegner, and Shulz.
Happy trails.
It's reciprocated enlightenment then, Swubird, which is one of the prime benefits of blogdom for me. It's all about being open to new ideas, interpretations, different ways of doing things, isn't it? Your blog, along with the other half dozen I regularly visit, all provide that for me, so thanks.
As for Capote, Stegner and Shulz, I must follow through on these. Was picking up Capote's 'In Cold Blood' the other day, when I was also looking at 'Eva Luna', but put it off for the time-being. Really must get back to that, as I'm a fan of American writers in particular (Carver, Ford and Hemingway being at the top of my short story writers list).
Think I'll give that Review tool a go, Paul. Anything to make editing easier.
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