187. autumn, tenderness
October 24th, 2009 § 3 Comments
Sea Pony fascinator, DIY crystal chandelier necklace, London Times dress
As Jenny indicated by her beautiful Iowa-autumn photograph, the leaves, they are a-turnin’ in our neck of the woods (i.e., the Midwest).
I’m working double-time on my novel/thesis at present, and so my mind is, at present, absorbed in issues of tenderness and desire and obsession, which are all obviously universal feelings — though they may be exaggerated in my (immigrant Gothic) novel. Yesterday I worked on trying to make a particular sex scene twice as long as it previously was. I won’t get into details, but the protagonist finally becomes intimate with the object of his obsession, and in workshop people expressed their concern that my first draft of the scene was too short, especially given the level of his obsession. So being absorbed in that world, the semi-coercive nature of the scene, the toxic/pathetic world of this protagonist’s head (as one of my classmates said, “he’s a baaaaad boy”), and doing all of this while being holed up in my dark, dark apartment makes for some, uh, weird living.
One thing that’s really been helping me lately is finally getting around to reading Anna Karenina, which Hanna prescribed to me as the cure for my primary writerly ailment (my tendency to be overly perfunctory/minimalist). And so now I think I’m getting more into issues of breadth and depth. Good stuff.
I’m off to have a working brunch now with Miriam. We’re going to discuss her novel and eat brunch together — hopefully an auspicious beginning to the day…
Have a beautiful Saturday –
xo, mw
granny chic!
Brunch + Tolstoy = fail-safe cure for that pesky inhibiting perfectionist within!
Good luck expanding that sexy scene!!!
Love the velvet!
perhaps you might like “memoirs of a beatnik” by diane diprima. i think its a great book and the scenes described in it are rather intense, but incredible. i highly suggest taking a peak!
i would love the chance to read your novel once your thesis is done. would you mind posting when youre done? maybe i can find it in a bookstore!
best of luck in all your creative endeavors!