2003-05-21
2003-05-21 - 3:15 p.m.
I've been thinking it's time to start writing again. There's a certain cynicism behind this; doesn't everyone write when they go through a breakup? I'll grant that my motivation is unfortunate, but that doesn't mean it won't serve a purpose. And I've been known to pull together something decent once in a decade. Also, this was a piece of J and I that worked well. The first two years we took classes together, egged each other on, criticized each others' work constructively, and became better writers. Today it came clear to me that I don't need him in order to write; I still hold the skills we developed. Time to use them. With this in mind, I spent some online time today looking for helpers. This site came up via Google. Many, many thanks to the creator. Of the prompts I viewed, my mind's been tickled by "What kind of animal are you beneath your human skin?" On another day I would have passed; the question has connotations of bad personal ads on Match.com. Today found me in the right place. I've been thinking about myself as a member of the most inexplicable species. Why exactly do we have the ability to choose? Do our opposable thumbs serve a purpose beyond that of gripping? Are we still affected by pheromones?* Rather than answer the above prompt by saying, "I'm a tiger; I'm dangerous when hungry and protective of my pack", there seems to be a more layered, interesting answer at work in my brain. If any words of reasonable interest come out of my response to the prompt, I'll let you know. For now, if you're looking for ideas, hit the site and keep clicking until something strikes you. Make lists of adjectives and nouns, then match them up nonsensically. Be silly. Be free. *Barbara Kingsolver has an interesting take on this question in her recent book, Prodigal Summer. I owe my interest to her.
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