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Dialogue with my muse |
| I have been carrying on a dialogue for almost a year. During this time we have discussed the progress of my writing, editing, and publishing efforts. Join in to listen to our conversation about my daily writing life and add your comments if you think of anything Calliope and I miss. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. I wondered what became of you the past few days. JOE: I thought you might. I took my computer in for service and thought I could use my backup computer to contact you. CALLIOPE: What happened? JOE: It's a long story. Suffice it to say that it took me until now to get Internet service working on my backup computer. CALLIOPE: Glad to have you back. What's been going on? JOE: I spent Saturday and Sunday at Honeoye Lake, one of the Finger Lakes, with Carol and friends. CALLIOPE: A little vacation? JOE: Very short but quite enjoyable. CALLIOPE: Any work on your writing? JOE: I did some reading, more of Poisonwood Bible. I also wrote in my journal but that's about it. CALLIOPE: Where do things stand with Marital Property? JOE: My backup copy is not quite up to date so I will wait until I get my good computer back, hopefully tomorrow. CALLIOPE: An in the mean time? JOE: I have some cleaning and organizing to do around the house. I think I will work on that for today. I'll talk with you tomorrow if everything is still working. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you feeling today? JOE: Much better than yesterday. CALLIOPE: How so? JOE: I think I was suffering from writing withdrawal for a while. Yesterday I wrote a column and worked on revisions for Marital Property. By the end of the day I felt like a writer again. CALLIOPE: Maybe you're right. Writing seems to have gotten into your bones. JOE: I seem lost without it. I think writing has become part of my identity. CALLIOPE: What are you working on today? JOE: I posted my column this morning and started work on Marital Property. I also visited a few writer sites and found I had neglected to post two stories, Child Bride and Or Not To Be on Writer's Cafe. I would like to get them up today as well. CALLIOPE: You seem to have plenty of irons in the fire. JOE: Astute observation. It's what keeps me feeling alive. Sometimes I wish I could just relax and not feel pressure to accomplish anything. CALLIOPE: Why don't you try it? JOE: Every time I do, I get restless after a day or two as I did this week. I guess I just need to keep busy. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today? JOE: Getting back into the routine. Yesterday was taken up with financial arrangements and other tasks which kept me from my literary endeavors. CALLIOPE: And today? JOE: I couldn't face you until I had at least finished my column for this Saturday. I wrote it on Dealing with Stress and Its Discontents. CALLIOPE: Vaguely reminiscent of Freud. JOE: Very astute. I have never been a great fan of Freud but I found a couple provocative statements in the introduction to Civilization and Its Discontents which formed the basis for my column. CALLIOPE: What, pray tell, were the statements? JOE: One was that people would rather suffer than change. The other was that as long as there is culture people will be unhappy. CALLIOPE: Rather pessimistic I'd say. JOE: That was my first reaction as well. I went on to explain how much of our stress seems to arise from our unrealistic expectations about life. CALLIOPE: That's it? JOE: No. I suggested some alternative ways of viewing and handling our life circumstances. CALLIOPE: That's better. I'm looking forward to reading it. JOE: You will find it on my website on Saturday. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today? JOE: Ready to get back to my routine after a whirlwind few days. Yesterday was taken up with chauffeur and yard work duties. CALLIOPE: What's on the agenda for today? JOE: I have a column to write. CALLIOPE: Have you chosen a topic? JOE: I had an idea about addressing stresses and strategies. CALLIOPE: What do you plan to say? JOE: I said it was an idea. It sounds catchy but I'm not sure what I will say yet. I guess I will have to start writing and see what comes out. CALLIOPE: Sometimes that's the best approach. Any other ideas in the hopper? JOE: I have been wondering about all the murders and suicides, sometimes at the same time. I think I would like to explore this more before writing about it. I also wonder about people rushing to get somewhere and missing the experience of life in the process. CALLIOPE: Sounds like you have enough ideas for a while. JOE: I guess I do. I will just need to let them percolate until I am ready to address them. CALLIOPE: Sounds reasonable. Good luck with all of them. JOE: And your inspiration is also appreciated. Talk with you to tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. I thought we were to talk on Saturday. JOE: We were. However it turned out to be a nicer day than I thought it would be and I decided to go the air show with my son. CALLIOPE: I guess I can't compete with family. What's going on in your writer life? JOE: I continued the theme I started last week, evaluating where I am with my life, including my writing life. CALLIOPE: Have you reached any conclusions yet? JOE: Not really. I don't want to rush the process. There's no hurry. CALLIOPE: I guess not. Any work on your writing? JOE: Not this weekend. I have been busy with people- Air Show, church, visiting friends. CALLIOPE: It's good to be with people. As I recall that was one of the areas of your life you wanted to expand. JOE: Correct. I also had a chance to do some reading- Poisonwood Bible and The Power and the Glory. CALLIOPE: I don't recall you mentioning the second book. JOE: I haven't. It is about the abuse of power in the reign of Pope John Paul II, whom many people revere as a saint. CALLIOPE: What does the book say? JOE: Despite the reputation, he ruled with a conservative iron fist. That was not a surprise. The papacy certainly has had a checkered history. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today? JOE: Fine. I'm off to a good start. CALLIOPE: Tell me about it. JOE: I have been thinking that it's time to consider where my life is headed and whether I'm satisfied with my direction. CALLIOPE: How far did you get? JOE: Not very far other than having the idea. I thought about it this morning and remembered the guided journal, What Really Matters to Me by Robyn Conley-Weaver. CALLIOPE: Did you complete the assignments? JOE: No. I just started the journal. I think that was when I switched to a regular journal and eventually to our conversations. CALLIOPE: So now what? JOE: I will review the journal. I think it might give me a framework for re-evaluating where I stand right now and where I'm headed. CALLIOPE: Sounds like a good idea. Why now? JOE: Several reasons. I am planning a move fairly soon and I have been weeding out the detritus of my life- deciding what to keep and what to discard. That has brought to mind reconsidering my life direction. I also feel a little unfocused and sometimes overwhelmed by my daily activities. Time to get organized. CALLIOPE: I'm all for it. JOE: I plan to start this morning. I'll keep you posted. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today? JOE: Okay. I am coming to some resolution of my video camera mystery. CALLIOPE: How so? JOE: I visited the dealer yesterday and learned that the camera is working fine. The problem seems to be with my computer. CALLIOPE: Does that surprise you? JOE: Not really. I have been having some other problems lately and think it might well be difficulty with an outmoded operating system. CALLIOPE: And the solution? JOE: Replace it with a more up to date one. It is rather a bother however since I will have to reload all my programs. CALLIOPE: Is that such a big deal? JOE: Not really. It just takes time, and time is something I have been thinking about lately. CALLIOPE: In what regard? JOE: I am beginning to realize I won't live forever. I can keep sailing on or decide how I want to spend whatever time I have left. CALLIOPE: Do you need to make a decision? JOE: Probably not. But I feel I am drifting lately and would like to be more focused. I will give this issue some thought in the next few days. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What's been keeping you? JOE: I have been working on my camera problem, trying to get it to work with my computer again. CALLIOPE: And? JOE: No luck. Just a lot of frustration. CALLIOPE: What's you next move? JOE: I plan to talk with the dealer about it. CALLIOPE: Sounds like a plan. What's going on in the mean time? JOE: Further work on revising Marital Property to a first person account. CALLIOPE: How's it going? JOE: I think I like the results. I had planned to review each part from the point of view of the narrator as I went along. CALLIOPE: You didn't follow through? JOE: Not yet. I tried it but decided it was too hard to revise and evaluate at the same time. CALLIOPE: What's your new plan? JOE: My new plan is to concentrate on one thing at a time. First I will finish the revisions and then reread the text from the point of view of the various narrators. CALLIOPE: Sounds good to me. JOE: Me too. It just takes a long time. Sometimes I get frustrated with the process. But I'll keep on plugging. Back to work. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good Morning Joe. How are you this morning? JOE: Fine. I'm ready to go to work. CALLIOPE: What's on the agenda today? JOE: I plan to work some more on my video for The Pastor's Inferno. CALLIOPE: Any progress with it? JOE: I am still sorting out the technical challenges. This is still a fairly new skill for me. CALLIOPE: Anything else going on? JOE: Just work on revision of Marital Property. CALLIOPE: How is that going? JOE: I'm happy with it. CALLIOPE: Tell me about it. JOE: I am continuing to write in the first person present tense. Other writing I have seen in this style limits each chapter to one narrator. I have been experimenting with multiple narrators in the same chapter. I am happy with it but will see what some of my readers think. It's uncharted territory for me. CALLIOPE: Sounds exciting. It's always interesting to break new ground. You realize that some readers might be jarred by the break with tradition don't you? JOE: I do. But I'm prepared for it. Then I will need to decide if it's too new. Back to work. Talk with you tomorrow. |
| JOE: Good morning Calliope. CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today? JOE: Fine. CALLIOPE: Did you do anything exciting over the weekend? JOE: No. I was ready for an uneventful one. I spent it reading and relaxing. CALLIOPE: What are you reading these days? JOE: I finished Lee Child's novel, Nothing to Lose and am working on a rereading of The Poisonwood Bible. CALLIOPE: Still working on on your voice for Marital Property? JOE: Yes. But I have decided I like the first person approach and plan to complete revision from this perspective. CALLIOPE: Glad you like the change. Anything going on in marketing? JOE: I have a draft for my video, Are You Afraid of This Book. Now I am working on the technology. One approach provides better video and the other better sound. I am looking for an approach which provides both. CALLIOPE: Have you discovered one? JOE: I think my video camera would work best but it is being uncooperative at the moment and will not connect to my computer. CALLIOPE: Have you narrowed down the problem? JOE: I have pretty well decided it is the camera. The cord and computer seem to be working okay. Maybe I'll take it to the shop. Talk with you tomorrow. |
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I just tell them to go get a life...
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