Dear readers,
I'm now officially looking for guest bloggers. No I can not pay anyone for their contribution but have decided I love the idea of adding the point of view of other writers or just people in general who are passionate about something relevant to the blog and want to write about it. This call for guest bloggers isn't representative of R.M.R's Writing Space becoming something it's not so much as a need for it to advance as a blog. If and when I get guest writers R.M.R's Writing Space will stick to its usual content with myself as the lead writer but I'm wanting to also include other writers with all levels of background in writing as occasional, guest writers. R.M.R's Writing Space is a five year old blog documenting my journey as someone pursuing writing and working on the occasional creative project. It also includes opinion pieces on writing, theatre, movies, and music. I like alternative perspectives so don't send me an article on the latest in celebrity gossip or a rant about how much you love the latest teen music sensation. I admire originality, flamboyant quirkiness, people who tell stories fearlessly from a point of view that's raw and often challenging to showcase publicly, and experimentation so if any of that sounds like you then welcome home and I'd love to include your writing on my blog! R.M.R's Writing Space used to also be the first peek at fiction works in progress but that's no longer a smart idea so I'm no longer including any fiction or poetry. If interested email me at: rmayrichings@gmail.com ideally with what you're thinking of writing about based on the above criteria but if you don't have an ideas I'm sure we can work something out, brainstorming ideas with people is something I'm happy to do and love doing.
all the best,
your usual blogger,
Rosemary
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Sunday, June 9, 2013
special indie record label profile: arts &crafts records: top 8 of the last 10
This week marks the 10 year anniversary of Toronto indie record label arts & crafts records. In honour of this occasion I've developed a top eight of the last ten albums by musicians who are part of arts & crafts records. Arts & Crafts records is a Toronto indie record label founded by members of Toronto alternative rock band, Broken Social Scene. Two of Broken Social Scene's first two albums: "You Forgot It In People" and "Feel Good Lost" were two of the earliest records to be produced as part of the Arts & Crafts record label. Over the last ten years Broken Social Scene has become the face of Toronto alternative arts culture and an important part of the Toronto indie music scene. The quality of their music is debatable(I'm a fan but some of you might disagree with me) but it's important to note that some key bands that are currently thriving which are a part of the Toronto music scene both nationally and internationally have emerged out of the Broken Social Scene collective such as Feist, Metric, and Stars started off their careers as members of Broken Social Scene (and a long list of other Toronto bands as well). Arts & Crafts records has a lot of great Toronto musicians part of their label as well: Jason Colette, Hayden, Stars, Feist, Timbre Timbre, Belle Orchestre, Still Life Still, Dan Managan, The Hidden Cameras, Los Campensinos,Gentleman Reg are some of many artists to have their records produced by Arts & Crafts records.
Top eight list of records affiliated with Arts & Crafts:
1. "You Forgot It In People" By: Broken Social Scene:
It's appropriate that this record is at number one simply because this is the record that started a record label in the Arts &Crafts glory days. I'm not saying that they've got any worse in fact I believe the opposite. This is one of Broken Social Scene's best records of all time because it's the perfect blend of everything they're good at: trippy instrumentals reminiscent of their first record, "Feel Good Lost" and K.C Accidental style rock and roll meets jazz style instrumentation, pop solos by Emily Haines, Amy Millan, and Feist, and tunes such as "Almost Crimes" and "Lover's Spit" that BSS is famous for.
Song Highlights: "Shampoo Suicide", "Anthems For A Seventeen Year Old Girl", "Almost Crimes", and "I'm Still Your Fag":
2. "Let It Die" By Feist:
Feist records "The Reminder" and "Metals" are the ones that got all the hype and won all the Junos but this record which comes from early on in Feist's career is the one that I'd argue is Feist's all time best. "The Reminder" and "Metals" were much more heavily produced musically. That didn't necessarily take away the quality but heavy production is overlooking two of Feist's greatest strengths: the powerful nature of her singing voice and the rawness of the style of her music and her songwriting. "Let It Die" allows Feist's music to shine and thrive because it does what all Feist records should do: be organically powerful through minimalism and simplification. On this record there is also some great covers that come up in Feist's performances constantly that suit her voice and she does justice to: "Secret Heart", "Now At Last", and "Inside and Out", "When I Was A Young Girl", and "L'Amour ne Dure Pas Toujours". There is also the most heartbreaking song about heartbreak ever on this record that brings the quality up several notches called "Let It Die" which states: "the saddest part of a broken heart isn't the ending so much as the start".
Top songs: "When I was A Young Girl", "Let It Die", "Gatekeeper", "Now At Last":
3. "In Our Bedroom After The War" By: Stars:
The highlight of this record is that it's epic and theatrical in a rock and roll way but not a type of theatrical that's melodramatic in fact it's the opposite. On this record what Stars truly thrives at on this record is putting together music that functions in a manner similar to a work of theatre in its build and its storytelling. It begins with a simple instrumental that uses nothing but a synthesizer and a drum kit called "Beginning after the end" which concludes with the sound of Amy Millan's voice softly singing in the background "will you save me" followed by a reading of some lines of poetry where the reader states: " all the blood and the treasure and the losing of it all, will we wake in the morning and know what it was for up in our bedroom after the war?". These lines are appropriate considering what seems to be the overall theme of the record and the choice to follow those lines of poetry with Stars hit single about a sexual encounter "The Night Starts Here". The ending beautifully compliments the beginning with an anti-climactic ending where the record ends with Stars band member Torquil Campbell singing "In Our Bedroom After The War", the album's concluding piano ballad. What I mean by that is summed up with the lyrics it ends on: "wake up say good morning to that sleepy person lying next to you, if there's no one there, then there's no one there but at least the war is over". The strength and epic nature comes from something similar to the average Feist record: simplicity and minimalism put on display and explored with an intense amount of rawness. This record if you listen carefully is one big, battle with desire. There's also a great piano ballad about two people who arrange a date through a personal ad and it goes horribly wrong that is one of the best duets with Stars lead singers Amy Millan and Torquil Campbell I've ever heard.
song highlights: "Personal", "In Our Bedroom After The War", "Bitches In Tokyo", "Window Bird":
The song writing on this album is fantastic and so many of the lyrics on this album are quotable: here's a quoted sample of two of my favorite lyrics from this EP:
demon host: death she must of been your will/up beneath the reaper's veil/with your voice my belly sunk/and I began to feel so drunk/here is the church and here is the steeple/ open the doors and there are the people
No bold villain: I was a spook for you/ another goon/I was a fool for you/ another stool pigeon/ I was the kid/ Cee Cee was the clown/ and you took North when things went South
And the music itself: the singer and instrumentation reminds me of 1950s crooner style singing so much so that every time I hear it I think about how much I'd love the lead singer and his band to cover classics such as "I put a spell on you"and "Blue Moon" because their musical style is so similar which is why I love it.
song highlights: "Demon Host", "I Get Low", "No Bold Villain":
My first introduction to Amy Millan's solo material was in the summer of 2009 out of total curiosity at a free concert series at Toronto Harbourfront. Prior to that my past exposure to Amy Millan had been through her collaboration with Broken Social Scene and Stars. I had no idea what Amy Millan would sound like solo and based on what I had been exposed to through the music of Stars and Broken Social Scene I expected it to be more upbeat and well...rock n roll (maybe) but instead I stumbled upon a musical gem that wasn't that but its own kettle of fish. In a music review in my campus newspaper I once described her voice as something like honey and her songwriting/ musical style like an intimate conversation between two close friends, more specifically one where the person sharing their story tells raw stories of love, heartbreak, loneliness, and desire. Amy Millan and her band are reminiscent of old school Hank Williams era country rather than contemporary mainstream country with some contemporary pop influences thrown in and maybe even a little hint of 1950s crooner style singing influence thrown in there somewhere. The appeal of this album is the intimate relationship between the musician and the listeners that it inevitably creates.
song highlights: "Baby I", "Ruby II", "Pour Me Up Another", "He Brings Out The Whiskey In Me":
Charles Spearin made experimental jazz cool again. Why? His interpretation. Charles Spearin interviewed and recorded a bunch of friends, family, and neighbours on things loosely on the subject of happiness. Once he compiled those clips together he took his musician friends and ongoing collaborators from both Broken Social Scene and Do Make Say Think and made music based on the natural rhythm of the way the subjects of his interviews speak e.g: a little girl who when she speaks tends to hesitate and say "and it's like, it's like...like um" transitions into a chorus of saxophones, with those words on repeat making music based on the natural rhythm of the way she says those particular words. The build is perfectly timed in a sense that the beginning and the end perfectly mirror each other. It beginnings and ends with Mrs. Morris' story with the lesson "happiness is love, love makes you happy, you can't expect other people to love you if you don't know how to love other people". Another part of this album worth noting: the way the musicians accompany Vanessa's story about being deaf and what it was like to be able to hear for the first time after getting an operation that helped her hearing. Something about the instrumentation gave off an impression of the musicians being the most in sync with Vanessa's story. The note choices for the guitar and piano that captured the rhythm of her story created this other world, mythical sound combined with a childlike sense of wonderment as Vanessa remembers what it was like to be able to hear for the first time.
song highlights: "Victtoria", "Vanessa", "Anna", "Mr. Gowrie":
K.C Accidental is what Broken Social Scene was before Broken Social Scene became Broken Social Scene. The instrumentals and blending of experimental jazz and rock and roll style instrumentation is what later made Broken Social . The founders of Broken Social Scene: Kevin Drew, Brendan Canning, and Charles Spearin worked together early on in their careers and did experimental stuff with saxophones, guitars, pianos, drums, and even an answering machine (see Kev's message for Charlie on part 2 of this two part E.P: captured anthems for an empty bathtub) and suddenly K.C Accidental was born. Part one: Anthems For The Could've Been Pills focuses on mellow instrumental tunes although this by no means what I'd consider elevator music friendly, stereotypical, mellow instrumentals, each one suggests a hint of vintage pop and rock influences and flows organically in a manner that resembles a number of different bands that were popular in that era. Emily Haines even makes a notable appearance on the record where she sings with Kevin Drew in "Them: Pop Song #3333". These two E.Ps are what allowed the band to flourish and grow and find its sound in order to later form Broken Social Scene and all the other bands that formed out of the Broken Social Scene collective.
song highlights: "Residential Love Song", "Instrumental Died In The Bathtub And Took The Daydreams With It", "Them: Pop Song #3333":
8. "Something For All of Us" By : Broken Social Scene presents Brendan Canning:
After Broken Social Scene went on temporary hiatus after releasing their most successful record thus far: their self titled record two separate, solo records were released by two of Broken Social Scene's founders: Brendan Canning and Kevin Drew under the name 'Broken Social Scene Presents'. The one that made it to the top 8 list is Brendan Canning's record simply because it successfully blended together two different types of music that have such distinct differences that I didn't expect them to work together: rock and roll and New Wave influenced disco pop. It's a mix of these two genres and also notable ballads such as: "Take Care Look Up", "Antique Bull", "Been At It So Long", and "Snowballs And Icicles", and "Chameleon". There's even a hint of Broken Social Scene style instrumentals which finds its way into the record through the song "All The Best Wooden Toys Come From Germany". This record is eclectic and doesn't stray far from Brendan Canning's past experiences with K.C Accidental and Broken Social Scene with things that made both bands unique sound wise finding their way into the record. It's no wonder the record title is Something For All of Us!
Song highlights: "Churches Under The Stairs", "Hit The Wall, " Something For All Of Us", "Been At It So Long":
Thursday, May 30, 2013
So I wrote an essay...
Dear readers,
Something I wrote will be published online on a fellow blogspot blogger's blog this August. It's called "The Dyspraxic Writer". It's about something that has a deeply personal connection to myself as a person. One of my favourite pieces of non-fiction writing ever is George Orwell's why I write . It acts as a constant source of inspiration and reminds me that no matter what the act of writing will always be a part of me and I can never escape it and sometimes that's a blessing sometimes that's a curse. So I was on facebook one day and a good friend of mine and fellow writer, Andy Ruffett had this new bit of writing on his philosophy as a writer called why do we write fiction . I've recently started to realize that there's been more gaps in what I write than there used to be and to be honest I got sick and tired of the rejection letters. Reading it I was reminded of Orwell's essay and then I thought why despite all this am I still stubbornly trying? Below the post I saw something that said that Marie Lavender accepts guest bloggers. Marie Lavender is a past causal reader of this blog. When she gave me the creative liberty to write about whatever I want and deemed my blog writing to be high quality I had no clue what to write about. The overall theme is writing in the modern world. These two pieces of writing made me brainstorm and consider why do I write, why do I have a perspective on why writing is valuable that's different than what other people have said before? I considered and discussed a similar topic in a past blog entry but there was a lot more to say than I actually said. I've began to see the true significance and connection between a disability I've lived with for years called dyspraxia . It is what I believe made me a writer and what made writing an inevitable part of my life. Putting that story into words has been important for me and I'm hoping that as many people as possible suffering from disabilities and disorders in a broad sense of the word can read it and see some sort of significance. To me it's not about telling my story but telling my story and trying to get people to feel that telling their story is important and nothing to be ashamed of. To me that's the true importance of having this short, personal essay published online. I strongly encourage all of you to when it's online in august on Marie Lavender's blog. Two months to go till one of the most significant things I've ever written appears online.
Something I wrote will be published online on a fellow blogspot blogger's blog this August. It's called "The Dyspraxic Writer". It's about something that has a deeply personal connection to myself as a person. One of my favourite pieces of non-fiction writing ever is George Orwell's why I write . It acts as a constant source of inspiration and reminds me that no matter what the act of writing will always be a part of me and I can never escape it and sometimes that's a blessing sometimes that's a curse. So I was on facebook one day and a good friend of mine and fellow writer, Andy Ruffett had this new bit of writing on his philosophy as a writer called why do we write fiction . I've recently started to realize that there's been more gaps in what I write than there used to be and to be honest I got sick and tired of the rejection letters. Reading it I was reminded of Orwell's essay and then I thought why despite all this am I still stubbornly trying? Below the post I saw something that said that Marie Lavender accepts guest bloggers. Marie Lavender is a past causal reader of this blog. When she gave me the creative liberty to write about whatever I want and deemed my blog writing to be high quality I had no clue what to write about. The overall theme is writing in the modern world. These two pieces of writing made me brainstorm and consider why do I write, why do I have a perspective on why writing is valuable that's different than what other people have said before? I considered and discussed a similar topic in a past blog entry but there was a lot more to say than I actually said. I've began to see the true significance and connection between a disability I've lived with for years called dyspraxia . It is what I believe made me a writer and what made writing an inevitable part of my life. Putting that story into words has been important for me and I'm hoping that as many people as possible suffering from disabilities and disorders in a broad sense of the word can read it and see some sort of significance. To me it's not about telling my story but telling my story and trying to get people to feel that telling their story is important and nothing to be ashamed of. To me that's the true importance of having this short, personal essay published online. I strongly encourage all of you to when it's online in august on Marie Lavender's blog. Two months to go till one of the most significant things I've ever written appears online.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Lessons in Screenplay writing through pressure and a difficult journey
I have this life goal to master and write in as many genres as possible and master them all. Recently I embarked on a challenging journey where, in an intensive three week course the pace is fast and there's very little time for anything I've been a student in a film production course. There's this pressure to learn on your feet and the deadlines are intense. It was also my first introduction to screenwriting which was both excruciating and inspiring all at the same time. Many of my most valuable lessons in film writing I've learned so far have been through an experience that happened recently where I had two nights to pull off a screenplay. Ever since I've been keen to share those insights.
Here are some I picked up in this short period of time that are much more valuable than any book or university level lecture can possibly provide:
#1: if someone asks you to write in a particular genre and finish a final draft in two days or less that, due to your lack of experience takes you longer don't do it:
The only exception: if you want to write a raw, based on a true story script about sleep deprivation. Working on super tight deadlines and no time will most likely force late nights and minimal sleep and exhaustion leads to one or more parts of the script making zero sense. One of the hardest things I had to do was provide a mediocre script to people I don't really know all that well that I had no time to make better and watch as people had way too many questions and were confused about logistical details. I think it made the story rawer because I ran on so little sleep that it was like writing while intoxicated without actually being intoxicated. My advice: read a lot on screenwriting before taking on these kinds of challenges, read lots of samples, and learn as much as you possibly can about it before attempting such insane deadlines. I'd read some stuff and attended some lessons on the screenwriting process but it wasn't nearly enough. The people I've met over the past week who are pros at it are people who read screenplays that were used in professional productions for fun and constantly. They have been the most helpful and accommodating and if any of you are reading this right now I am extremely grateful for all your help and hope to creatively collaborate with you as much as possible in the future.
#2: regardless of the shape the script is in, the results of the finished product, or the script's content people are grateful for and respect the writer's process and will listen to what you have to say: as someone said to me recently: the writer is essentially "the brain" of the production:
There were arguments, sure, people didn't always agree with my logic, also true but in more visual types of writing such as film and theatre there's this common goal to respect what the writer wanted. People never forget it's your story no matter how distant from reality it actually is it's got so much of you in it and that's what makes it one of the hardest things to do with your life because it's an instance where you're vulnerable and metaphorically naked. For some people that's terrifying so when you take on the challenge people respect you. With something like this, unlike theatre and fiction the writer's role is in no ways god-like so yes it is the bones not the skin of the final product but they're your bones and everyone else has a responsibility to not make those bones fall apart.
Last but not least...
#4: collaborative writing is beautiful writing :
why? Because it's not just about you it's also about the efforts of many different people. Writers get too attached and want to control the entire process. Collaborative writing forces you to let go. It starts with you but it turns into the efforts of many people with a wide variety of personality traits, strengths, and weaknesses and then it turns into something you never expected because of the way the role of each and every individual changes everything.
In conclusion:
by the end of this week my interest and understanding grew regarding something that was always around me, I grew up around, have always been fascinated by but never really got the chance to pursue and get further education in: film. For anyone out there who has had similar dilemas: give intensive experiences that force you to be in the front lines a try. You can take as many classes as you want and read as many books as you want but there's nothing more valuable than tangible experiences and not being afraid to try things. Someone posted the short film we made on youtube today: the final title was "Jimmy and Joe". I don't have the link but if you see a short film posted there under that name that's the final product. If you watch it just warning you so no one complains: there's a lot of swearing in it: don't show it to kids and if you have any problem with swearing don't watch it.
Here are some I picked up in this short period of time that are much more valuable than any book or university level lecture can possibly provide:
#1: if someone asks you to write in a particular genre and finish a final draft in two days or less that, due to your lack of experience takes you longer don't do it:
The only exception: if you want to write a raw, based on a true story script about sleep deprivation. Working on super tight deadlines and no time will most likely force late nights and minimal sleep and exhaustion leads to one or more parts of the script making zero sense. One of the hardest things I had to do was provide a mediocre script to people I don't really know all that well that I had no time to make better and watch as people had way too many questions and were confused about logistical details. I think it made the story rawer because I ran on so little sleep that it was like writing while intoxicated without actually being intoxicated. My advice: read a lot on screenwriting before taking on these kinds of challenges, read lots of samples, and learn as much as you possibly can about it before attempting such insane deadlines. I'd read some stuff and attended some lessons on the screenwriting process but it wasn't nearly enough. The people I've met over the past week who are pros at it are people who read screenplays that were used in professional productions for fun and constantly. They have been the most helpful and accommodating and if any of you are reading this right now I am extremely grateful for all your help and hope to creatively collaborate with you as much as possible in the future.
#2: regardless of the shape the script is in, the results of the finished product, or the script's content people are grateful for and respect the writer's process and will listen to what you have to say: as someone said to me recently: the writer is essentially "the brain" of the production:
There were arguments, sure, people didn't always agree with my logic, also true but in more visual types of writing such as film and theatre there's this common goal to respect what the writer wanted. People never forget it's your story no matter how distant from reality it actually is it's got so much of you in it and that's what makes it one of the hardest things to do with your life because it's an instance where you're vulnerable and metaphorically naked. For some people that's terrifying so when you take on the challenge people respect you. With something like this, unlike theatre and fiction the writer's role is in no ways god-like so yes it is the bones not the skin of the final product but they're your bones and everyone else has a responsibility to not make those bones fall apart.
Last but not least...
#4: collaborative writing is beautiful writing :
why? Because it's not just about you it's also about the efforts of many different people. Writers get too attached and want to control the entire process. Collaborative writing forces you to let go. It starts with you but it turns into the efforts of many people with a wide variety of personality traits, strengths, and weaknesses and then it turns into something you never expected because of the way the role of each and every individual changes everything.
In conclusion:
by the end of this week my interest and understanding grew regarding something that was always around me, I grew up around, have always been fascinated by but never really got the chance to pursue and get further education in: film. For anyone out there who has had similar dilemas: give intensive experiences that force you to be in the front lines a try. You can take as many classes as you want and read as many books as you want but there's nothing more valuable than tangible experiences and not being afraid to try things. Someone posted the short film we made on youtube today: the final title was "Jimmy and Joe". I don't have the link but if you see a short film posted there under that name that's the final product. If you watch it just warning you so no one complains: there's a lot of swearing in it: don't show it to kids and if you have any problem with swearing don't watch it.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Conclusion After A long term Hiatus
Dear readers,
R.M.R's Writing Space's hiatus has been necessary. Sometimes things just happen and you have to put the things that you care about aside for another day and in this case it's been a period of multiple months. I frequently talk about creative projects I'm working on so here's some updates:
-That novel I've been writing is still stuck on the same chapter and since I have a bit more time now I shall work on it further
-I just finished writing a play for the InspiraTo festival that I submitted this weekend, focusing on a fear that many women have in common, in the bar setting regarding how men will treat them when they're alone and powerless. It's a nightmare scenario because the dynamic between Betty and Ernie is so unsettling: he's an older, physically and mentally powerful man and she's the opposite, he's blinded by his attraction to her and want to make her accept him for who he really is and she's both terrified of him and emotionally attracted to him. It's called "Meetings With Strangers" and it was written as a site specific piece. It's a play that takes place in a bar that's meant to actually be performed in a bar. After an incident at a bar when Ernie tries to approach Betty in a bar that goes terribly wrong they finally meet, at the same bar, a long time after this incident when Betty chooses to come visit the bar for peace and quiet. Betty wants to have some alone time, Ernie becomes preoccupied with trying to get her to remember him, not as the same person he was that night but as someone better than that. Only problem: she's not the person he thinks she is and claims to have no memory of him whatsoever.
Now for the conclusion of that hiatus: I've done all these great projects through my campus, become heavily involved in things through my internship that also allowed me to meet wonderful people who, every time I spoke to them I realized represented who ten years from now I could actually live with and be content with being from a professional point of view. A theme that's come up in this job searching process is to try and find something that's not just money for me but I haven't limited myself to that and I've tried way harder to make that happen. I realized that something that be my ideal summer would be if I could finally find some way to be in the front lines of artistic events going in the city in a capacity that's not just an audience member or casual volunteer and to write my heart out. I've applied to a bunch of places that are currently looking for volunteer coordinators and am anxiously waiting to see if these places accept me and make that a possibility. I've also been reading books on writing as a business and different ways to make money off your writing and hoping endlessly that all these things over the next little while become finally within my reach. If anyone who lives within Toronto that writes is reading this post: check out college &shaw library: they have an entire section on writing as a craft and as a business that's a total gold mine and: it's free, cause it's a library (of course)!
I started this blog five years ago because I love writing as much as I love my family, and my friends, and pretty much anyone that's every meant anything to me emotionally and I wanted a forum to share my passion, and my struggles and triumphs to make it work in my life. I haven't made time for this blog, and as I'm reminded of it's intention I plan to bring it back to life.
once again thanks for reading and long term readers: thanks for still reading,
all the best,
Rosemary
R.M.R's Writing Space's hiatus has been necessary. Sometimes things just happen and you have to put the things that you care about aside for another day and in this case it's been a period of multiple months. I frequently talk about creative projects I'm working on so here's some updates:
-That novel I've been writing is still stuck on the same chapter and since I have a bit more time now I shall work on it further
-I just finished writing a play for the InspiraTo festival that I submitted this weekend, focusing on a fear that many women have in common, in the bar setting regarding how men will treat them when they're alone and powerless. It's a nightmare scenario because the dynamic between Betty and Ernie is so unsettling: he's an older, physically and mentally powerful man and she's the opposite, he's blinded by his attraction to her and want to make her accept him for who he really is and she's both terrified of him and emotionally attracted to him. It's called "Meetings With Strangers" and it was written as a site specific piece. It's a play that takes place in a bar that's meant to actually be performed in a bar. After an incident at a bar when Ernie tries to approach Betty in a bar that goes terribly wrong they finally meet, at the same bar, a long time after this incident when Betty chooses to come visit the bar for peace and quiet. Betty wants to have some alone time, Ernie becomes preoccupied with trying to get her to remember him, not as the same person he was that night but as someone better than that. Only problem: she's not the person he thinks she is and claims to have no memory of him whatsoever.
Now for the conclusion of that hiatus: I've done all these great projects through my campus, become heavily involved in things through my internship that also allowed me to meet wonderful people who, every time I spoke to them I realized represented who ten years from now I could actually live with and be content with being from a professional point of view. A theme that's come up in this job searching process is to try and find something that's not just money for me but I haven't limited myself to that and I've tried way harder to make that happen. I realized that something that be my ideal summer would be if I could finally find some way to be in the front lines of artistic events going in the city in a capacity that's not just an audience member or casual volunteer and to write my heart out. I've applied to a bunch of places that are currently looking for volunteer coordinators and am anxiously waiting to see if these places accept me and make that a possibility. I've also been reading books on writing as a business and different ways to make money off your writing and hoping endlessly that all these things over the next little while become finally within my reach. If anyone who lives within Toronto that writes is reading this post: check out college &shaw library: they have an entire section on writing as a craft and as a business that's a total gold mine and: it's free, cause it's a library (of course)!
I started this blog five years ago because I love writing as much as I love my family, and my friends, and pretty much anyone that's every meant anything to me emotionally and I wanted a forum to share my passion, and my struggles and triumphs to make it work in my life. I haven't made time for this blog, and as I'm reminded of it's intention I plan to bring it back to life.
once again thanks for reading and long term readers: thanks for still reading,
all the best,
Rosemary
Sunday, February 17, 2013
the importance of a quiet creative space
Something I've become quite interested in recently is a luxury I take for granted: the importance of a quiet creative space. Regardless of who we are and where we come from it's so easy to let the hustle and bustle of everyday life and the social nature we all share in common to make us forget who we are to, ignore that inner, unstoppable creature called the thoughts and the spirit of the emotions to just keep pushing forward. Sometimes ignoring it is necessary: for survival, for practicality, to stop from compromising that thing that deep down inside we're all afraid of: not pleasing others but listening to it is just as necessary for the reasons above plus sanity (at least sometimes). This especially seems the case in urban environments where everything's so much about keeping up with a quick pace and high demands that it becomes way too easy to put on a metaphorical blinder and just keep moving forward while forgetting who we really are. This is why I think that temporary, quiet solitary rest and thinking time is good for people, you're reminded who you are and you can face every demand within your heart, mind, and body and be reminded of what's really important and knowing yourself means being able to think clearly and know what your strengths, weaknesses, and greatest metaphorical weapons are in both good and bad times.
Our world is so hectic and fast moving and it's up to us to make it slow down otherwise we'll exhaust ourselves and drive ourselves crazy. Some of the greatest creative thinking I've ever done has been when I was one with my notebook or computer with no other outside interferences. The group gives you a purpose, a deadline, a reason, a structure and a human voice to respond to what you want and what you are attempting to pursue and provide sanity and all those other extremely important emotions and is always needed but everyone with very few exceptions but the solitary moment is golden because it is meditative silence. With the solitary you're the boss and the pressure disappears even if it is part of a structured responsibility. It's so easy to be influenced by the words and vibe of a larger group and in those circumstances without prior preparation it's as if without any awareness whatsoever the line between what is and isn't ours gets blurred and it becomes some sort of pressure filled competition of who can sound and be the brightest and captivate everyone's attention.
Over the past year I came to terms with my own "quiet". I realized that my brightest best moments came within a group creative space came when I had time to think things through in advance in a solitary meditative space and that the greatest joy came from taking that solitary work and reflection and sharing it with people who assumed incorrectly that my lightbulb moment came from very little thought only seconds later who were willing to listen to my careful constructions of thought. When suddenly life wasn't an endless children's camp where everyone was expected to endure extremely long periods of people and group stimulation without exhaustion I felt I had found my paradise. Coming to terms with my "quiet" meant I didn't have to prove myself and justify my silence and solitary moments to anyone, which is important. It closely ties into something I greatly value and endlessly pressure everyone I care about to do: to come to terms with anything that makes them who they are that they can't get rid of or run away from. When I came to terms with "quiet" I found myself going towards things I was more comfortable with and before I knew it I had my favourite theatre festival wanting to hire my as an intern to do research, a good balance of solitary and people sharing that was perfect for me about something I was genuinely passionate about and my campus newspaper wanting me to be one of their editors (see above). Life is all about balance and finding it without having more than I can handle of one side of the scale meant I could find more ways to find multiple settings that qualify as that quiet creative space and then share it with people: something I greatly value and need to thrive in any setting. People should never let go of their creative space and no matter who we are we have them. It's something that at that moment is ours mentally without outside interference, that embodies things reflective of who we are that we're willing to celebrate, that remind us of the inner good and the inner bad, without celebrating or expressing hatred towards the good or the bad. Never let that creative space go...
Our world is so hectic and fast moving and it's up to us to make it slow down otherwise we'll exhaust ourselves and drive ourselves crazy. Some of the greatest creative thinking I've ever done has been when I was one with my notebook or computer with no other outside interferences. The group gives you a purpose, a deadline, a reason, a structure and a human voice to respond to what you want and what you are attempting to pursue and provide sanity and all those other extremely important emotions and is always needed but everyone with very few exceptions but the solitary moment is golden because it is meditative silence. With the solitary you're the boss and the pressure disappears even if it is part of a structured responsibility. It's so easy to be influenced by the words and vibe of a larger group and in those circumstances without prior preparation it's as if without any awareness whatsoever the line between what is and isn't ours gets blurred and it becomes some sort of pressure filled competition of who can sound and be the brightest and captivate everyone's attention.
Over the past year I came to terms with my own "quiet". I realized that my brightest best moments came within a group creative space came when I had time to think things through in advance in a solitary meditative space and that the greatest joy came from taking that solitary work and reflection and sharing it with people who assumed incorrectly that my lightbulb moment came from very little thought only seconds later who were willing to listen to my careful constructions of thought. When suddenly life wasn't an endless children's camp where everyone was expected to endure extremely long periods of people and group stimulation without exhaustion I felt I had found my paradise. Coming to terms with my "quiet" meant I didn't have to prove myself and justify my silence and solitary moments to anyone, which is important. It closely ties into something I greatly value and endlessly pressure everyone I care about to do: to come to terms with anything that makes them who they are that they can't get rid of or run away from. When I came to terms with "quiet" I found myself going towards things I was more comfortable with and before I knew it I had my favourite theatre festival wanting to hire my as an intern to do research, a good balance of solitary and people sharing that was perfect for me about something I was genuinely passionate about and my campus newspaper wanting me to be one of their editors (see above). Life is all about balance and finding it without having more than I can handle of one side of the scale meant I could find more ways to find multiple settings that qualify as that quiet creative space and then share it with people: something I greatly value and need to thrive in any setting. People should never let go of their creative space and no matter who we are we have them. It's something that at that moment is ours mentally without outside interference, that embodies things reflective of who we are that we're willing to celebrate, that remind us of the inner good and the inner bad, without celebrating or expressing hatred towards the good or the bad. Never let that creative space go...
Monday, December 31, 2012
why I write Orwell and me
There's so much rejection in the path to pursuing the life of an artistic professional although, what I've learned is that it's important to not dwell on that fact. Although, when your left wondering why do I do this, why do I willingly lock myself in a room and pour my heart out to a notebook or a computer in words over and over again and willingly be at the mercy of some stranger's opinion of what's "good" and what's "bad" writing there's nothing that's more of a refreshing beacon of light than George Orwell's opinion essay"Why I write" (1946). Orwell's essay illuminates a perspective of someone who has something important to say and is driven by political things he wants to draw attention to, a common message of all his novels yet, is unafraid to admit that there's a part of him that selfishly wants to just make his voice heard.
I re-read it recently at a time when I was considering some serious questions about where my life is going and kind of wondered what kept me on a path where the rejection rate was high and endless that ensured a lifetime of instability. I knew that my heart was in it but certain incidents made me not just blindly pursue but also question "why". Then I remembered something I said that had a great deal of honesty to it that I said in the Soulpepper Academy interview process: I'm drawn to the pursuit of changing perspectives on, celebrating, and shining light on anything that classifies as an abnormality because it's a very real part of my existence that I'm both terrified of and drawn to. I also found a great deal of value in being a participant in taking one idea and incorporating the ideas, strengths, and weaknesses of multiple people for one larger creative product. Other than the compensation of financial instability I've began to realize that there's a reason many creative people who make art in any medium professionally are not just artists but teachers too. There's this common motivation and love of mentoring other people and using the medium you know to bring about discussion and change in others.
Recently in the arts in Canada there's been a lot of financial cuts because it was argued that these things were somehow 'elitist' or 'not essential'. If you pay close attention to the common traits of the people who live their lives as artistic professionals who aren't celebrities or famous authors they are hard working individuals pursuing a life that, on the outside looks glamourous and effortless but in all honesty is brutal and involves hard work and plenty of training. It's a profession that's harsh where the rejection rate is high and the success of your work is at the mercy of the taste of multiple individuals with a wide variety of values, interests, backgrounds,occupations,and opinions that have a strong impact on what they see as 'good' and 'bad'. Did I mention that it's much harsher than other occupations and you constantly shift from a state of employed to unemployed and back again with no certainty whatsoever of your future? Hardly the traits of a glamourous, elitist, profession. These are people who are willing to make sacrifices and be metaphorically naked in front of others and work often for not a lot of money just so that they can do what they love.
Yeah, sure I've taken off the rose coloured glasses of some false and common sense of glamour but,what's the value? We as people need entertainment and have this obsession with escapism and like engaging in discussion and challenging perspectives on things and love being lead by the hand through a fictional world where we can see things differently and apply this to our own lives somehow. It reflects who we are as human beings and draws attention to things.We need it because it provides faith and brings together communities and that is why I keep on trying and the arts are essential.
I re-read it recently at a time when I was considering some serious questions about where my life is going and kind of wondered what kept me on a path where the rejection rate was high and endless that ensured a lifetime of instability. I knew that my heart was in it but certain incidents made me not just blindly pursue but also question "why". Then I remembered something I said that had a great deal of honesty to it that I said in the Soulpepper Academy interview process: I'm drawn to the pursuit of changing perspectives on, celebrating, and shining light on anything that classifies as an abnormality because it's a very real part of my existence that I'm both terrified of and drawn to. I also found a great deal of value in being a participant in taking one idea and incorporating the ideas, strengths, and weaknesses of multiple people for one larger creative product. Other than the compensation of financial instability I've began to realize that there's a reason many creative people who make art in any medium professionally are not just artists but teachers too. There's this common motivation and love of mentoring other people and using the medium you know to bring about discussion and change in others.
Recently in the arts in Canada there's been a lot of financial cuts because it was argued that these things were somehow 'elitist' or 'not essential'. If you pay close attention to the common traits of the people who live their lives as artistic professionals who aren't celebrities or famous authors they are hard working individuals pursuing a life that, on the outside looks glamourous and effortless but in all honesty is brutal and involves hard work and plenty of training. It's a profession that's harsh where the rejection rate is high and the success of your work is at the mercy of the taste of multiple individuals with a wide variety of values, interests, backgrounds,occupations,and opinions that have a strong impact on what they see as 'good' and 'bad'. Did I mention that it's much harsher than other occupations and you constantly shift from a state of employed to unemployed and back again with no certainty whatsoever of your future? Hardly the traits of a glamourous, elitist, profession. These are people who are willing to make sacrifices and be metaphorically naked in front of others and work often for not a lot of money just so that they can do what they love.
Yeah, sure I've taken off the rose coloured glasses of some false and common sense of glamour but,what's the value? We as people need entertainment and have this obsession with escapism and like engaging in discussion and challenging perspectives on things and love being lead by the hand through a fictional world where we can see things differently and apply this to our own lives somehow. It reflects who we are as human beings and draws attention to things.We need it because it provides faith and brings together communities and that is why I keep on trying and the arts are essential.
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