Prophesies and publishers . . .

May 31, 2010

Many years ago in a very different incarnation, probably one of my favourite incarnations, I worked in the ABC Shop in the Melbourne CBD. It was the retail outlet for all things written, recorded, played and mentioned on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. In those early days, the 1980’s, one of the most sort after audio-tapes and then books, was the Lake Wobegon series by Garrison Keillor. I wondered what held people’s interest, but then I heard the homely ‘Prairies Companion’ voice, as if the listener sat out on the porch sharing a moment privately with the man, and I could see why.

The Pillowbook of Prudence . . . part 3.

May 29, 2010

Things that are elegant:

Manners. There has to be nothing like a display of manners. A door opened by a stranger so that one may pass through, someone saying thank you for something one may have done. Perfect table manners. Pulling the chair out for a woman at a dinner table. Standing when a woman walks into the room. ‘The less is more’ philosophy. Chanel’s advice: always take that last look in the mirror before leaving home and remove something. A Georgian façade. Pointed toe shoes of impeccable quality: a Ferragamo? Classical ballet in traditional costume. Prix St George dressage. Veuve Cliquot. And finally, and above and beyond French wines and Italian shoes, the most elegant thing in the world is utter simplicity.

The magic 7 . . .

May 27, 2010

Mesmered has just hit the magic 7000 views in the short time it has existed. It set me thinking as to the symbolism of the number 7.

Magicking number 7.

Collectors . . .

May 26, 2010

What makes people become collectors? Is it something that chimes in the soul? Here in Australia, we have a marvellous TV show called Collectors. It isn’t Antiques Roadshow styled, although antiques feature. Essentially it is about the collections that people make, why they collect them, even where they collect their ephemera. I collect blue and white Cornish Ware because I love the colour and the stripes and it reminds me of everything that Rosamund Pilcher has ever written about. As a child I dabbled in stamps and then model farms made by Britains (which I still have and which Dad built farm fences for. And stables and a tack room and fed shed.). I collected dolls from different countries too and when I travelled to different parts of the world, I bought a gold charm in every city. I also collect old books that appeal: childrens’ books mostly.

Moving meditation . . .

May 25, 2010

About twenty five years ago, and with baby son in stroller, my father and I were walking around the local shops in Melbourne when we came across an ad for Tai Chi classes. My Father was always a Sino-phile, absorbed with Asian culture, learning to speak and write Mandarin himself and Careers and Appointments Officer at my former tertiary establishment, where he and my mother took many overseas students from Asia under their wing. Dad said, ‘You should do that course.’

Progress with Prudence . . .

May 24, 2010

These encouraging words came from http://thesunlitdesk.wordpress.com

Perseverance: Write daily

Trust: Don’t wait for creativity, expect it

Prudence: Have the good sense to know when not to write. Forcing writing when you just can’t get into it will foster resentment and make the next session hard to start

The Pillowbook of Prudence . . . part 2.

May 21, 2010

Things that are pleasing:

The smell of berry slice. A letter folding in the right way so that it slips into its envelope as if they were lovers. The smell of fresh laundry as it is folded. Crisp cotton sheets. Autumn lasting until Spring. The ocean. The sound of waves. The squeak of white sand when walked across. Views of land and sea that take one’s breath away. Bright red leaves like slashes of blood on blueberry bushes.

A different sort of published book . . .

May 20, 2010

So much talk lately on being published and not being published.

There’s actually another sort of book: the artist’s book . A book that is conceived by an artist, formatted and bound by that artist. It may have a graphic interior, text, or it may be blank, a rendition of the old-style journal. It will often be made of the most glorious paper and sometimes will be manipulated and folded to create a different style of book: a concertina book, a pamphlet book, an octavo, a ‘fat’ book, so many different sorts. It may have a box specially created to contain the book. And then there are the bindings: a traditional single-case binding, a Japanese side-binding, a Coptic binding and hundreds of other decorative styles.

I have a penchant for artist’s books. I like that there is a creative imagination behind so much of the piece. I like the feel of it in my hand, I like the smell of the paper and the faint squeak from a binding as the book is opened. I LOVE the covers that many artists design for their books.

To illustrate my point, here is a selection of artist’s books from Salt Studio. Salt Studio has a special place in my heart because the artist concerned designed the covers for The Stumpwork Robe and The Last Stitch.

Pick yourself up, dust yourself off (the art of rejection)

May 19, 2010

This notable list came via Nathan Bransford today from http://www.onlinecollege.org/2010/05/17/50-iconic-writers-who-were-repeatedly-rejected

In respect of my previous blog on the possibility of being judged for progressing down the independent route, I loved that at least three of the listed writers, now unarguably illustrious mainstream headline authors, had trotted down that route themselves. They are:

POD by any other name would still smell . . . (as sweet?)

May 18, 2010

With absolutely no disrespect to anyone in any area of publishing, I want to know why there is such a dispute raging over the internet about whether one is really ‘published’ if one has gone down the POD, vanity or self-publishing route.

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