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www.sophieplayleblog.blogspot.com
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
Saturday, 9 February 2008
Wise Words
I found the most lovely email in my inbox today. I was a little skeptical of it at first as I get so much junk mail, and no one ever emails me from this site unless it's an alert for a comment! I think this email is well worth sharing, and has made me feel a lot better about writing.
Re: Disheartened
Sophie,
I came across your web site quite by accident as I was looking for the Playle (stamps/postcards) auction site. I live in Virginia, USA.
Your Thursday, January 31, 2008, made me think of my 2 daughters who have been engaged in the arts (dance, digital movies) for many years. In my time i too wrote.
It is normal and Ok to feel tired, discouraged.
Talent is little, a dilusion. Work, practice, patience, obstination, dedication are everything. Ask yourself: why should my readers feel concerned by a text for which I will ask them to give me some of their time? What do I want to express that will be relevant to their perception of the world; why do I want to affect them in such and such a way. Read a lot, and more, and more again. Inspiration hardly exists, writing and rewriting, letting it sleep a while, rewriting again will create the inspiration, the talent. Young writers are always in a hurry, but a text is like a mosaic, a textile you weave strand by strand. How many bad novels did Balzac write before he finally achieved authentic literature, and Simenon?
Finally, creative writing classes never produced geniuses; should they that by now we would be passing them every five minutes in the street. At best these so-called classes produce commercially successful writers. People who sell well. Grading a creative text is nonsense. Only academia in its stupefying arrogance and its unashamed commercialism could think up such a scam.
Don't be disheartened, much less dissuaded by those would be judges and who, in most cases, turned critiques and teachers because they could do nothing better. Keep on writing, give it the time, have patience. Don't juge yourself by numerical grades. Art is not evaluated with a thermometer but by the pleasure it gives, the light it projects in the dark corners.
Take heart. Bon courage!
From a father of two daughters a little older than you.
Pierre Fassie
Roanoke, Virginia USA
Re: Disheartened
Sophie,
I came across your web site quite by accident as I was looking for the Playle (stamps/postcards) auction site. I live in Virginia, USA.
Your Thursday, January 31, 2008, made me think of my 2 daughters who have been engaged in the arts (dance, digital movies) for many years. In my time i too wrote.
It is normal and Ok to feel tired, discouraged.
Talent is little, a dilusion. Work, practice, patience, obstination, dedication are everything. Ask yourself: why should my readers feel concerned by a text for which I will ask them to give me some of their time? What do I want to express that will be relevant to their perception of the world; why do I want to affect them in such and such a way. Read a lot, and more, and more again. Inspiration hardly exists, writing and rewriting, letting it sleep a while, rewriting again will create the inspiration, the talent. Young writers are always in a hurry, but a text is like a mosaic, a textile you weave strand by strand. How many bad novels did Balzac write before he finally achieved authentic literature, and Simenon?
Finally, creative writing classes never produced geniuses; should they that by now we would be passing them every five minutes in the street. At best these so-called classes produce commercially successful writers. People who sell well. Grading a creative text is nonsense. Only academia in its stupefying arrogance and its unashamed commercialism could think up such a scam.
Don't be disheartened, much less dissuaded by those would be judges and who, in most cases, turned critiques and teachers because they could do nothing better. Keep on writing, give it the time, have patience. Don't juge yourself by numerical grades. Art is not evaluated with a thermometer but by the pleasure it gives, the light it projects in the dark corners.
Take heart. Bon courage!
From a father of two daughters a little older than you.
Pierre Fassie
Roanoke, Virginia USA
Six Sentences
Today I received an email saying my story will be up on the Six Sentences website in mid March, so look out for it! In other news, I've retreated from uni to enjoy home comforts for a while. The docs reckon I have glandular fever, so I'm having a whale of a time right now.
Sunday, 3 February 2008
Friday, 1 February 2008
That Wasn't Too Bad!
Today I had my short story critiqued in my Creative Writing seminar. I was quite nervous about it, but there were a lot of positive comments, and some constructive ones too! If there hadn't been any negative points, I would have been quite annoyed. It's so usful to get outside opinions on projects, especially if you've been working on them for a while. Often I feel too up-close to my own work to look at it objectivly.
So I'm feeling quite pleased at the moment.
Also, I spent about two hours last night creating the new layout for my blog. I'm still getting used to photoshop, which I've only just started using. I can't get used to the whole layering thing... Anyway, my last layout was a bit dark and depressing. Hopefully this one is more eye-catching and bright.
So I'm feeling quite pleased at the moment.
Also, I spent about two hours last night creating the new layout for my blog. I'm still getting used to photoshop, which I've only just started using. I can't get used to the whole layering thing... Anyway, my last layout was a bit dark and depressing. Hopefully this one is more eye-catching and bright.
Thursday, 31 January 2008
Disheartened
It's all seeming quite painfully obvious recently that I don't have that much talent when it comes to creative writing, or anything creative for that matter. I'm perhaps slightly above average, which isn't anything to be proud about when I'm trying so hard.
My creative writing prose seminar last week was depressing. I despise being put on the spot to write something then and there to read out in class. It always ends in embaressing disaster. Not the most inspiring of tasks.
I've had to write a 5000 word story for tomorrow to be critiqued by the whole group. As I was ill for the first seminar, I was alegated the only slot left, which was the very first one. There was no way I was going to be able to write a 5000 word story in a week, especially with my boyfriend visiting for four nights, so I've submitted something I'd already written.
I got back my second Poetry assignment today. I'd done worse than I hoped. I'd got 69% in my first assignment, which is one percent away from a 1st. I'd hoped I would have improved for the second assignment, but I only got 65%. This is still good, but I really had my heart set on a 1st.
All of my essays have been in the 60% range this year. I need 70% to get what I want, a 1st, but it seems like my best efforts just aren't good enough.
My creative writing prose seminar last week was depressing. I despise being put on the spot to write something then and there to read out in class. It always ends in embaressing disaster. Not the most inspiring of tasks.
I've had to write a 5000 word story for tomorrow to be critiqued by the whole group. As I was ill for the first seminar, I was alegated the only slot left, which was the very first one. There was no way I was going to be able to write a 5000 word story in a week, especially with my boyfriend visiting for four nights, so I've submitted something I'd already written.
I got back my second Poetry assignment today. I'd done worse than I hoped. I'd got 69% in my first assignment, which is one percent away from a 1st. I'd hoped I would have improved for the second assignment, but I only got 65%. This is still good, but I really had my heart set on a 1st.
All of my essays have been in the 60% range this year. I need 70% to get what I want, a 1st, but it seems like my best efforts just aren't good enough.
Thursday, 24 January 2008
Pygmy Giant Saves the Day
Re: Submission - 'Eternal Eleven'
Hi Sophie, really like this, it's a very well-crafted and well-written little piece. A shorter Groundhog Day - a repeating one hour would be way more annoying than a repeating day!
Thanks for sending it (sorry this reply has taken so long, it went into the junk mail for some reason), and will put it up probably in early Feb, or maybe before..
Best wishes,
Mel for TPG
That was a nice email to receive at 4am last night!
Subbing stories helps me to judge roughly where I stand in the wider world as an aspiring writer. In the last week I can see that I'm not quite good enough for semi-pro payment rates, but the smaller publishers still want my work. I've still got a lot to learn, but I think it's always good to get my name out there in the well respected smaller places.
Hi Sophie, really like this, it's a very well-crafted and well-written little piece. A shorter Groundhog Day - a repeating one hour would be way more annoying than a repeating day!
Thanks for sending it (sorry this reply has taken so long, it went into the junk mail for some reason), and will put it up probably in early Feb, or maybe before..
Best wishes,
Mel for TPG
That was a nice email to receive at 4am last night!
Subbing stories helps me to judge roughly where I stand in the wider world as an aspiring writer. In the last week I can see that I'm not quite good enough for semi-pro payment rates, but the smaller publishers still want my work. I've still got a lot to learn, but I think it's always good to get my name out there in the well respected smaller places.
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