Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Morning Thoughts, Writing Begins With The Breath, The Sound on the Page

Morning Thoughts

I was very tired yesterday. More than I usually am. I found myself a little upset about Saturday because there has been a change in who I am working with. I much preferred working with my old colleague who is leaving. Even though we had some differences, she was easy and pleasant to work with the majority of the time. I hope she has good luck wherever she is going. There is a box with cake in the basement, but she is not here to eat it right now.

I sometimes think I try to get along with people too much.

Writing Begins With The Breath

A book on developing your voice came in today, Writing Begins With The Breath, Embodying Your Authentic Voice by Laraine Herring. It is very hard to write exact what I feel sometimes. I have a certain sense of discretion which limits what I say. This book has a lot of meditation exercises around writing. It appears to focus on spiritual aspects of the written word. It is c2007, Shambhala Publications.

The book opens with an interesting quote from Abraham Maslow:

A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is ultimately to be at peace with himself. What one can be, one must be.

The Sound on the Page Style and Voice In Writing

The Sound on the Page Style and Voice In Writing is by Ben Yagoda. It is a book on how to develop a personal style or voice. The author writes about a number of different authors style and voice.

I think that style and voice are a critical piece in the success of an author. Often this is overlooked to the authors detriment. Some authors can make a piece of lint interesting, simply because of the way they write.

Because I have been criticized for being boring, I am going to take a break from my usual books and write a review on what I learn from these two books. I think it may be useful for you as an audience.

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