Finally, finally, after so long I am diving into the world of drawing. This is something I revisit frequently in my life, but I never stick with it. And yet I cna never shake the desire to be an accomplished enough sketcher to capture the sights I might come across on a walk or a visit to a museum or a trip to someplace new. And so, slowly, I am wading back in to drawing.
I am working through the book Drawing for Dummies. The "dummies" series is actually really good. Once I got over being offended by the name, I discovered that these are well written, very helpful books, laid out nicely, very useful. So, I am slowly going through this one. I'm on the first half of the third lesson--simple line drawings. So far, I've drawn the outline of a mug and a slightly more detailed line drawing of a lighthouse. They look like a six-year-old drew them. This is usually the part where I get annoyed and frustrated and stop. But I'm finding that I am finally able to just let myself enjoy pulling out my metal pencil boxes, get my sketchbook open, and just make marks. I am not working on any set schedule. I just get my things out two or three times a week--sometimes more--and play around. And I'm liking the exercises, too, so that's helping me not get discouraged.
I am particularly fond of the wooly woo from the first lesson, and the iris-and-pupil eye drawing in the second lesson was really fun to play with, too. And now I will probably spend a couple of weeks seeking out objects I can easily find the edges of to practice my plain line drawing (I am eyeing that cute basket across the room right now, as a matter of fact). And then I'll move on to shapes! But first I'm going to get my fill of lines, with the hope that by doing several drawings a week for a few weeks I will at least approach a ten-year-old expertise level. ;) And sometime in the future, I might even scan a drawing or two and share my progress.
Wow...I can't believe I've let such a long time pass since I checked in here. Eek!
Still, it's been a busy, creative time. I have been making progress on my writing, at least on reworking my novel plan. I have some people interested in forming an in-person writing group, and we're getting together for the first time next week. I've been working on some embroideries. I have my studio space cleared out, and it's starting to be a really inviting place. *And* my studio has space for me to set up my oil painting stuff! After ten years, I am finally going to have time (I hope) and space to get back into it! I am really excited. I also found a teacher here in Portland who works in a similar manner to my old teacher, so I may arrange to take some classes in the fall. But for now, I'm going to jump back in from what I remember along with some refreshers from a few books I have out from the library. I am *really* excited about this--I didn't even know I missed it that much!
That's most of what's happening here. I am getting ready for the Willamette Writers' Conference the first weekend in August. I am working out a good routine to get me back into regular writing. So, life here is good. And now I've checked back in to Artella, so it's all even better! :) I really do enjoy Artella a lot, so I'm glad I remembered to stop by. I must make more of a habit of this...
First, for anyone who’s wondering, I did go with the inkpot
theme for my art quilt. They’re so cute!
The quilt isn’t finished. I have
fallen woefully behind in my class because all sorts of good and exciting
things have been happening! But I will finish the quilt, and make the others from the class lessons, and as I complete them, I promise I will post pictures. But on to that exciting news...
First, I am going to be a blog correspondent on one of Eric
Maisel’s blogs! This is really exciting
news. I am a big fan of his creativity
books so this is hugely thrilling for me!
I am a little nervous—I hope I’m good enough. (I am, I know, but I’m just nervous.) This should be kicking off in mid- to late-April. I'll keep you posted.
Next, and actually bigger, at least in the long run…I have
taken the first steps in starting the writing organization I’ve been dreaming
of for a very long time. The ideas, the
little bits and pieces I’ve had floating around for years, finally started
coalescing last Fall after I took the Charles de Lint workshop. Seeing Hugo House up in Seattle, being in
the presence of one of my idols…It all gave me the last pieces I needed to get
enough of a vision together to start moving forward. And thus is born Mythic Writers, a place for people who love
mythic fiction, and especially those who want to write it, to come together to
learn and create and bring more of this wonderful storytelling into the world. It’s just a little, baby site right now, but
new things are going to be going up every week as I get them ready, and it’s
very exciting! Down the road, I
envision classes, workshops, weekend retreats, a yearly conference, a
newsletter, maybe a zine or magazine.
And, inspired by Hugo House, someday I want MW to have a physical
location, a place where members can come for classes and readings and using the
library…A home for us.
That’s what I’m up to these days. I’ll try to be better
about dropping in here and saying hello.
I’ll leave you all with a link to a poem-a-day challenge for April since
it’s National Poetry Month. Happy
Poetry Month, everyone!
First, thanks for all the comments on the John Lennon and
fairies post. That was awesome!
I am taking an online class at Joggles again! It started today—it’s on mini art
quilts. The first one is a collage
quilt, just to get a feel for it, I think.
This is very cool! I’ve been
enamored of art quilts since I picked up my first issue of Quilting Arts magazine
about a year ago (that’s where I found out about Joggles, too). Anyhow, I need to choose a simple shape to
use as a repeated image in this first quilt.
I thought of doing leaves, because I love leaves. But I do them a lot, so maybe I want
something different. I don’t know. The teacher did her sample with
pomegranates. I love pomegranates—they are
part of my persona’s arms in the SCA.
But I don’t want to use them since she used them for hers. I was going to use acorns, but I’m just
having a hard time getting into that.
So maybe stars? I don’t
know! Eep! What to do? What to do? I
thought of moons, a full moon and two crescents, but I don’t think that’s quite
what she has in mind for this first lesson.
I think it’s supposed to be a repetition of an identical shape. This is the part of projects that is so fun
and so frustrating all at once because I am so indecisive. I think it’s just because I like so many
different things. It’s so hard to pick
which one is my favorite at any given moment.
But I digress. Mostly, I procrastinate. I think I am trying to not make my
decision. But I need to get on with it
because I’m going away for the weekend to a writers’ and readers’ conference in
Seattle, so I don’t have time to dilly dally.
Ink pots! I wonder
if that’s too complex of a shape? I
think a silhouette of an ink pot is a pretty recognizable image, isn’t it? I think.
I will try to find a good ink pot image. And it that doesn’t work out, then I’ll go with stars.
No, really, they *do* have something to do with each other. I am working on an art journal page (actually, two half-themed pages, but that makes one whole) on fairies. I wanted to include quotes on one of the halves, so I went poking around on the internet and found this quote by John Lennon:
"
I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies,
the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's
to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?"
I think this is about to become a new signature line...
I did quite a lot of art journaling a few years ago and really enjoyed it, but I couldn't seem to find a way to do that and the regular journaling that I love so much and feel that I really need in my life. So I joined an online art journal group where they post weekly themes. So at least once a week, I am thinking about art journaling and might even do a page if the theme really strikes my fancy,but I'm not so focused on the art journaling that I end up neglecting the written journaling that is so important to me.
Just last week, I put together an art journal kit for work. I am using 4x6 cards to journal on, and I have some stamp pads, a few favorite stamps, some Sharpie colored markers, and a big box of colored pencils. And, of course, a glue stick. :) I am finding that this is actually enough to do good pages with, pages that make me happy.
Here is last week's picture. The theme was "Paris." I hope the colors scanned all right--I can't tell because my monitor is going out. I'll have to check later on a different computer to make sure it looks all right, but for now (it's also in my gallery):
Today, I got something to add to the kit. It's a book called Doodling for Papercrafters. It is really aimed at scrapbookers, but I love the idea of using these doodles and doodled alphabets in my art journal pages. It's a great book, really fun, and the doodling is a bit addictive. I already have two cards filled front and back with practice bits, and I just got the book at 11 this morning!
I think I'm going to do more doodles now. :D
I’ve been working on my 2008 Adventures list, and it’s a lot
of fun. Just a little planning and
keeping track has me really moving along on doing things I really want to be
doing. And there’s the key—my adventures
are things I want to be doing.
Not things I think I should do.
And two of the items on my list got there because, sometime around
Christmas, I made the comment that I “should” do them. And really, they are things I vaguely want
to do. But not enough to spend a large
chunk of time and effort on them. The
two items—the Shakespeare plays and the Marlowe plays—are not things that
belong on my list right now. I’d like
to re-read some of the Shakespeare plays I’ve only read once. I’d like to read some Marlowe. But these are not things that I need to be
actively planning for and sacrificing writing time, exercise time, art time
for. So, these two items are leaving my list.
I feel so relieved!
I had no idea those two things were stressing me out. Now, I think my list looks much better, and
it’s all about me and the things I really want. Hurray for Adventures!
2007 was a really good year for me. I accomplished a lot and learned how much I
can do. And learned how much I avoid
really doing the things I long for. So
I have declared 2008 The Year of Really Living. Maybe it should have some sort of name that has to do with the
Really Living extending past this year.
This is just the year I start to really do it.
The creator of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) has
a forum on the NaNo site for Big Fun Scary Adventures. This is a place where you post your adventures
for the year and then keep in touch with people as you progress. Here’s my Adventure List:
*Finish my 2007 NaNo novel & submit it
*Enter & win NaNo 2008
*Re-read Shakespeare plays
*Read Marlowe plays
*Lose 75 lbs.
*Purge all clothes I don’t like and wear
*Really learn to use my digital camera
*Pull out & play with my old 35mm camera
*Spend a long weekend alone at the coast
*Hike the She Who Watches trail at Horsethief Lake
*Learn to draw
*Keep up with Embodiment (a physical journal project)
*Do BIW every month (BIW is a writer’s group with a monthly
challenge)
Most of my Adventures are creative, as you may have
noticed. I have had a book on my shelf
for quite a while—The Creativity Book by Eric Maisel. I thought that going through it this year
might help me to incorporate all of my goals into more of an overall way of
living.
So, here we are in Week 1.
Part 1 of the book is called “Begin.”
Week 1 is titled “Make Creativity Your Religion.” I must admit I’m balking at the first
exercise—write a 2500-word autobiography.
I’ve done this before, don’t want to do it again, will at least start it
even if I don’t want to. The next
exercise is more useful: “Name Five
Obstacles.” And he says that time is a
given, and having no creative potential is an unacceptable answer. So I’m going to work on this one. But my favorite part of Week 1 is the
second part: “Craft Ceremonies and Rituals.”
I feel the need for more ceremonies and rituals in my life, so this
really appeals to me. He offers a small
ritual to do for a few days to honor your dream, and then he says to create
your own ritual to honor your dream.
This all ties in to one more thing I’ve decided I want for myself that
isn’t on the above list—I want to bring more regular spiritual practice into my
life again. So I am going to be working
on this over the weekend. Along with
the damned autobiography. And along
with the obstacles list, which I think will really help me break out of some of
my mindsets. It seems like a good start
to the year.
Really, it's a quote for more than today. It's just one I ran across today and really like. :)
"What is the basic nutrition for the soul? Well, it differs from
creature to creature, but here are some combinations. ... For some
women air, night, sunlight, and trees are necessities. For others,
words, paper, and books are the only things that satiate. For others,
color, form, shadow, and clay at the absolutes. Some women must leap,
bow, and run, for their souls crave dance. Yet others crave only a
tree-leaning peace." - Clarissa Pinkola Estes
From the most recent Creativity Portal newsletter: "Steps to success include having direction,
remaining focused and taking action." —
Lyne Marshall
This is really true for any kind of success, not just success in creative endeavors. I'm finding that this is the formula I have to keep working in order to keep losing weight. It's the formula I've been using in my writing to keep me going. It's really an important thing. I guess that's why I'm noting it here--to remind myself.
November and NaNoWriMo 2007 are over! Already! How did that happen? I can't believe it went by so fast. I am a winner again this year. ::preen:: The story is not finished, though. But I still hit that post-project blues period. I've had a few days off to recover from writing 50K words in 28 days (I hit 50K early), and get over the blues, and now I am back at the writing. This story *will* get finished. And edited. And submitted.
Aside from noveling and working on a new short story that flung itself into my head last week, I have been starting on some holiday gifts. Have you seen the new Quilting Arts Gifts magazine? So much pretty stuff! The gifts I am actually working on right now, though, are from the current issue of Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. There are these magnificent stuffed crows made of felt and scraps of fabric and beads. I love crows, and I love fabric scraps and beads, so how could I resist these? There are also these amazingly lovely hanging ornaments made of cloth puffs with fabric strips and fun fibers. And beads, of course. They are very tribal looking and really appealing. I have just started some of those. I even picked up some twigs from outside yesterday to incorporate in some of them. Haven't actually started any crows yet, but I have the stuff for them. There are a couple of other projects in there I want to do, but I'm not sure if they are for presents or not, so I'm not starting on them just yet. Unless I can figure out someone who would like to receive them as gifts.
That's what's going on in my world these days.
I'm really supposed to be writing. I'm rather behind on my NaNoWriMo word count. But I'm completely obsessed with sewing machines right now. For quite a while, I've wanted to learn to sew (years), but every time I try on my old machine things go all wrong. It turns out that the machine is a bit fussy (it got dropped in shipping a few years ago, plus it's 30 years old), and since I'm a novice, I can't tell when it's starting to hang up. So things get completely out of control and snarled up before I realize there's a problem. Not really a good thing, especially because I seem to have some sort of sewing machine phobia. But I really want to sew things. I especially want to learn to quilt so I can make some art quilts and crazy quilts because I think they're just amazingly gorgeous.
Anyhow, Matthew and I agree that what I need is a new, easy to operate machine. One that does some fancy stitches for the art quilting I want to try. So I'm getting a new machine for Christmas. After lots of research on my part, I narrowed my choices to three machines and then had him look at them to help me decide (he's been making clothes since he was 12, can rebuild and refurbish a machine on his own, etc., so he is my resident expert). I've decided on the Brother CS6000i. It's very nice, lets you set the sewing speed so it won't go too fast (which sewing machines always seem to do to me). And it has a few special quilting feet and the right set-up to do free motion embroidery. I think it's love. 
Vacation was great. I need another one. I am feeling really run down and exhausted this week because the two weeks since we've been back have been overly busy. Too much to do, too many deadlines, not enough sleep. But I wanted to get back to writing in my blogs so I can keep track of myself.
Now that last weekend is over (I was hostess for a big SCA event), I am starting to make plans for NaNoWriMo. Only two more weeks until it starts! I had been desultorily toying with the story idea I came up with in the Charles de Lint workshop, but I was having trouble really figuring out what I want to do with that one. Then yesterday, a line from a song gave me my idea for this year, and I'm off and running. Okay, I'm not off and running. I'm too tired for that. But I have some plans, and tomorrow I have a day off to sleep a lot and work on writing. So I'm about to be off and running.
I haven't had any time lately to work on any embroidery or any other art projects, so I have nothing to report on that front. There probably won't be much in the way of art projects for a while now. It's writing time, so that's what I'll be doing.
We're on our way to Chicago tomorrow morning. Back in the evening of
September 30. I might get online a bit while we're gone, but I don't
know for sure. Have a great week, everyone!
Last weekend, my weekend of Charles de Lint, has come and
gone. I’ve been hesitant to write about
it, because how can I put it into words?
It was wonderful! Friday night’s
book signing was fun, of course. At the
outset, he took pictures of the audience to share with his wife. Then we got to hear him read a bit from Little
(Grrl) Lost, one of his two new books that just came out this month. More
importantly, we got to hear him talk—about books and writing and music and
himself. This is one of those instances
where you just want to absorb every word, every gesture, every look into
yourself so it will stay with you forever.
And it will, but it will soon be not so immediate. And that makes me a little sad.
Sunday…Sunday was incredible. I left at 6:15 a.m. to drive to Seattle, headbanger music
blasting all the way, singing at the top of my voice to keep myself awake. And I didn’t even get lost! I found the place on the first try.
After introductions and bit of chit chat, we wrote for
thirty minutes. Then we each got to
read our piece out loud to the group and get feedback. I say “got to” as if it was a privilege, and
it was, but it was intimidating, too.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve been in a writers’ group, so I
haven’t been reading things to people or even having them read my
writings. To do it out loud in a group
of strangers with Charles de Lint as part of the
group…Yikes! But I did it, and it was a
good thing to do. I want to be back in
a group where we read to each other and talk about the work. But I digress…
My piece got a lot of good input, including from CdL. He said that I don’t actually need to use
many “he said/she said” tags, even though they tend to disappear on the page,
because the way I wrote my characters’ voices made them easily
distinguishable. I was very proud of
myself. I’m trying not to preen. Okay, actually I’m not. I’m preening. I’m very pleased with myself, especially because what I wrote was
completely off the top of my head. I
didn’t have any plans when I got there, and my piece wasn’t part of a story I
had already started or had plans for.
(Actually, this part is kind of silly.
I have no idea why I didn’t have an idea ready to go along with the myth
I took with me—somehow it didn’t occur to me that we were going to be writing
in the workshop! Dumb, I know, but I
was probably overly excited and not thinking straight.)
So…at lunch time, I went down to the corner coffee
shop. CdL was there with two women from
class, and we all chatted for a bit while we waited for our coffees and soups
and things, and then we walked back to the class together, just chatting as we
went. CdL talked about Harlan Ellison
and being on the phone with him one time.
Just normal, you know. “Oh, I was talking to Harlan once…” He knows all of these amazing writers
personally, so he can just say things like, “Last time I was talking to Midori [Snyder].” Or “I was on a panel, sitting next to Jane
[Yolen].” Or “Terri [Windling] and I
were sitting around one day trying to come up with a name for this type of
fiction.” I was star struck. I was, it’s true.
At the end of the class, his wife, Mary Ann Harris, joined
us to talk about things like first readers and about acting as his editor and
agent for a while. She’s really great,
and hearing her take on his writing life was inspiring. Makes me realize what sort of first reader
relationship I would like to have.
It was just an amazing, incredible time for me, and these
words, little black and white blobs, just can’t do it justice…I think I’ll just
write a story instead.
Oh yeah...this is cross posted for those who read more than one of my blogs.
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