Title: The Cat's Pajamas Source: www.thegoosesroost.com
I won an editorial critique on Twitter this summer. Yayyy!!! My two favourite sentences in the critique of my novel, Papillon: "The family histories, which span generations, have an inherently epic feel reminiscent of 100 YEARS OF SOLITUDE." "I’m certain if and when you sell it, there will be a readership just clamoring to get their hands on it!" What Rhoda Belleza, the editor who provided the critique, didn't know is that 100 Years of Solitude is possibly my favourite novel of all time. No doubt Garcia Marquez has hugely influenced my writing, but reminiscent...well, that's just the cat's pajamas! Her full critique was so inspiring & spot on in the areas that required a nudge. Belleza also posted a great article on THE PROCESS OF PLOTTING which I heartily recommend to fellow writers. #amwriting #amrewriting Dina
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Last night, I went to see Jean-Marc Vallée’s film Café de Flore and I'm still reeling. Credit: empiretheatres.com Plot synopsis: Successful, happy, high-flying DJ (Kevin Parent) with fabulous life and equally fabulous wife laments having left his (now) ex-wife for his current one. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, a single mother (Vanessa Paradis) struggles to take care of her child (Marin Gerrier) who has Down's Syndrome in a parallel story from 40 years before. Top 10 reasons to sit through Vallée’s seeming absence of logic as he jumps from one era to the other without any apparent link: Photo credit: rebelyogi.com 10. You are a woman praying for non-linear deconstruction because your own life has become too linear (morning: car/transit, work /groceries, cook/clean, fall asleep exhausted/sex, who has time?). This film's curvy path will carry you away by the sheer power of its emotions. Or, you are this woman's partner - see warning below. Warning: This film may provoke the urge to indulge in crazy, passionate sex (if you have children, you may want to make arrangements with sitter/in-laws) . . . If you need further coaxing to see this film, please click here. Last night, I inhaled Woody Allen's love letter to the City of Lights FOR A SECOND TIME in as many days. I strolled around Paris on a warm spring evening, pausing on the bridges, felt the cobblestones under my feet and the rain in my hair...Okay, granted - I'm in love with Paris - But, why should YOU see the movie? Here are my top 10 reasons: 10. "It's the present, it's dull" is a line from the movie. Have you ever been annoyed by the banality of our current culture? Have you ever wished for a portal to take you to another time, say 20s Bohemian Paris specifically? If so, this could be the film for you! 9. You may have a billion reasons to criticize Woody Allen, but he celebrates everyone on his team equally. He shows this by listing the actors in alphabetical order. I noticed that in the late seventies & he still does it. Good on him! 8. To hear Adrien Brody playing Dalí, when he tries to pronouce 'rhinoceruses' while probing the perplexing, surrealist and Freudian depths of Gil's psyche. Estupendo! 7. To hear Cole Porter crooning his hommages to Paris like “I Love Paris” and “C’est Magnifique.” Ahhhhhh . . . 6. Mistress and muse Marion Cotillard. She's just plain hot! 5. Hemingway & Fitzgerald - 'nuff said! 4. Was 'The Purple Rose of Cairo' one of your faves? If so, Allen's newest time machine may be right up your alley, or allée. 3. The enormously talented cast of bohemians in the film, with a special nod to: 2. Kathy Bates who plays straight-shooting mother hen to the artists Gertrude Stein. Brilliant casting! Et, enfin -- the # 1 reason you should see the movie is: 1. Paris, of course!!!! From the opening postcard montage of the City of Lights it's clear that Khondji's sensual cinematography will easily whisk us away, not just to Paris, but to the nostalgic Paris that every writer & artist I know has fantasized about at one time or another - the Paris of cafes & jazz, of wine & absinthe, and especially of a place where artists could thrive! Owen Wilson's character talks about how great living cities such as Paris eclipse manmade art today and how inspiring an environment CAN be when it is viewed as a work of art and not just a series of boxes that people inhabit. I believe I may not be alone in that upon walking out of the theatre, I wished that I'd turn the corner to find the feel of cobblestone underfoot, a light mist on my cheek lit up by Parisian lampposts and backed by a twinkling Eiffel Tower or romantic bridge. Ahh Paris - Je te reviens! TartanFrog Writing Wednesdays: Contests for the writerlies! ++ my two cents on The Birth House by Ami McKay3/9/2011 Ready to submit?! S'Alright, you have a couple of weeks to polish up your contenders - here's the April line-up: 1. April 1st (no it's no April Fool's joke:) Short Grain Writing Contest; Entry Fee: $35; Prizes: $1,000; $750; $500 x 2. For more information, please check out their website. 2. April 15th. From the Shadows Poetry Contest; Entry Fee: $5/3 poems; Prizes: Cash, Membership, Chapbook Publication & Certificates. See their website for details. Two Cents... After listening to Canada Reads I determined to read more Canadian novels. I picked up a few at my local independent bookstore, The Bookmark (great store btw - do check it out if you're in downtown Halifax!!) Last night I finished The Birth House and started The Best Laid Plans. About The Birth House by Ami McKay: In Courtney Klein's review of the Birth House, she began: "Every novel has a message to share, but sometimes the message can come on too strong. The Birth House lacks subtlety and becomes almost overbearing to read." I'm torn by the quote because, on one hand, I agree that instead of letting the message present itself subtly to the reader, the author's opinion shines through the storyline and can prove a little distracting from the plot. Then again, that might not be such a bad thing since the other main weakness I found in The Birth House was its predictable plot points (marrying Hart & falling for Archer - whose characters, like the other men, were somewhat flat). On the other hand, this is a debut novel with MANY fine points, including its writing, which seems to have fallen under the radar amongst the chatter of controversial midwifery and such. McKay is a no-nonsense writer who writes without artifice despite the historical opportunity for flounce and flourish. At its core, The Birth House is a beautiful story with strong female characters. Others have mentioned it, but oh, what's not to love in our techno-age about that rough cut thick paper with all the newspaper clippings, letters, invitations and recipes added in, much the way I imagine a diary or scrapbook would have been kept in that era. And that, together with the fiestiness of Ms. Babineau, is what really drew me in. Set against the historical backdrop of World War 1, the Halifax Explosion (and even the Great Boston Molasses flood), the way Ami Mckay made use of all the stylistics to support the historical content made me want to keep reading despite the fact that I felt the narrative weakened in the last third. All in all, I enjoyed The Birth House (especially timely given the debates going on in Halifax on the topic of midwifery). I would LOVE to see a second edition with an alternate ending that delivers as much spunk as the rest of the novel. In reading about McKay's passion for music, I also can't help wondering whether she might produce another novel set against a musical history backdrop. . . Till then, Pick up some Canadian Fiction!!!!! TartanFrog mayuri12.tumblr.com Look at the photo on the left. If the wrought-iron railing is what appeals to you most, then go for Jonathan Franzen's epic 'Freedom'. If, on the other hand, you are attracted to the beauty of an unmade bed and it makes you want to lounge there, then start by reading 'The Sentimentalists'. In my case, I love both. And read both. The verdict: Amongst the lauding of Skibsrud's debut novels are the remarks about it being a 'stumbling colt', true; that it could have benefited from more rigorous editing, also true; and that it felt unpolished, somewhat true. HOWEVER, despite its flaws, I was lured by its raw lack of pretension. One might say that it felt Canadian in contrast to Franzen's 'Freedom' which is rife with power and structure. Mind you, Franzen is a brilliant architect of tragic realism. He shamelessly exposes the flaws of his characters whose comprehensively realized psychologies are compelling, but whose dialogue lapses (too often for my liking) into social commentary. I felt that both novels lacked narrative drive and whereas Jonathan blew me away with his first 160 pages, I was disappointed with the section that went back to 2004. Skibsrud, on the other hand, almost lost me in her first 40 pages or so, but as soon as I read page 47, like the theme of her book, I felt I'd come home. Her prose is absolutely beautiful whereas Franzen comes of lazy in comparison. Still, when Franzen is on, he's ON! No matter the accolades & awards, these are two truly inspired writers. Enjoy them. TartanFrog Did you hear? Yesterday the New York Times announced their 10 Best Books of 2010. And . . . drumroll . . . The first on their list was: FREEDOM By Jonathan Franzen. Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $28. The truth: I'm feeling lazy (like lion) today, seeking time to enjoy my morning coffee, write holiday cards and finish reading: Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen. As my writerlies and close friends all know, I've recently completed a novel called Liberty Leading the People, featuring the theme of freedom. So, it will come as no surprise that this book makes me a little nervous. So far though (about 250 pages in), Franzen seems to be approaching it from a slightly different tangent, tiny sigh. The New York Times hopes to inspire you to buy a great book for a loved one for the holidays. If so, don't forget to support local writers too, especially the ones from my writers' group, the Wired Monk Writers: Drive-by Saviours (Roseway Publishing) by Chris Benjamin is the story of desire and connection among lonely people adrift in a crowded world. [I can personally recommend as a great read] You can purchase it at the bookstore or click on the link above to buy directly from the publisher. Or, if you lean more toward the science fiction/fantasy, you could purchase a copy of Simon Vigneault's novelette Stealing Fire, released in the Shelter of Daylight Anthology (a few seconds after clicking, it lines you up with Shelter of Daylight. Below the list of authors and stories there are three links for US, Canadian, and International orders). Wishing one & all a FABULOUS Saturday! Now back to Freedom:) TartanFrog Last night at our weekly Sunday dinner, Simon (who is in my writers' group) mentioned the Fish competition. I looked it up and the details are below. Meanwhile, I've ordered a copy of 'The Canadian Writers' Contest Calendar 2011'. I will keep posting the competitions, but it's a great tool...Finally, I finished 'The Sentimentalists', the Giller Winner that seems to be racking up controversy! I threw in my two cents at the bottom. Happy scribing, TartanFrog! The Fish Competition! Deadline: November 30, 2010 Entry Fee: $26 Web site: www.fishpublishing.com E-mail address: [email protected] A prize of 3,000 euros (approximately $3,850) and publication in the annual Fish Publishing anthology is given annually for a short story. Using the online submission system, submit a story of up to 5,000 words with an entry fee of 20 euros (approximately $26) by November 30. Visit the Web site for complete guidelines. ABOUT 'THE SENTIMENTALISTS': Yes, I finished it last night. I picked out two reviewers that I think nailed my own impressions. Ian McGillis, National Post, writes: "Fans of conventional pacing will be tested especially by The Sentimentalists’ first half, which often finds the narrator musing things like “It is only from a distance that abstractions are, after all, desirable, or even possible” and how “there comes that one instant, that impetus, whatever it will be, by which we are one day blown, finally, from our own furthest extremity.” Read more: http://arts.nationalpost.com/2010/11/13/book-review-the-sentimentalists-by-johanna-skibsrud/#ixzz161ZZjqqy And, Zoe Whittall, Globe and Mail, writes: "Like a lot of debut novels, The Sentimentalists can sometimes feel like a stumbling colt, with moments of astounding raw beauty and original wordplay." |
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