Monday, 15 February 2010

writing in colours

I want to write about writing in colours, this first came to mind sitting in a lecture last week where the lecturer spoke about a musical video that he had used as research for a novel he is writing. He spoke about wanting that image to run through his narrative. And this made me think of the idea of writing in colours (not different coloured pens btw though you can if you want to). It is where you can develop your narrative to such an extent that the reader is standing at the edge, having been led by your words, ready and willing to feel, see, hear and touch your story. They have become it, from a book being part of their macro-narrative to being so involved in the piece that it has become a micro-narrative. For that brief moment it is their world. This, I think, as writers is a moment we need to aspire to. It should be our purpose, our raison d'etre,our inspiration, our rhythm of life even.

Kundera says that the raison d'etre of the novel is to try and understand life. That puts a huge amount of pressure on a writer. I would rather go back to my writing in colours and use that as a means of giving time to people, time to escape, time to understand their own lives by being swallowed up by a the story. Sometimes we all need time to stop to understand, to switch off, to let the answers flow. I mentioned in a previous blog part of the reason behind this is a research informed teaching project and that is why I am sitting in on a module. But this module is giving me time to listen and think. It gives me that moment, that breathing space to allow things to fall into place and make sense again. It reminds me of the things I know but had forgotten I knew and also reminds me why I need to know them. Afterwards writing in colours is always easier and more focused. Maybe we all need to do that, a chance to stop and take life in, a time to listen and breath. A time just to be. Today is a lavender day - lavender pens, jumpers, skies.



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