Creative Event: AU Singers Spring Concert

       This past Sunday afternoon I went to the AU Singers Spring Concert. I had a special interest in this show because I used to be a Show Choir performer all through middle school and high school, and it's still near and dear to my heart!  
       The exhilaration and enthusiasm I felt watching the show had me thinking about if I could translate that feeling onto paper.  How would you put  that emotion into words without just having to say "exhilarated"? I guess I could write the character's stream of consciousness, just spilling out any thoughts they are are having during the show, maybe a word-association sort of thing? I think it'd be interesting to write about a character who has a true passion - obviously all characters in fiction have a passion, or else they'd never be read about - a passion that drives everything in their being. Maybe it could be performing, or playing an instrument, or running marathons, or winning hot-dog eating contests, anything really, but really get into their head and see why this drives them, how it makes them feel, and how it effects the people around them.  Are they celebrated for this passion? Are they mocked for this passion? Are they obsessive or balanced? 
        I also looked at the music the performers were singing.  For the solo performers, I imagined what kind of characters would be singing these solos. Like, what would be happening to my character if she was singing an Adele song? Probably something sad, but what could be her backstory? Who or what is making her sad? Where does she live? Is she happy with her life? There are a lot of opportunities, and I like the idea of listening to songs and forming characters and situations for them from the songs. 
         Beyond the actual performance, my knowledge of the AU Singers lent some inspiration. I know that at the beginning of summer they take a tour around one region of the country.  So that had me thinking about what it would be like to live on the road for a while, whether that be for two weeks or two years.  That would definitely be an interesting setting to write about, and it would lend to the possibility of so many different situations for the characters to be in. A new town equals a whole new set of problems and shenanigans!  And being confined to a tour bus with the same people all the time could lead to some good tension and conflict, and character inflection.  
         Overall, the AU Singers concert was greatly entertaining and lead to a lot of varied ideas!
        

Creative Event: Auburn's Chamber Music Ensemble Concert

            This past Friday I attended Auburn's Chamber Music Ensemble Concert in the Goodwin Recital Hall, which was composed of three separate groups of musicians.  The first group consisted of a bass cello, standard cello, viola (played by my best friend!), violin, and piano. The second group consisted of a an oboe and a standard cello. The third group consisted of two violins, a viola, and a standard cello.  
        While listening the all classical arrangements being played, pondering inspirations, I thought of three separate things. First, I kept imagining different ballet variations that could work with the music being played. I am a ballet dancer, and thus the first connection my mind makes with classical music is ballet movement! This in turn started getting me thinking of possible story scenarios involving dancers and performance productions.  I've always enjoyed writing about dance/ballet, and I definitely think its a case of 'writing what you know', but I hope to one day write an extensive collection of poetry revolving around ballet.  The ballet world has a lot of romantic/idyllic mystery surrounding it (despite the plethora of movies and books written about it), and I like the idea of showing the world what it's really like.  And not in a sensational "struggles of the bulimic dancer going crazy" sense (though I have written that story before), but in a more subtle way that reveals all the true elegance and pain that defines this world and life.
         Secondly, my mind associates classical music (especially of the more dramatic, wild variety) to movie soundtracks.  Thus I started imagining different scenes that the music would fit nicely into the background.  Such as, a movement of music in a crescendo makes me think of someone running or having an emotional breakdown.  A more soothing movement would be good for a pensive car ride. etc, etc. 
         This association sort of led me into the third inspiration. One of the movie soundtracks I was reminded of was "Pride and Prejudice" (with Keira Knightly and Matthew MacFadyen), which had me thinking about whether or not I would ever want to attempt to write a story with a period-setting.  I think it would definitely be daunting, but also really interesting! I love reading period books, so why not try to write one? It would involve a lot of research and would make dialogue tricky, but there's a lot to do when writing'about' the past - you can take that chance to expose some of the struggles of that era, or simply embrace the nostalgia of it all. Plus, I think it would push me as a writer to create a character who lives in a world nothing like my own. 
        Overall, I really enjoyed this concert and got some cool inspirations, all while supporting my best friend and the arts! :)

Sky's "Driver's License"

Story Arc: The main character, Anthony, was a woman who wished she could be a man, but is struggling with whether or not she will truly be happy or have any regrets if she really does switch genders.  She has a daughter with her partner, Dominique, and Dominique encourages her/him to have the sex change operation done. In the end, Anthony seems settled and happy with his/her decision. 
Compliments: This is definitely a topic and issue that is not seen often in literature, but is a very real personal struggle. Even though this story is mostly conversation, there is still a lot of tension present due to the big, not easily solved, issue. And I feel like you presented the struggle in a very real and not-too-dramatic way. The description of the characters was nice and clear, as well. 
Revisions: The setting and situation is kind of confusing in the beginning. I'm not quite sure where the settings change and that gets confusing, and we don't really learn of what Anthony's problem/concern is for a little while and I wish it was brought into the story and made clear sooner on.  Dialogue is not always very realistic, especially with the child - try not to get too expected and cliche with her characterization. Also, it was sometimes hard to tell when who was speaking when/what between Anthony and Dominique. Try to make their voices more separate. Be sure you find a balance between dialogue and action - sometimes there were long stretches of dialogue in which we didn't really know what was happening with the characters' movements and such. In general, just be careful that this is not an "issue" piece.  This is definitely a good topic to write about, but can easily take a turn to becoming LGBT genre fiction. 

Morgan's "Big Blue Eyes"

Story Arc: This story is about a reporter interviewing Casey Anthony. We sees Anthony's opinions and regrets that weren't really shown in the publication of her trial, and we see even more once the reporter goes off the record. 
Compliments: I really enjoy that this piece wasn't really focused on the trial itself and more on what Casey Anthony had to say.You definitely did a good job of humanizing her character, which I'm sure was hard to do! I think telling the story from her perspective did a lot for that - it's usually pretty hard to not sympathize with a first person narrator. And with this, you saw more of her personality in general, not just a cold persona or what everyone saw on TV. I also like how the reporter was presented as unbiased in her interview.  The dialogue seemed natural and realistic, which can be hard in an interview scene, so that was good to see. 
Revisions: There was a lot of summary throughout the piece and I would have liked to see more action and specific details. Also, be careful about how you utilize tense shifts so that the reader isn't left confused on the timeline of events. I also think it would be interesting to hear more about what Casey Anthony has to say about the actual happening of the crime, rather than just what happened leading up to it. Even though there is still mystery surrounding the events of the crime, you have the opportunity to fictionalize this scene and could present a really emotionally powerful moment.  This would also give you the opportunity to explore what is going on in Casey Anthony's mind while committing the crime, which would definitely be an intriguing challenge!

Great job Morgan! You definitely chose to tackle a tough and controversial crime/criminal to write about, and you did a fantastic job humanizing it all!

Taylor's "Stutter"

Story Arc: The story begins with the readers being introduced to an unusual homeless man named Levi who plays cards on the curb, then to a young man named Roman who stutters. Roman meet-cutes a quirky girl named Sawyer in a coffee/tea shop and they hit it off wonderfully, but go their separate ways. The two of them meet up again by a chance visit to play cards with Levi. They leave Levi and Sawyer asks Roman to be her date to a wedding and Roman reveals that Levi wants him to build a coffin. 
Compliments: I absolutely love this story! It's really cute, well-written, quirky, and full of great details and characterization. I thought the story progressed logically and I was never thrown off by changes in time. I also felt like the dialogue was really realistic and interesting. Overall, I liked that your story is familiar, yet original - your characterization and details make a normal boy-meets-girl story really fresh!! 
Revisions: I wanted to know more of Sawyer's backstory, just because she is such a unique, fun character and I'd like to know what influenced her to be the way she is.  I also felt like there was more significance to Levi's coffin then what was given - maybe he should know he's really sick or is going to kill himself or something, rather than 'just in case.' Be careful about long stretches of dialogue  and descriptions without action or movement.

Overall - such an entertaining story, I would absolutely love to read more, definitely novel potential here! :) 

Katie's "Never the Same"

Story Arc: This story is about a couple who devotes most of their time to their individuals jobs rather than focusing on spending time together.  The only time they really share together is when they go on bike rides together.  One day they decided to ride by the Twin Towers and that was the day the 9/11 attacks happened. From that point on they realize the importance of taking advantage of the time they have together because you never know what might happen. 
Compliments: I liked that you chose a sensational event rather than person/criminal to humanize.  These attacks are always viewed as something horrible and tragic (which they are), but you really brought forth the idea that hard times bring people closer and reveal what's most important to people and in life. Your characters are realistic and the dialogue is believable. You also have some great details scattered throughout the piece. Just going back to this, I really liked that you chose this event to focus on, because this is something that everyone has connection to and knows a lot about.  Not everyone may know about certain serial killers and other criminals, but everyone feels the impact of those attacks. 
Revisions: Overall, I just wanted to know more about these characters. Maybe more dialogue between the couple would reveal more about them, and maybe if we got to see more of what was going through their minds.  Also be aware that you have some tense changes throughout the piece, which is a constant struggle I have as well!  When you are describing the attacks, try to incorporate some more vivid images. You get across the feeling of chaos really well, but this sight was surely super vivid and terrifying, while also awe-inspiring - let us see that!

Great job Katie!

Johnson's "Emergency" and Palahniuk's "Escort"

"Emergency": This piece about two friends/acquaintances who work  in an ER together, and who both steal pills from the hospital.  The whole story - a single day in their lives - is told through the tripping eyes of one of the friends.  First, they are handling a patient with a knife stuck in his eye, and the narrator's perception of events and dialogue is really quite surreal - almost a super-heightened sense of realistic truth.  This same sense is continued when the narrator and Georgie leave the hospital and drive, ultimately having an encounter with poor little dead baby rabbits :(.  Overall, this story gives a sense of a sad reality that is only seen through a sort of vivid-drug-haze.
"Escort": This piece is about a man looking back on the time he spent as a hospice escort.  He would take dying hospice patients and their relatives around the city sightseeing, all as a result of a happen-stance in which he chose to do this "date" as a good deed, and then wanting to continue.  We learn that the narrator grows close to these patients and stays with them until death, and then always receives a hand-made throw blanket from the relative.  He cannot seem to part with these blankets, and he eventually stops being an escort, though we do not know why exactly.  Here, too, the reader gets a sad sense of reality that is only seen when put in a situation that makes you more aware. 

      The style that these two short stories are written in is very striking to read. Dialogue and narrator thoughts are sharp and no-fluff, and no gritty details are spared or glossed over.  I think it would be very difficult to write in this style just because you, as a writer, have to figure out what this reality is that you're trying to reveal and what raw details would do the job.