Weldon: Critique 1

Weldon, I love how you humanized a lamp in your piece. It felt like an episode out of Family Guy—when they humanize inanimate objects—or when South Park does episodes on Mr. Towelie and his life. I would say that I wanted more from the resume—or maybe I did not want it to be a resume at all. As I read your piece, I totally disregarded the title and jumped straight in. Once I got to the end, I read the title and noticed it was not in a resume format. I thought to myself that if this were just ‘the chronicles of Lamp’, you could have furthered the character of Lamp because I felt that the resume didn't leave room for elaboration.

Week 2: "Continuity of Parks," Julio Cortazar

The Cortazar piece played with the concept of author, narrator, and character. He gives the reader a description of the first character, with no indication that this character may be the narrator as well. It is not until the second to last sentence on the first page that the reader gets the ‘novel’s language’; “the woman arrived first, apprehensive . . .” This line introduces the character’s in the novel that the first character is reading. The first thought that I got was that he was extremely into the story and thus, the narrator, stopped describing the first character—that could possibly be himself—and started writing about his second and third character, whom are the couple in the novel. Once the narrator began to describe the couple’s actions, I figured that that was the end of the first characters part in this piece. What brought me back to the first character, and/or narrator, was the last line. Cortazar waited until the last line of the reading to surprise his audience with a circular plot, and then ends it. The way in which his descriptions give little clue to the overall piece made me want to read more; and his descriptions allowed a somewhat movie-feel to the reading. The way in which he moved the reader through the story was as if these were all scenes to a mystery film that had no real ending, just mystery.

Week 1: Author Questionnaire

1. For me there is not a preparatory period or duration. I just write; it comes when it comes. 2. I am originally a poet—postmodern poetry. 3. “When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature.” Ernest Hemingway My characters mostly derive from myself and those around me . . . I am an observer of people, which helps when I am trying to find my next character. 4. Music!!! 5. Anytime I feel inclined to write, I do it, I carry a composition notebook in my purse and in my car . . . I never know when it might happen or need to be done. 6. I don’t count . . . I just write. 7. I plead the fifth! 8. I am a writer . . . not a typist. If something comes to mind that must be written, I don’t have time for my laptop to warm up . . . what if the idea slips away while I’m typing my password? 9. “My stories [poems] run up and bite me on the leg – I respond by writing down everything that goes on during the bite. When I finish, the idea lets go and runs off.” Ray Bradbury 10. Endings are the most difficult. Sometimes I do not know where I am going or what I am trying to say. There are other times when the story is not complete and I just stop, somehow that just becomes my ending. 11. Reading the words to myself (sight) as well as aloud (sound) allows me to see my story more clearly. 12. I am a freestyler of prose; however it flows is how it will go. 13. (refer to # 11) 14. As if I have conquered the world with a pen [pencil]! 15. Yes I do. I think that my work is never finished . . . if I look at a piece of my work and wonder “wtf” it needs to be revised. If it is the opposite, there needs to be a part two. 16. “Now keep in mind that I’m an artist and I’m sensitive about my shit!” Erykah Badu