The Room of Dance and Words
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
What if your books could talk to each other: What would they say? What if your characters could all slidhoptumblemosey down, leap their own pages? That cat-loving neighbor. That defiant divorcee. That vanished father. That lonesome ice skater. That grandfather facing his final hour. That Spanish nurse. That English teacher, Dr. Charmin. That art restorer. That recluse. That little girl in Anapra. That striped-stocking adventuress known to Zenobians as Moira.
Would they, the question becomes, defy, convey, embrace, congeal? Would they fall in love?
Little Willow stirred the pot for me on this. She said, an email, I'll put your books together on my shelf so that they might whisper to each other. Hmm, well, and there it was. I've been imagining ever since.
Here is the room in which my characters would mingle. A room set aside for dance and words.
10 comments:
That is a VERY interesting thought...now I am going to be imagining different characters from books and whether they'd be friends...and would they be friends with ME?
Erin, honestly: Who wouldn't be friends with you?
(I don't know if all my characters would actually be friends with me; I mean, some of them don't even actually make it, in the end).
Thank you so much for this! :)
No, Little Willow. Thank you. It's a great image. It reminds of the kids I used to teach here in the house, in that same room. I'd ask them all to structure two characters and draw the house where the characters lived. Then I'd have them physically move the characters out into the street, where they'd bump into the other writers' characters. They'd be forced to hold the personalities true, while allowing plot to unfold.
Your comment made me remember that/
Beth,
found you.
A pleasing room to imagine. I've never doubted my characters' fondness for each other. All different sides of the same diamond.
But now I have a favor to ask? It's Brooks Hansen.
Brooks,
You won't believe this, I'm sure of it, but I thought about you just yesterday—perhaps because, when I was photographing that shelf, your Chess Garden again caught my eye (Caesar's Antlers sitting there, too).
I remembered your encouragement.
In any case—do you want to email me? kephartblog@comcast.net.
b
Beth, Characters from different books getting to know each other....Notes from different songs finding their way to another song...Lyrics on the same journey...A tree from a painting finding its way to a seaside painting...A character from one play finding his/her way into the lives of characters from other plays...THANK YOU for encouraging us to continue to "think outside the box"!! Happy Valentine's Day to you, Bill and Jeremy!
Love, Libby
I love this idea, and you've got me on it already. I've already begun making up new scenarios for myself.
I am wondering what a book co-written by Hafiz and Winnie the Pooh would look like? Perhaps Tigger could guest write? :)
This room is wonderful, and I can imagine myself in it, sitting in one of those wonderful chairs and reading for hours.
Kris (and Erin and Libby and Little Willow):
We may have a new cottage industry here—the book collage mirage.
We will rewrite literary history.
We will dazzle.
b
Razzle dazzle!
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