Book banning in VA – Dougherty Article

Source: Kerry Dougherty: Book banning again, this time in Virginia

 

I wanted to a link to post this article – along with the following quotation – also lifted shamelessly:

If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind. Were an opinion a personal possession of no value except to the owner; if to be obstructed in the enjoyment of it were simply a private injury, it would make some difference whether the injury was inflicted only on a few persons or on many. But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.

— On Liberty, John Stuart Mill

 

Hard Work & ADHD – About Facing Difficulty

Dealing with hard workhard work adhd

ADHD can make everyday and special tasks seem overwhelming. Sometimes, life seems overrun with hard work!


“If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” — Frank A. Clark

I try to keep this quotation in mind when I am struggling – especially when everyone around me seems to be able to accomplish twice as much in half the time.  

The payoff makes hard work worthwhile.

Dragon Anywhere: Makes Writing a Less Daunting Task

Since I find typing tedious, and soon lose interest, I decided to try Dragon Anywhere to dictate my writing.  I still have to go back and edit – but I can already see that dictation software could be a blessing for anyone with ADHD.dragon anywhere

The following is a sample scene from the book I’m working on.  I haven’t edited much . . . .WAY too much passive tense – but, not surprisingly, I digress.


Stella hated her parents house. It was all white. The walls. The couch. The carpeting. The people.

Stella’s mother had seen this in some architectural digest. Supposedly, the latest thing with the rich and famous. Not that Stella’s parents were rich or famous. Rich maybe. Stella didn’t get to see much of that. Each night, her parents went out to one party or another. Maybe the opera. Maybe a dinner. Maybe a fundraiser -not that they ever donated money.

Stella spent much of her time trying to figure out how to get out of that White House. The idea to slip out first came to her while watching a movie late one night. The woman in the movie lived a double life. During the day –  a normal housewife with three beautiful children and husband who adored her. At night, she was a prostitute on the streets of Paris.

Stella wanted to be that actress. She wanted to be that woman.

As long as she could remember, Stella had wanted to be an actress. She spent hours in a room pretending to be one person to another. Sometimes a princess who had everything-sometimes the popper with nothing he lived on her wits.

The third night the Astrophel family lived in Colorado, Stella decided to slip out. Just like that actress. Just like that woman.

Enjoying the irony, Stella dressed in all black. A leather miniskirt, a low-cut crop top, and, of course, a black leather jacket. She hid the thigh-high black leather boots from her parents. By day, they sat hidden in the back of her closet, behind the designer flats, pumps, and the Jimmy Choo sandals. At night, she slipped on the boots, zipping them up to the top of her thighs, pretending to be the Julia Roberts in “Pretty Woman”. No. That wasn’t right. She was a much better actress than Julia Roberts. At 15, she could be any age she wanted to be. Any age she needed to be.

When she applied the dark lipstick, the layers of mascara, the oversized hoop earrings – she became someone other than Stella. Someone other than the good girl. That girl who always got A’s in school. The one inspected each morning by her father to make sure she was impeccably dressed before leaving for school each day. Gone were the designer dresses, the Manolo Blahnik mules, the emerald ring her mother brought her from Paris. At night, Stella was trash. And that’s the way she wanted it.


Kind of lame – needs work – but it only took me 10 minutes instead of 2 hours to write.


Dragon Anywhere is a product of Nuance Communications, Inc.  It can be downloaded as an app for IOS or Android operating systems.  There is a one week free trial – after that it is $15/month or $150 annually.  For me, the price is worth it, but it IS a consideration.I loaded it on my iPhone and iPad (no – I’m not shilling for Apple!).  I’ve tried it on the tablet – but have yet to experiment with the phone version.

If you out Dragon Anywhere – I’d love to know what you think.  you can comment here – or email me at heather@writingasigo.com.

 

Disclaimer:I am not affiliated with Nuance Communications in any way

Banned Books Week and Censorship (unfinished)

Welcome to Banned Books Week September 25 – October 1 2016. I’d explain the purpose of Banned Books Week, myself, but I don’t think I could do a better job than the American Library Association’s Office:

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Highlighting the value of free and open access to information, Banned Books Week brings together the entire book community –- librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types –- in shared support of the freedom to seek, to publish, to read, and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

By focusing on efforts across the country to remove or restrict access to books, Banned Books Week draws national attention to the harms of censorship. The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targeted for removal or restrictions in libraries and schools. While books have been and continue to be banned, part of the Banned Books Week celebration is the fact that, in a majority of cases, the books have remained available. This happens only thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, students, and community members who stand up and speak out for the freedom to read.

Banned Books Week 2016: the 10 most challenged titles in Pictures– The Guardian

The US views standing against censorship as a good thing right? (Check out this extremely cool Interactive Constitution  from the National Constitution Center to review The First Amendment to the United States Constitution.)

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 

 

 

I promise I will get back to this article – I just wanted to get some of this info out!

Only the suppressed word is dangerous. - Ludwig Borne

On Censorship

 

I Finally Decided What I Am Passionate About

Status

Um. Everything. I know all the how-to books on websites and blogging insist writers find a specialized subject in order to attract visitors. The problem is I am interested in learning something about nearly everything. I wanted a website that allows me to share whatever I’m focused on – at the moment. If I’m lucky, I’ll hit on a few things that interest you, too. Welcome to the inside of my head!

“Victory over our Self,” ? “Ourself,” ?

We improve ouselves by victory over our selfour·self

ou(ə)rˈself,är-
pronoun

used instead of “ourselves,” typically when “we” refers to people in general rather than a definite group of people.

self

Self
noun

a person’s essential being that distinguishes them from others, especially considered as the object of introspection or reflexive action.
“our alienation from our true selves”
synonyms: ego, I, oneself, persona, person, identity, character, personality, psyche, soul, spirit, mind, (inner) being

Ernest Hemingway, Writing & Style

My favorite book by Ernest Hemingway is The Sun Also Rises.

I read TSAR for the first time when I was about 10. Although many of the themes in the novel were over my head then, I was mesmerized by the writing style – the concise prose, the near absence of sentiment, and the maddening gaps in the story – all fueled my fascination. (Although, I despised Lady Brett Ashley then and I haven’t warmed to her in the past 35 years!) The Sun Also Rises is a book I can read over and over; it continually humbles me as a writer.

No amount of analysis can convey the quality of The Sun Also Rises. It is a truly gripping story, told in a lean, hard, athletic narrative prose that puts more literary English to shame. Mr. Hemingway knows how not only to make words be specific but how to arrange a collection of words which shall betray a great deal more than is to be found in the individual parts. It is magnificent writing.
—The New York Times review of The Sun Also Rises, 31 October 1926

It took Hemingway only 2 months to write the draft of TSAR. I long to develop that kind of focus. Hemingway liked to write standing up on his Royal Quiet de Luxe typewriter in his Havana home. That is one writing technique I have not tried, but, as I am brutally frustrated with my lack of progress, I just might have to get out of my chair and stand in front of my desk.

[I believe the Havana Hemingway typewriter sold at auction in 2008 or 2009 for around $2750, so I will have to make do with my MacBook Air in my Colorado Springs apartment for now.]