Sunday Author Appreciation: Billy Collins

I don't think I've ever dedicated a post to any particular author, but I feel I should.  Some people are just too awesome not to acknowledge, and one of those people happens to be a favorite poet of mine, Billy Collins.

My first taste of Collins' poetry came a  few years ago when my friend got me The Trouble with Poetry for my birthday, and I fell in love with the almost easy way he had with words.  Don't get me wrong; writing poetry is never a simple task.  The thing about poetry is that every word should matter; every phrase and the placement of each line can connote a particular meaning, which is why I think it's so hard to do, and I truly commend those who do it well.

What strikes me about Billy Collins' poetry, though, is the fact that it seems so easy.  It doesn't read like the kind of poetry that takes time to muddle through because you're trying to decode each line for meaning.  It doesn't seek abstraction but is content to merely observe the ordinary in a way that is accessible to all readers.  

And I think that is the brilliance of his writing.  It's almost luring you into a false sense of comfort.  You read his works and you admire the straightforward way he speaks about his surroundings or his observations of life.  Yet at the same time, if you reread it, there is something deeper to be found, some cleverly disguised emotion or hidden irony or humor that might not have been discovered upon first glance.  Or sometimes he foregoes the subtlety altogether and outright mocks an established convention, such as his blatant overuse of the word "suddenly" in his poem "Tension" (Ballistics, p. 55), in response to the theory that you should "never use the word suddenly just to create tension."

It's things like this that make me truly appreciate Collins' poetry.  His poems are meaningful, and they can certainly be irreverent, but they make you stop and think.  And they have a way of reminding you that not everything need be so complicated, nor taken so seriously.

Check out more about Billy Collins here.  

Hello, Blog. It's Me, Shannon.

Me: Hey, Dot.  Look, I know it's been awhile.  Things have been kinda hectic, after all, what with work, grad classes involving very archaic Renaissance texts, discovering new television shows that have consumed my life (hello, Once Upon a Time, why must you toy with my emotions so?), finding time to write creatively, and general procrastination...Needless to say, I am sorry, and it will never happen again--

Dot: That's what you say now!  Do you know how long it's been?  Huh?  Do you?!

Me: Well...

Dot: Almost a year!  A YEAR! Do you know what that kind of thing does to one's self-esteem?  

Me: It's not like I wanted to stop seeing you, it's just--

Dot: Don't you start with me!  I thought we HAD something!  I thought I MEANT something to you!  I guess I was wrong...

Me: No, Dot, really!  I never meant for things to go this far!  Honest!  There were times when I truly thought of writing, but I...well...I just didn't know what to say.

Dot: Well, I guess that makes two of us. *sob*

Me: How about this?  Why don't we start over, okay?  New year, fresh beginning?  

Dot: And what?  Get my hopes up again?  I don't know if I want to reconnect with you, anyway.  You're mean and get easily distracted by other websites and other people's blogs.  I've seen your browser history! And who is this Rumbelle you keep reading about online?!

Me: Never mind them.  It's you I came back to in the end.  I want to make this work, I do.  

Dot: How do I know you won't sneak off to some other site again, or abandon me while you frolic on Facebook?

Me: Look, I won't promise that I won't fall back into my old ways.  I can't promise that I won't slip up again.  But I am willing to try.  Give me that chance?

Dot: *Sigh* Fine. But if I see one word on here about your "ships," I'm leaving.

Me: I won't promise anything, but I'll try.

Dot: I suppose that will have to do.

Me: ...

Dot: ...

Me: Hey, Dot?

Dot: Yeah.

Me: It's nice to be back.

Dot: Shut up and type.

Me: Alrighty, then.

No, it is not weird at all to treat your blog like an ex with whom you're looking to make amends.  I will continue to tell myself that, and you should as well.  

Welcome to the New Year.  Polka Dot Prose is back.

(Any and all gifs (now and in the future) are not mine, but were found using Google Animated Image Search.  Frankly, I'm just amazed I got it to work.  If the gif is yours, you may message me and I will credit you/remove it at your behest.  Hopefully you won't make me remove it...come on, it's Hugh Grant dancing!)

A Room of One’s Own/New Blog Design!

Virginia Woolf wrote, “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.”  As for the first part, money is definitely necessary regarding publishing a book, though in our modern, technology-driven world, it is much easier to write by, say, starting up a blog or posting to online forums. 

However, having a “room of one’s own” is still an important aspect to the writing process, whether one is choosing to use paper or a Word document.  The environment in which one writes is critical to a consistent and successful writing career, and I believe that that environment can refer to either a physical room or even to a person’s blog.

With that in mind, I’d like to present the new layout and design of my blog!  As you might have noticed, it has been freshened up a bit from what it used to be.  I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my good friend Gina, creator of Tulle and Combat Boots, for helping me in this endeavor and creating a beautiful new look for my blog.  She is a very talented graphic designer, and you should definitely visit her site. 

With this new design, I feel like I truly do have a space to call my own, a space where I can be proud to post my thoughts and ramblings on writing and everything else.    It also represents a step forward in my journey towards becoming a professional writer. 

And speaking of writing professionally, I’d like to also announce that my paper on Batman’s female villains will be featured in The Journal of Popular Culture, and as soon as that issue is published, I will post a link to it on my blog. 

Looks like the new year is starting off right! J

Happy writing,

Shannon

Show Me Your Assonance

I’ve mentioned before that I’m a huge English nerd, right?  Yeah, I think it’s pretty obvious.  I noticed this again recently while listening to the Mumford and Sons song “The Cave” and noting the wonderful examples of assonance present, especially in the second stanza.  I swear, when they say, "The harvest left no food for you to eat/ You cannibal, you meat-eater, you see,” I can practically hear the gnawing sound of someone chewing or grinding on food…which I suppose is exactly the kind of imagery that belongs in those lines. 

It’s like they’re eating their words, so to speak.  Ba da bum. (I’m sorry.  I couldn’t help it.)

I like assonance, though.  Assonance and alliteration, really, but even more, I love the way some writers manipulate words, creating music in the mere sounds that coalesce when certain words are placed next to one another.  That’s one of the main reasons I like Mumford and Sons, apart from the fact that they use many Shakespeare references in their songs.  They just know how to make words sound beautiful and lyrical.

I know I have more to say on this subject, but for now I just wanted to get this thought on the page.  It was just something I was thinking about yesterday, and maybe later on I’ll compile a list of songs whose lyrics I find especially compelling.  However, for now I will just say that for all those who haven’t heard them yet, you should check out Mumford and Sons.   I particularly dig the banjo action they have going.

Happy listening,

Shannon

Spaceships versus Pirate Ships: The Eternal Question

This is a really random post, and I’m not exactly sure where it originated.  I guess the post on eye patches got me thinking about pirates, and I tend to think about pirates frequently anyway for one reason or another, but I’m not quite sure why I’m even bringing this up.

Well, what I want to know is this: what’s better, a spaceship, or a pirate ship?

I know, I know.  Spaceships go into outer space!  You can explore distant galaxies and have space adventures and whatnot.  You can meet aliens!  If you find a ship like the one in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, you can enable the Infinite Improbability Drive!

Of course, there are many downsides to spaceships.  For one, as of right now, the technology does not seem entirely foolproof.  If this were science fiction, I’d say right on, but real spaceships?  Don’t get me wrong; I’d still go into space, but I’d be much more leery.

Then there’s the whole “no air in outer space” dilemma.  I think I’d feel awfully claustrophobic in that cramped space, not to mention the bulkiness of the spacesuits and the whole bathroom situation.

Then again, I’d imagine pirate ships have that problem, as well.  The bathroom situation, that is.  The thing about pirate ships, however, is that while you may be stuck on the ship for an indefinite period of time, you still experience open air and some sense of freedom of movement.  It’s not such a great options for those who get seasick easily, but I’ve never had that problem myself.

Another positive aspect of pirate ships is the customary attire one gets to wear on the ship.  It’s pretty hard to top those big, floppy hats and long jackets.  Don’t even get me started on the boots. 

One con of pirate ships?  Definite hygiene issues all around.  Maybe if I could find a ship where the crew took pride in their appearances and their teeth…and their body odor.   Alas, such are the stuff of dreams.

Of course, there is a third option, I suppose…

Space pirates!

Hmm…this will warrant more thorough research and thought.  For now, I will leave these random thoughts and perhaps dream of Treasure Planet.

Happy Random Thought Day,

Shannon

New Year, New You! (And New Me, Too)

Happy 2013, all!  Well, the holidays are done, but I have not forgotten my promise to keep up the updating every week.  I would have posted this on New Year’s Day, but I was a bit preoccupied with lugging a heavy desk around the back of my house and setting up my new desk (or, rather, providing moral support for those helping me to assemble my new desk—much love).

Actually, aside from Christmas, New Year’s may be my favorite holiday of the year.  The ability to let go of the past and start with a fresh slate is very appealing, and it is a constant reminder of something I fully believe, which is the idea that it is possible to change for the better.  This year, especially, I want to try and stick to my resolutions and become a better me.

One book in particular I find relevant to this idea of resolution is Bridget Jones’s Diary.  I’ll admit I watched the movie before I got a chance to read the book, and while I do enjoy the movie immensely (that “fight” between Hugh Grant and Colin Firth—come on, what’s funnier?), I loved reading the book even more.  I know that shouldn’t come as too much of a shock (English major, after all), but it’s true.  Bridget herself is, I feel, much stronger in the book than in the movie, and her journey is captured so perfectly that it is hard not to identify with her. 

I bring up Bridget Jones’s Diary, though, because she, too, makes New Year’s resolutions that she intends to keep.  In the beginning of the book, she has compiled a list of goals she has for the coming year, such as to stop smoking, to lose weight, to develop “Inner Poise,” etc.  The novel follows her progress throughout the year, and by the end, she has compiled a summary of what she has accomplished.  And you know what?  She only manages to keep one of her resolutions.

Does this make her a failure?  Absolutely not.  Quite the reverse, actually.  Not only does the reader see how far she has come throughout the book, but Bridget compliments herself on “an excellent year’s progress.”  The idea that Bridget is proud of herself, is doing something for herself to make herself better, is the whole point.  She is not doing this for anyone else, and the fact that she is happy with who she is despite her numerous faults speaks to her as a person.  (And I must say that another reason I liked the book better is because the romances are not emphasized as much as Bridget's personal growth.)

So I will say two things.  First, go read the book.  It’s really great.  And second, make resolutions for the new year.  Try to better yourself.  Make an effort to change the things you want to change.  Ultimately, though, at the end of it all, make sure that you are happy with yourself, knowing that you want to change for yourself and not for others.  That’s one of my resolutions, and I plan to stick to it. J

Happy New Year, all,

Shannon

A Holly Jolly End to Writer's Block

Well, folks, I’ve done it.  The 10 Days of Christmas: Writer’s Edition was a resounding success, and I posted something every day up until Christmas.  I’d say that is quite an accomplishment, especially given my past track record with posting things on here. 

Granted, the posts generally had little or nothing to do with writing, but that wasn’t really the point.  The point was to set up a schedule and consistently post something to the blog. 

And this is how I can tie all of this back to writing.  You see, a big part of being a writer is writing (yeah, no duh).  Realistically, though, many people find it hard to stick to a set schedule of writing, which is a very big part of the process.  Even if you don’t have something to write about, even if you don’t have a story idea, you can still write something.  Writing anything is practice, and while you may not always have an idea initially, the writing process can help with writer’s block.

As I’ve said before, sometimes we get into a nasty cycle of complacency; we go for so long without writing that it just becomes normal.  And that’s not okay.

If you want to be a writer, you have to write consistently, whatever it may be.  The best way to write is to set up a schedule and stick to it.  Even if you write for only ten or fifteen minutes a day, you are still creating a habit.  Once you get used to writing every day, it will become second nature.

Hopefully this experiment has given me the stimulus to write more frequently and update this blog regularly.  I cannot say that I will update every day (I do have a life), but I will certainly try to update more than once a week. 

Merry Christmas Eve to all (and to all a happy whatever holiday of your choice),

Shannon

Some Last Minute Christmas Stuff

I’m not really sure what to write today, and to be honest, I’m a bit distracted (surprise, surprise).  I’m heading out later today to go to a Christmas party with a group of my high school friends, so I am really more focused on that than my blog at the moment. 

With that in mind, I will make this an extremely short blog post.  I knew I had to post something given my 10 Days of Christmas promise, and I will not go back on my word.  

In the spirit of Christmas Eve Eve (December 23), here are some last minute things you can do to get in the Christmas spirit (if you aren’t by this point):

1.      Bake Christmas cookies (hey, what’s jollier than eating sweet stuff?)

2.      Watch a Christmas movie (any one)

3.      Listen the Christmas music (and sing loudly for all to hear)

4.      Play Twister (well…maybe not holiday related, but how can you go wrong with this?)

And finally, for those who haven’t quite finished their Christmas shopping:

           Get On It!  

Only one more day until Christmas Eve, and I’m stoked.  Here’s wishing everyone happy holidays, whatever you celebrate.

Happy Christmas Eve Eve,

Shannon

Cookie Adventures!

I would say that this morning was very productive.  I wrapped some presents, wrote out some Christmas cards, posted to the blog (yay), and baked some delightful and tasty cookies (basic chocolate chip, a classic).  Here are the results of said baking excursion:

So much cookie goodness, it couldn't all fit in one tin.

Yummy-looking, no?  Anyway, this post really isn't going to be that long.  Mostly I wanted to brag about my delicious cookies, but I figured I should also put something else in here.  

So here is some advice for those looking to embark on their own baking adventures in the near future.  

First, go watch My Drunk Kitchen on YouTube.  And basically don’t do anything she does (love you, Hannah!).  But seriously, those videos are hilarious.  Go check them out.

Second, always time your cookies or whatever else you’re baking.  And even if you have set a timer, check on your cookies before the timer goes off.  Your cookies will bake much faster after the initial batch.

Third, always remember to wear an oven mitt.  This is crucial.  My pinky finger is not happy with me.

Finally, have fun!  And always remember: don’t be discouraged if something goes wrong or if you burn something.  You can always start again.  Or just eat the cookie dough.

Happy baking adventures and whatnot,

Shannon

It’s the End of the World as We…Oh, Wait

As you have probably noticed, there are no meteors falling from the sky, no zombie hordes eating people’s brains, no Day After Tomorrow-style ice ages, and no other earth-destroying force wiping out all of humanity.

That’s right, people.  We’ve survived the Apocalypse.  Yippee.

But you know, I have been giving it a lot of thought, and it has come to my attention that there are many, many theories regarding the way in which the world will end, and for the most part, I find myself a bit underwhelmed. 

Don’t get me wrong; a zombie hoard gnawing on my flesh would be terrifying, if not a little gross.  However, everyone has thought of that scenario.  Everyone has thought of the meteors and the weather shifts that throw the environment out of balance.  I mean, what has Al Gore been talking about all this time, huh?  Obviously, he was trying to warn us about the Apocalypse.

Anyway, I wanted to think up some better or more creative ways for the world to end.  So here’s my personal list:

1.      Everyone gets infected by some love virus (go with it), we all get into a giant orgy and finally die from too much sex.

2.      By some sort of magic something/alternate timeline, we find out that all of our favorite fictional characters are actually real…and kill us all to gain control over our world.

3.      Evil Abed and Evil Troy make this the darkest timeline.

4.      What happened at the end of Cabin in the Woods (because that was pretty awesome).

5.      Giant lobsters.

6.      Aliens come and bake everyone into a huge, worldwide birthday cake (or Jell-O mold).

7.      Paper becomes sentient (it happens) and gives everyone huge paper cuts…and then they get infected and turn everyone into paper monsters.

8.      In order to take over the world, The Abominable Snowman recruits Frosty the Snowman and all the other snowmen…and cause a huge ice age okay, so I couldn’t help it—at least it wasn’t caused by global warming, though).

9.      A chemical spill causes all water sources to become completely sour, so when we go to drink water, our faces pucker and get stuck that way.

And finally…

10.  Giant lobster robots.

I know, I know.  Many of these scenarios (all) are ridiculous, make little sense, and are highly impossible.  But hey, so is thinking that the Mayans knew when the world was going to end.

Happy Surviving-the-Apocalypse Friday,

Shannon

Why Naps Should be a Required Part of the Work Day

I think naps should be integrated into the typical work day.  Hell, naps should be integrated into everyone’s day, no matter what.  Every day at noon should be declared “Nap Time” or something similar.

Why?

Well, for one thing, naps are awesome.  For people like me, who get up at about 5 or 5:30 to get into work in the morning, it seems like a helpful way to catch up on some much-needed rest.  I feel like if we could all have that moment to take a quick break and rest our eyes for a bit, we’d feel much better during the remainder of the day.

However, I think I also advocate this idea because, by the time I get home from work (especially today, for some reason), I am about ready to crash into my bed.  Not that there is anything wrong with this, mind you.  I actually took quite a long nap when I got home today.

The bad part of this story is that I had a bad dream.  A scary dream.  There were snakes…everywhere.  It was a relief to wake up and know that they weren’t really there, but still…I was freaked out.

And here is the real reason for this post and why I think naps are essential.  If we could get a short nap in the middle of the day (only about half an hour or so), not only would we all be fresher and more alert for the rest of the day, but then I also wouldn't have to come home, take a nap, and be freaked out by snake dreams. 

I think that’s enough of a reason to make Nap Time a thing, don’t you?

Happy 6^th day of the 10 Days of Christmas,

Shannon

The Virtues of Eye Patches (and Other Alternatives for the Visually-Impaired)

Have you ever spent nearly an entire day squinting out of one eye or holding your hand over one eye so that you can clearly see what’s right in front of you because otherwise you’d be looking through a big, blurry lens all day?  Well, that was my day in a nutshell.

Like many visually-impaired people, I wear contacts every day, only taking them out at night.  Though I have glasses, I just find contact lenses more functional overall.  Wearing glasses tends to give me a headache or hurt my ears after an extended period of time, and there have been many instances (typically during my time in theatre or when doing physical activities) when I just couldn’t wear glasses at all, either for fear that they would break or because the character I was playing didn’t wear glasses.

Plus, I like being able to choose my eye color.  If I could, I’d go all out and get demon-red or blackout contacts.  Or contacts with the Batman symbol on them.

However, like everything else, there is a definite downside to wearing contacts.  After having worn contacts for many years, I can say with certainty that taking contacts in and out is no longer a difficult task.  You just get used to the feeling. 

The real problem comes whenever anything (from an eyelash to a piece of dust) gets in your eye.  Then you’re in trouble.  Sometimes it’s a relatively simple matter to get the irritating something-or-other out of your eye.  You can roll your eye around in the socket, try to take the contact out and reapply saline to it, flush out your eye with water, etc.  Most times, these methods work, and aside from a little redness, the feeling of burning and aching goes away.

Then there are times when you cannot for the life of you manage to get the offending object out of your eye.  You know it’s there.  You can feel something.  The pain is a dead giveaway.  But still it persists in tormenting you, until finally you want to jab a fork in your eye and let the tears hopefully wash away whatever is bothering you.

Okay, maybe that’s a little overdramatic.  A little.

Of course, there are days like today when it isn’t your eye that’s causing the problem, but the contact lens itself.  Yes, my contact lens was plotting against me.  As I noticed the rip in the lens, I resignedly threw it away and had to send the rest of the day with one eye dark green and the other my natural hazel.  (And this was first thing in the morning after I got to work, so I couldn’t really do anything about it; I also didn’t have my glasses on hand at the time.)

After days like today (which seem to occur more frequently than not), I feel like eye patches should be considered an acceptable alternative to traditional eyewear.  Pirates wear them all the time, and we all know how fashionable they can be (if you overlook the poor hygiene and scurvy).  Hell, Nick Fury of The Avengers wears one!  And if anyone can make an eye patch look badassalicious, it’s Nick Fury. 

Maybe I can get a custom-made eye patch, like one decorated with flowers or stars…or the Batman symbol (if you can’t tell, I have a thing for Batman).  Wouldn’t that be awesome?  Just think how amazingly comfortable that would be, especially compared to those suffering from contact lens uprisings.

I think we should stop limiting our eyewear choices, and we should especially make eye patches more acceptable and more accessible to women (who have been grossly overlooked by the eye patch market, in my opinion). 

It’s time eye patches came back in style, and maybe (just maybe) we can lead the charge against eye patch oppression everywhere!

Failing that, I think I’d settle for a nifty monocle like the Monopoly guy's. 

Happy Eye Patch Wednesday to all,

Shannon

Deck Them Halls and All That Stuff

One of my favorite things about the holidays is just the overall atmosphere, the feeling of warmth and comfort associated with the Christmas season.  Granted, it’s much easier to get in that spirit after your finals are over, but even students still obsessing over the papers they have yet to finish can find some comfort in the holiday music wafting through the air, the lights twinkling on overly-decorated houses, and the warm reds and greens covering everything in sight.

                                               

One of my favorite scenes from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is the one in which Chevy Chase is decorating the outside of the house with lights.  After he covers every square inch, he tries to light the lights, but they won’t go on.    He nearly goes ballistic trying to figure out why they won’t light, and he takes his anger out on a poor, defenseless Santa lawn ornament and his reindeer.  It’s a marvelous comedic moment.

When he finally gets everything lit (with some help from his wife), however, the mood suddenly changes.  A whole choir sings Hallelujah, and the family comes outside to bask in the beauty and blinding light from the decorations.  And everywhere else in the city, there’s a huge power surge forcing a backup generator to be turned on, but we can forget that in lieu of the awesome display.

The point is, there are just some things about the holidays that bring a smile to my face, and though sometimes it can be taken to an almost obsessive level, the lights that people use to decorate their homes are one of those things.  The brilliant glow providing illumination amid the dark night sky is enough to make you stop and look, to appreciate the hard work and effort put forth by the people of those homes. 

It’s almost enough to make you forget about all those giant, plastic snow globes littering the lawn.

Happy merry everything,

Shannon

Finishing is its Own Reward…But Chocolate Would be Good, Too

I have finally finished writing my paper, and I feel so good, I just had to keep up the writing high by typing up another blog post! 

You know, finishing a paper--especially a long paper with the ability to sap all of your energy and make you feel like a zombie while writing it—is one of the best feelings in the world for a college student.  Or any student, I would guess.

Throughout the duration of paper writing, it’s often hard to keep focus and push through the road blocks.  So what do you do to keep up the momentum?  What keeps you from going slightly (very) mad?

Well, it always helps to have a reward system.  I know many of my friends use this system while writing papers, and though I sometimes slip and take a break regardless of whether or not I have actually reached the page count I told myself to reach before eating that Milky Way bar or watching that television show (oops), it is still an effective method of getting work done.

So if you ever feel like you just cannot make it through a paper (or whatever it is you’re working on at the time), just set a goal for yourself.  Make them attainable goals, as well.  Tell yourself that if you finish writing a full single-spaced page, you get to read a chapter of that Power Rangers fanfiction you love so much.  Treat yourself to a pomegranate when you reach the halfway mark.  Go for a victory run on the treadmill while listening to “For Now” from Avenue Q (fitting, considering the circumstances) after you finish completely.

Whatever you do, reward yourself.  After writing a 20-page paper, you deserve it.

Happy writing, and happy 3^rd day of the 10 Days of Christmas!

Shannon

The Princess Bride: A Holiday Classic?

In the spirit of my 10 Days of Christmas promise, I’m posting the second in what will hopefully be a slew of updates this coming week.  Since I’m still stuck in the middle of writing my Cisneros paper, I’ll try to make this one quick.

Today I noticed something while my mother and I were watching Christmas movies on TCM.  While TCM had advertised that it would be showing holiday movies during the day (including White Christmas and this movie All I Want for Christmas that starred a young Thora Birch), the movie following All I Want for Christmas was, funnily enough, The Princess Bride.

Now, don’t get me wrong.  I absolutely love The Princess Bride.  It’s one of my favorite movies of all time, and I will admit that throughout the movie, I kept posting Facebook statuses with quotes from the movie.

However, I was not quite sure if The Princess Bride would really be considered a “holiday” movie.  What made it worthy of being included with all of the other holiday movies?  Other than the fact that it’s just plain awesome, of course.

In my quest to find the answer to this question, I started looking closer at the movie.  With that said, here are a few reasons why The Princess Bride could technically be considered a “holiday” movie:

1.   Ever notice the background of the first scene of the movie?  The one where Fred Savage is sick in bed?  Ever notice the Santas in the background?  That’s right.  Santas, as in plural.  One on the closet and the other behind Fred Savage’s head.  I guess this really does take place during Christmas. 
2. The grandfather, played by Peter Falk, gives Savage the book as a present, wrapping paper and everything.  Yeah, I know the kid is sick in bed, and the grandfather may just be giving the boy the book to make him feel better…but still, it’s a present, right?
3. This may just be me, but is that snow on the roofs of the houses outside the grandson’s window?
4.  Christmas is nothing if not a time for miracles, and this movie is full of miracles.  It even has a character named Miracle Max!  Who brings Wesley back from being mostly-dead!  If that’s not a Christmas miracle, I don’t know what is.
5.  As we’ve all learned from Love Actually, Christmas is a time to be with loved ones and just be in love.  Buttercup and Westley’s love story certainly qualifies.

That’s all for now.  And next time you want to pick up a holiday classic, don’t be afraid to watch The Princess Bride.  It totally counts.

Happy holidays,

Shannon

The 10 Days of Christmas: Writer's Edition

It’s that time of year again.  You know what time of year, right?  Of course you do. 

Yes, it’s FINALS WEEK.  (dun, dun, dun)

This past week has been quite hectic, and it is still not over for me.  Thinking about Mango Street and feet and sexuality and whatnot is really just the tip of the iceberg, and while I adore Cisneros, I (like everyone else in the same, sinking boat) just want this paper to be finished already.

The big problem is the fact that, yeah, it is almost Christmas, and while Christmas itself is wonderful, the time leading up to it can be…stressful.  Normally, I am easily distracted by anything and everything regardless, but during the holiday season? 

Why must there be so many catchy, annoying tunes filling my head and bright, twinkling lights blurring my vision?  Why am I so intrigued by those blow-up snow globes on people’s lawns?  Why must the TV people play so many classic and not-so-classic Christmas movies that suck me in and never let me go?  Why do the kids on the Charlie Brown Christmas special dance like Frankenstein robot marionettes?

The Christmas season is filled to the brim with distractions, and hopefully this weekend I can finish the things I need to do before I can really enjoy all of them.  With that said, however, I am going to try something that isn’t going to help my stress levels in the slightest and will most likely drive me bananas. 

Starting today, I am doing the 10 Days of Christmas: Writer’s Edition.  Basically, I am going to try to post something to this blog every day leading up to Christmas, thus giving me even more of a challenge than I had previously and knocking me out of my mango-induced stupor.  The post does not necessarily have to be long or even about writing; it just has to be something.  Most likely, they will include Christmas-related somethings.  Or nonsense.

Why would I do this to myself, you ask?  Well, in the spirit of the holiday, I wanted to take the time out of my day to reflect on life, the universe, Douglas Adams references…and just appreciate the fact that, while I may be stressed out, it is still the Christmas season.  Or Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, Mayan Apocalypse…whatever it is you want to celebrate. 

Plus, if the world really is going to end, I might as well go out writing.

Happy 10 days to Christmas, folks.  Here’s hoping we make it!  J

Happy (Insert Phrase Here),

Shannon

Why a Prospectus is One of the Best Things Ever…Sort of

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve had research paper stuff on the brain.  Not only have I been working on my paper for The House on Mango Street, but I’ve also recently been revising my paper on monstrosity as it pertains to Batman’s female villains (which, I just found out, I’ll be presenting at the National Popular Culture Association Conference!).  

Today as I was working on my annotated bibliography and prospectus for my House on Mango Street paper, I realized two things: a) I am a complete English nerd because b) after I finished writing up my prospectus, I got really excited about writing the actual paper.

For those unfamiliar with having to write a prospectus, it’s basically a summary of what will be discussed in the research paper and is useful for mapping out the structure of the paper.  The information does not have to be exactly what will be in the final paper, but it should give you a good idea of where the paper is heading.  It typically includes the paper topic, a tentative title and thesis statement, and discusses the primary source and secondary sources being used to support the thesis.

While the idea of writing one of these seems tedious, I have found that it is actually much easier to write a research paper after having written a prospectus.  Why, you ask?  Not only does it help you formulate your paper ideas, articulating what will be used in the paper and how it will be structured, but typically, everything that goes into a prospectus will also be going into the paper’s introduction. 

Think about it: if a typical prospectus is about two double-spaced pages in length, and if the prospectus is basically the basis for your introduction, then when you go to write the paper, you will already have two pages of the paper written.  Furthermore, since the prospectus should map out how the rest of the paper is structured, you can just follow that structure to write the rest of the paper.

So, yeah.  If I didn’t already know that I was an English nerd, I definitely have proof now.  Then again, there are certainly worse things. J

Happy writing,

Shannon

The House on Mango Street- Some Thoughts and Ramblings

The first time I read The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, I was a freshman in college taking a women’s lit class.  As an English major in an all-women’s college, I would go on to take many more literature courses, many focusing on gender issues in texts (sort of comes with the territory), but this was the first literature course I took in my undergraduate program.  

Fittingly, the first novel we read in the class was Jane Eyre, followed by Wide Sargasso Sea (a book I’d highly recommend to anyone who thought that the “madwoman in the attic” from Jane Eyre ought to get the chance to tell her side of the story for once). 

When we finally got to The House on Mango Street, I was ecstatic for several reasons.  I’m sure I was glad to read something completely unrelated to Jane Eyre (a novel which I did not appreciate as much then as I do now—and even now it’s not exactly in my top-ten or top-twenty). 

I also remembered having read one of the novel’s vignettes during high school and appreciating it for not only its brevity but its simple eloquence.  The vignette, “A Smart Cookie,” all together takes up about a page, creates a complex backstory for one of the characters, and uses language in a way that makes you double-take for a second after you’ve read it, forcing you to look again at the deeper meaning behind it. 

Naturally, I wanted more, so getting to read the full novel was like a literary treat.  Of course, I was not disappointed upon finally reading it, finding each individual vignette to enhance the reading of the novel yet somehow able to stand alone and create a compelling story.

And by Next Week I Mean…Sometime in the Near Future

Procrastination.  It’s one of the ugliest words in any writer’s (or college student’s) vocabulary.  Yet unfortunately, it can be one of the most familiar, as well.  Case in point: this post. 

I would say let’s just call the last two months “the lost months,” but that would imply that I am never going to go a considerable length of time without posting in the future, and…well, I know my track record.  I also know how difficult it can sometimes be to stick to a set schedule, especially if you are a procrastinator, like me. 

The reality of life is that sometimes things do not always pan out the way you originally imagine they will, and if you are a procrastinator, it is very easy to trick yourself into thinking that something important can be put off until the next day.  Or the day after.  Or the day after that…

If you are a writer, this cycle is particularly vicious.  Ideally, writers should strive to put something to paper (or Word document) every day, just so their skills do not go to waste.  

Even writers struggling with writer’s block should do this in order to see if an idea will spring to life.  When writers fail to do this (and worse, when it becomes a habit), it gets increasingly harder to return to a stable writing routine. 

And Haiku to You, Too

This weekend, after a harmless conversation about Oprah Winfrey and Lean Cuisine, I got to thinking about haikus.  (If you were a part of the conversation, you’d totally understand.) 

The thing I love about haikus is their ability to convey a fully-formed and (mostly) coherent thought in the smallest amount of space.  For those who don’t know, a haiku is a Japanese poetic form consisting of 17 syllables broken up into a pattern of 5-7-5.  I’ve often found that haikus are like hand grenades: deceptively small until you pull the pin and watch the explosion that follows.  You’ll rarely find a poem shorter than a haiku, but when you actually read it, it will leave you wondering at how something so tiny could say so much and fill your brain with so much awesome.

For writers who find themselves a bit too wordy, writing a haiku is an excellent way to practice the art of brevity.  Sometimes it’s hard to stay concise and only say what is absolutely necessary in order to make your point.  With a haiku, it’s nearly impossible to add unnecessary fluff.  As an added bonus, writing haikus may just stir some story ideas in the process.