Saturday 12 March 2011

Its like being back in the early 1970's

Ive now experienced two power failures here in Buenos Aires in under a week.On Thursday I arrived for a tango lesson out in the sticks and there was no street lighting. The taxi driver at first didnt want me to get out because of a group of street kids loitering but I assured him that Id been assured I'd come to no harm. But he was convinced they were dangerous. I survived and got into the building unscathed and had the first 30 minutes of my lesson by candlelight and without music. Last night the power went off in our block in Recoleta and only came on again at 5am . 32 degrees, high humidity and no fan meant for one sticky night! But it took me back to growing up with the powercuts we had in Briatin when I was in my 14/15 in the early/mid 1970's.

Have begun the rewrite of Chapter Three. The theme /scene remains the same but I am changing the POV and have started it with my protagonist in a dream. I wrote the dream openning(excuse this aweful pun)yesterday morning - the first time Ive written a dream scene. I think the idea must have come from the novel I'm reading currently - Skin Lane by Neil Bartlett.But I am only using my dream once not thoughout my novel. Have nearly finished Neil's book now - when the power went off last night H and I went down to the Cafe Josephina and sat al fresco with hot chocolate and read our books.
Bren Gosling

2 comments:

  1. Had a really interesting session with Emily yesterday.

    Most interesting was a discussion we had about one of our number who's finished his novel and had lots of feedback from agents and others and he's now mulling over taking it in a different direction now he's completed a rewrite. On the other hand, last time we discussed someone else whose novel was completed and she's of the mind that she's not going to touch it again. If agents like it then fine but, if not, she'll take up other projects.

    Have you thought about what you might do in when you've finished? Would you undertake a big rewrite based on agent feedback or your own reflections?

    It was very useful to get feedback on what I workshopped as I realised I needed to go back and revisit other things much earlier in the novel.

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  2. All very interesting Mike. I'll let you know when Ive finished the re write! I suppose it depends on what is being asked of me - I mean if I was being requested to do something I really felt uncomfortable about I dont know how I would feel. It would depend on how I feel at the time. I can appreciate not wanting to make radical changes if youve slaved for ages and feel what you've produed is the way the story should be but on the other hand if the cricism is contructive and sheds a new light on another angle which is interesting or leads to improvement it would perhaps be easier to contemplate. I am not sure about a whole re write though. Surely that says something else.
    Bren Gosling

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