Today is anticlimactic. Everything is boxed up and ready to go except for last minute toiletries and pjs. UPS has probably picked up my box by now - I had to have it ready to go by 12:30 p.m. After lunch, I helped Rebecca in the Development Office, reviewing one last time the package for the NEA Grant that I wrote during my work exchange. Then I printed out my manuscript. Most of it. I had a few little glitches, but I would say I have 90% of the document ready to read on the plane tomorrow.
Many people have already left, everyone else is getting ready to go. It is a lot of work for the artists, more so than the writers. Tonight we may go to Morrisville to see The Pink Panther. A nice transition to reality and an antidote to boredom.
Boredom is an unexpected experience at VSC. I have been so focused and busy with my writing, plus the various evening activities around the Studio Center, that I never had time for ennui. But I don't want to work on the manuscript until I get home again and most of my toys are packed up and shipped off. So, it is the movies for me!
Last night we had Open Studio again. It delighted me to see what wonderful creations the artists made during their time here. So much diversity of form and expression. It inspires me!
There are no profound thoughts or great ideas from me today, just thankfulness that I experienced this month at VSC and hopefulness that it will happen again someday.
CIAO!
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Vermont Studio Center Day 24
Vermont Studio Center
Day 24
Today is Wednesday, March 1, 2006. I have two more nights to spend at the Studio Center. My weeks here have been prolific and rewarding. The artists and writers who gathered here are thoughtful and talented people whose conversation I have enjoyed and whose work I have admired.
My writing progressed dramatically during my stay. I came with 4,100 coherent words and m leaving with over 45,000. The incoherent words shall remain uncounted! The encouragement I received from people who heard me read has been heartwarming and I feel more like a writer than ever in my life.
The concept of studio practice is probably the most important thing I gained while at VSC. The idea that one needs – no, deserves – a place to do one’s creative work and a routine for doing it everyday has been drummed into me by the success of having it and doing it. The artists speak quite a bit about studio practice. It is not something I have heard from writers in my acquaintance. Maybe I have just missed it. Maybe it is a fresh idea for us. Regardless, applying the studio practice concept has done wonders for my writing.
It is likely I will not post again from Vermont for a long while. Perhaps I will be here again, though. I hope to finish the writing and move on to the revisions in few months. I believe I will need another residency to complete my final draft before submitting the book for publication.
Wish me well. The working title of my book is The Requirements of Love. I am also considering The Measure of Last Resort. Perhaps it will be something altogether different. However, it will be a book – you just watch for it and buy one when it comes out!
Ciao from maple syrup country.
PS Montreal – I went to Montreal, Quebec on Saturday, February 25 with friends Barbara Israel ad Susanne Nestory. They are both wonderful painters. Barbara paints realistic scenes with great beauty and insight; Susanne paints abstracts that are marvelous studies in color and contour. I recommend the work of both artists. I will try to find web sites to refer you to for each of them. While in Montreal, we saw the Musee des Beaux Arts – such a beautiful museum! We also ate dinner at the Winston Churchill Pub. We enjoyed a splendid day and evening.
Day 24
Today is Wednesday, March 1, 2006. I have two more nights to spend at the Studio Center. My weeks here have been prolific and rewarding. The artists and writers who gathered here are thoughtful and talented people whose conversation I have enjoyed and whose work I have admired.
My writing progressed dramatically during my stay. I came with 4,100 coherent words and m leaving with over 45,000. The incoherent words shall remain uncounted! The encouragement I received from people who heard me read has been heartwarming and I feel more like a writer than ever in my life.
The concept of studio practice is probably the most important thing I gained while at VSC. The idea that one needs – no, deserves – a place to do one’s creative work and a routine for doing it everyday has been drummed into me by the success of having it and doing it. The artists speak quite a bit about studio practice. It is not something I have heard from writers in my acquaintance. Maybe I have just missed it. Maybe it is a fresh idea for us. Regardless, applying the studio practice concept has done wonders for my writing.
It is likely I will not post again from Vermont for a long while. Perhaps I will be here again, though. I hope to finish the writing and move on to the revisions in few months. I believe I will need another residency to complete my final draft before submitting the book for publication.
Wish me well. The working title of my book is The Requirements of Love. I am also considering The Measure of Last Resort. Perhaps it will be something altogether different. However, it will be a book – you just watch for it and buy one when it comes out!
Ciao from maple syrup country.
PS Montreal – I went to Montreal, Quebec on Saturday, February 25 with friends Barbara Israel ad Susanne Nestory. They are both wonderful painters. Barbara paints realistic scenes with great beauty and insight; Susanne paints abstracts that are marvelous studies in color and contour. I recommend the work of both artists. I will try to find web sites to refer you to for each of them. While in Montreal, we saw the Musee des Beaux Arts – such a beautiful museum! We also ate dinner at the Winston Churchill Pub. We enjoyed a splendid day and evening.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
VSC Day 21 (I think)
It is bitterly cold here today. Five degrees right now with a wind chill of minus eight. I am pressed for time and can't write much but I wanted to check in with my blog. I went to Montreal yesterday and enjoyed it very much. Went to the Musee des Beaux Arts and had dinner at the Winston Churchill Pub. I will try to write a full post and get it up tomorrow.
Ciao from COLD Vermont.
Ciao from COLD Vermont.
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