Who doesn't know the richness of reverie, that lapse into meditation that carries us to the core of our being? It can occur anywhere---on a bus, in a crowd, idling in the kitchen. Woolgathering we call it or, an old term, a brown study. But whatever the name, it comes to this: We're sunk into ourselves and the outer world appears like something viewed from the bottom of a pool through pellucid water, a world muted and far off.
"The Beauty of Being Lost in Thought", Victoria, September 1992
As I reread collected issues of the original Victoria magazine,
I "sink into myself" and dream of writing blog posts in which
my readers experience the "beauty of being lost in thought," both
by richness of words and by vignette inspiring images.
 |
| Premier Issue, Victoria magazine, 1987 |
How I long for new issues of the original Victoria to read, and
how I long to be such a gifted writer!
How does one learn to stir a reader's heart and mind?
How does one learn to express ordinary events with clarity,
yet with phrases filled with poetic, nuanced nouns, verbs, adjectives
that create visual images within a mind?
Mathematics does not require poetically nuanced expressions,
just clarity.
What are considered the most beautiful equations
throughout mathematical history are those that are brief, direct, unadorned.
 |
| May 1977, Austin, Texas |
All my years of studying, teaching, and leading other educators
were focused solely on clarity, conveying ideas clearly and crisply,
with efficiency and translucence, in as little time as possible.
(Woe to the teacher or administrator who took too much
of a student's or teacher's precious commodity, time!)
Mathematics teaching and school administration
did not include writing directions that encouraged
daydreaming and drifting away in reverie.
The blogs that compel me most are ones
that combine artfully written commentaries
with original, blog-writer-taken stunning photos.
Blogs that remind me of Victoria magazine issues filled
with poetry, with in-depth information, with artistic photography,
with creative ideas, with original art, with vignettes...
about people, places, times, seasons, traditions, and entrepeneurs.
So, back to my question.
How does one learn to stir a reader's heart and mind?
What do I need to do?
After woolgathering,
four steps emerged from my brown study,
including specific thoughts about
❦ ~ how to take those steps.
1. Good readers make good writers,
an expression used in education to shed some light
on how to teach students to write, comes to mind.
What we read becomes part of our intellect.
Reading poetically written phrases develops a sense of style.
❦
Read original Victoria magazine.
Read My French Country Home by Sharon Santoni.
Read Castles Crowns and Cottages by Anita, and
read comments on blog sites written by Anita.
2. Analyze for how-to-write a blog,
not just read for enjoyment.
Content, phrasing, vocabulary,
sentence structure, font, and photography
comprise a total post.
❦
Analyze favorite writers' styles, fonts, photos,
juxtaposition of text and photos,
transitions from one subtopic to the next,
and photography angles.
Reflect on the purpose of a particular post being written.
 |
| Photography angle and font create interesting photo |
2. Analyze for how-to-write a blog,
not just read for enjoyment.
Content, phrasing, vocabulary,
sentence structure, font, and photography
comprise a total post.
❦
Analyze favorite writers' styles, fonts, photos,
juxtaposition of text and photos,
transitions from one subtopic to the next,
and photography angles.
Reflect on the purpose of a particular post being written.
3. The old adages, learn by doing, and
practice makes perfect, have merit.
❦
Write, edit, re-write, save draft, sleep,
edit and re-write phrases again.
Sleep helps the brain process our experiences and thoughts.
4. Courses and conferences
offer advice and experienced teachers.
offer advice and experienced teachers.
❦
Attend a How-To-Write session at a blog conference.
Enroll in a poetry course.
(Anita suggested a poetry course in one of her recent comments to me
after I expressed a desire to become a better writer. Good idea.)
Study photography.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you, my readers.
August 26, 2014 is my second blogiversary.
Milestones are good encouragement to continue and
to be better by the next blogiversary!
Thank you for reading and for becoming a friend.
❦
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