Plot Ponderings, Again

(photo: sxc.hu)
"There is only one plot--things are not what they seem." --Jim Thompson

Wandering the avenues of plot this weekend. Hope to make a few inroads!

How about you, any adventures planned?

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The Language of Flowers

Flowers--in all their array of beauty and color--send various kinds of messages, don't they? They welcome spring, celebrate birthdays and special occasions, send get-well wishes, offer condolences. In the case above they simply say, love--as in a gift from hubby for Mother's Day. Aren't they gorgeous?

But, though flowers "send messages," did you know that they have their own language? I always sort of knew this, but explored it a bit more fully after coming across a sweet little book titled, I'll Ask My Grandmother, She's Very Wise, by Kristen Johnson Ingram. "Our grandmothers and great-grandmothers had a symbolic vocabulary for expressing their love," Ingram writes. "A vocabulary of flowers that we have lost today. Flowers, a beautiful part of creation, expressed love; they were tributes of affection, honor, valor, and fame."

So if there's a flower vocabulary, what language are they speaking? Why, floriography! And it turns out that 'floriography' once played an interesting part in the communication among people.

Wikipedia: "The language of flowers, sometimes called 'floriography,' was a Victorian-era means of communication in which various flowers and floral arrangements were used to send coded messages, allowing individuals to express feelings which otherwise could not be spoken. This language was most commonly communicated through tussie-mussies, small flower bouquets."

Wendy Taylor at Proflowers: "The Victorian era ushered in a time of proper etiquette among the upper class in England during Queen Victoria's reign (1837-1901). Among the many rules and customs, there were expected behaviors that prohibited outright flirtations, questions, or conversations between others. Even though the use of flowers to convey messages had been used in Persia and the Middle East, it was during the Victorian Era that the tradition spread in England with the publication of flower dictionaries explaining the meaning of plants, flowers, and herbs. It soon became popular to use flowers to send secretive messages."

A code? Secret messages? Delivered in tussie-mussies? Oooh, sounds like the stuff of novelists, don't you think?

Whoops, turns out authors have already beat us to it. "William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, and many others, all used the language of flowers in their writings." (Santa Monica Flowers)

Anyway, in case you might be interested in dipping into the vocabulary, too, here's a sample of meanings, though in no way exhaustive. And bear in mind that meanings vary depending on what list you consult.

Baby's Breath--innocence
Bluebell--gratitude
Carnation--admiration (red), faithfulness (white), a mother's love (pink)
Daisy--cheer
Hyacinth--'I am sorry, please forgive me'
Iris--good news
Lavender--devotion
Lilac--memories; first love
Lily-of-the-valley--sweetness
Marigold--pain and grief, sorrow
Morning glory--affection
Orchid--refined beauty
Pansy--merriment
Peony--bashfulness
Petunia--'your presence soothes me'
Rose--love (red), passion (coral), happiness and excitement (red and yellow together)
Sweet William--gallantry
Tulip--declaration of love
Violet--faithfulness (blue), modesty (white)
Zinnia--absent friends

Happy Mother's Day! If you were to put together a tussie-mussie to send a message to someone, what flowers would go in your bouquet?

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First Drafts and Writer's Block, An Antidote

"Writing a first draft is very much like watching a Polaroid develop. You can't--and in fact, you're not supposed to--know exactly what the picture is going to look like until it has finished developing." --Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

I love this quote. And I'm adopting Ms. Lamott's approach this week as I continue on the first draft of my current project. I think the analogy to a Polaroid photo is a sure-fire antidote against writer's block. It takes the pressure off of having to line out the story in too much detail ahead of time, and promises to re-ignite the sense of discovery. Can't wait to see what picture develops!

Are you battling writer's block, or are scenes emerging? Any surprises coming to light?  (photo: sxc.hu)

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Inspiration: A Weekend in the Smokies

"Truly it may be said that the outside of a mountain is good for the inside of a man." 

--George Wherry, Alpine Notes and the Climbing Foot, 1896

"Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience." --Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world." --John Muir

"The poetry of the earth is never dead." --John Keats

"After all, I don't see why I am always asking for private, individual, selfish miracles 
when every year there are miracles like white dogwood." --Anne Morrow Lindbergh

"Great things are done when men and mountains meet. 

This is not done by jostling in the street." --William Blake

"Climb up on some hill at sunrise. Everybody needs perspective once in 

a while, and you'll find it there." --Robb Sagendorph

"Nature is a writer's best friend." --Agave Powers

We were privileged to spend this past weekend in Tennessee's Smoky Mountains with good friends. What a relaxing, peaceful, regrouping time. Oh, that there be some carryover into work this week!

Just thought I'd share a bit of the view before getting back to work :-) What view are you looking at this week?

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Dominoes, Triggers, and Plot

Photo: flickr.com/photos, Reece Kidman

"To avoid bad writing, think of the events in your novel as dominoes. Let's call them dramatic dominoes. The first event in the novel--and for that you can read 'the first scene'--must trigger an event that follows...The key here is to remember that scene one is the first domino. It knocks the next one over and so forth." --Elizabeth George, Write Away

Reworking some of my scenes this week with dominoes in mind. What table game inspires your writing? (Please don't say Sorry!)
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Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library

"Jo-Beth shouted into the phone. 'We're prisoners! We're prisoners in the library!'" 

                                                                           --Eth Clifford, Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library

No, I'm not currently a prisoner in the library, but by chance I saw this book while there the other day. And I had to laugh at both the title and my situation.

For I was at the library for an extended period that afternoon and unable to leave at will. Hubby and I were about to head out on a short overnight road trip, but he had a tutoring session scheduled at the library first. So rather than him having to come back and get me before hitting the road, I chose to spend his 2 1/2 hour tutoring time with him, howbeit discreetly on the other side from where he and his student worked. I certainly had enough to keep me busy, a folder of writing material at hand as well as a list of books and authors I wanted to check out.

I did a little reading. I did a little writing. I scanned the shelves for the books on my list. And then, after exhausting the list, I casually wandered the children's stacks just looking for a title to jump out at me. Jump out it did--Eth Clifford's Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library (Houghton Mifflin 1979). Ironic? I thought so.

Maybe you've heard of Clifford and her work? She has a long list of children's books to her credit. As for Prisoner, the flyleaf reads, in part:

"Although Mary Rose and Jo-Beth hardly ever agreed on anything, they both thought that night would never end. So much had happened! First their car ran out of gas in an unfamiliar city. Then, after their father left in search of a gas station, they trudged through the snow until they found a curious old library that housed the most extraordinary objects: wooden children dressed in old-fashioned clothes, a terrible flying creature that rushed at them in the dark, and (they would later learn) a cellar full of animals.

"But worst of all, they were locked in..."

Sort of like me, but not really--it's a much better story than mine! With a happy ending, all about the promise of saving an old library otherwise destined for demise. Mixed in with middle-grade sisters, bumps in the dark, a talking mynah bird, just enough spookiness. An old book but still a good read.

And to think I found it when locked...I mean stuck...no, when enjoying an afternoon in the library!

Where better to be if you had to be locked in somewhere, right? How about you, where would you want to be if you found yourself stuck somewhere? And any new-found favorites and/or authors on the library shelves (or e-readers) for you lately?

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National Poetry Month and a Little Bit More

Early Bird

Oh, if you're a bird, be an early bird

And catch the worm for your breakfast plate.

If you're a bird be an early bird--

But if you're a worm, sleep late.

---Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends

Oh, April and rain, little boys and the things that fascinate them--including a worm or two. All these elements came together after two of our grandkids stayed overnight this past week and explored the rainy outdoors the next morning. Stir in some of Shel Silverstein's genius, and you've got your own kind of poetry!

And speaking of poetry, many of you probably already know that April is National Poetry Month. Though I may not be contributing poetic material for the cause, I'm loving some of the highlights others are sharing. A few samples:

• 30 Ways to Celebrate National Poetry Month, Poets.org
• Collaborating with Language by Dana Gioia, Writer Magazine
• The Reluctant Poet: Roseanne Barry, Caroline-by-Line
• History behind National Poetry Month
• National Poetry Month links and activities over at Reading Rockets
• Art-Inspired Haiku, National Gallery of Art

Will you be an early bird this weekend--or the worm? What part does poetry play in your life?

Happy Poetry Month!

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