"Those unharnessed runners
from glen to glen!
Nobody tames
that royal blood,
each one aloof
on its rightful summit,
antlered, watchful.
Imagine them,
the stag of high Slieve Felim,
the stag of the steep Fews,
the stag of Duhallow, the stag of Orrey,
the fierce stag of Killarney..."
From Sweeney Astray a version from the Irish by Seamus Heaney
Art: Illustrated Manuscript: Gaston Phoebus, Le Livre de la chasse (Paris, ca. 1407)
So it's true -- every dog has his day. And here's a little celebration of those furry-faced, cold snouts and sweet-eyed dogs that come into our lives and make them better. I have to post this grizzled guy because I have known him now for 11 years and love him. Enjoy your day, Buju -- extra cookies! Buju died a long time ago since I wrote this post, but I still miss him every time I see this photo of him. He was the best dog ever!
When it comes to writing novels, I am tortoise. At least with the first half, and there is something thrilling about the second half, like sliding down a long snowy hill, or as in below, leaping off the top step. I am still the tortoise right now.
For assistance, I return to a 1968 Paris Review interview with the great Canadian author Robertson Davies where he describes his writing process, a laborious and methodical investigation long before the narrative is written.
"I am at the moment winding up to write another novel, and when I say “winding up” I mean I am making notes and plans and perpetually building up what I will eventually write; that is the way I work. I make very, very careful plans and a great many notes—so many notes indeed that sometimes they are as long or longer than the eventual book. And sketches of characters and suggestions and references to things that will be useful. All that takes a long time. Getting to work on a new novel is a dismal business, for the beginnings never seem to get any easier with the passing of time. I toil like a swimmer who feels himself about to sink beneath the waves at any moment. Like all my novels, this one began with quite a simple idea, but as I work on it a mass of complexities assert themselves, and I have to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by extraneous detail. But then—at least the way I work—when you begin to write, you can write quite briskly because you have done all the preparatory work beforehand. I hope it turns out well. But with novels, like cakes, you never know. Even when I finish a book, I’m never sure whether it is good or rubbish."
So, I will be writing furious notes, plotting, character studies, and the rest -- and I pray the cake will hold. And that will be good. And can I just add, that I love even more that Davies used a food analogy -- another habit of my family when talking about literature that is close to my heart.
The wonderful illustration is by Guillaume Ospital and you can see more of his terrific work at Cake or Death website.
I am excited to see the first of my revised novels about to go live in a Kindle Edition. It has been a long journey for me (with more than enough roadblocks and frustrations along the way) but joyful, too, as my dream starts to come true. You can find the Kindle edition of the young adult novel here.
Book Blurb: Seventeen-year-old Cassie Brittman was thrilled to be playing the violin solo in the Rose Bay Youth Symphony. But that changed with a phone call informing her mother, Anne, that Cassie's grandfather, Daniel Brittman, a painter living in Northern Wisconsin, was gravely ill. Cassie, Anne, and Gunnar, Anne's new boyfriend, quickly set out for the Brittman farm. On their arrival, they discover the farmhouse and great-aunt looters have ravaged Anna's gardens. Darkness hangs over the farm, and ghostly forms waver at the forest's edge. Soon, Cassie can't shake the feeling that they are being stalked by wild creatures or something much more dangerous.
Book Reviews for Hannah’s Garden
“A mystical spiral garden that is also a gateway to another world blooms at the center of Snyder's tightly woven fantasy, a potent blend of faery and family conflicts…Thanks to Snyder's gift for description, readers may feel as if they can hear the music or smell the fragrance of the garden's rare woodland species; the audience will be hooked.” Publisher’s Weekly
“Like the tales Cassie remembers her mother telling, this is “filled with wonderment and botany,” as well as music, deep relationships between generations, and complex, evocative magic-working.” Kirkus Reviews
“Inventive, beautifully written…Snyder’s use of language is especially poetic in describing nature, including the farm’s flora and fauna and the magical creatures of the Green Clan…a satisfying mix of real-life problems and lovingly described magic.” School Library Journal
“Compelling…This power and depth make it good for contemporary fantasy of all ages. Locus”
A few photographs of my grandfather, Pierre Menager's work, have surfaced. I am always charmed by his informal paintings...they have so much life and so little social distancing. A barn dance and a wedding...They make me happy on these dark days.
And another favorite to hell with social distancing moment from "Stray Dog" directed by Akira Kurosawa. A muggy summer, a thief who steals a young officer's gun, a chase, and this scene where a troop of burlesque dancers, exit the stage and throw themselves on the ground backstage in a heaving, sweating jumble.
And these romantic lovers, kissing snails publicly defying social distancing then and now....I found these guys on my morning walk near the lagoon...so romantic!
This is a terrific collection, short enough to read all the stories, ranging from tragic ("The Duchess of Malta") to naughty, lewd, and full of fools. These are selections taken from historical collections that span the 1300s to 1600s. Since my interest lies in the 1500s --most of these notes and references are from groups from those years.
Luigi Da Porto(1485--1529) Sometimes, the writer's introduction to the story is more interesting than the story itself. He writes of being a young man, a soldier at arms who rode with an archer named Peregrino, a man much older than him, and who chastised the soldier for his misery in love.
"Do you always want to live melancholy because a cruel beauty with feigned demonstrations cares little for you? And though I often speak contrary to what I do because it is easier to advise than to follow it, I will tell you, my captain, not only is it unbecoming for you who are in the army to spend a long time in the prison of Love, but also so wretched are almost all ends to which Love leads that it is perilous to follow him. And in witness of this, if it should please you, I could tell you a story that happened in my city (Verona) ... in which you will hear how two noble lovers were led to a wretched and pitiful death."
Peregrino then recounts one of the many famous versions of Romeo and Juliette.
Giovan Francesco Straparola da Caravaggio (148-1558) As part of his collection, he establishes a frame story for the storytelling that goes on within it -- a very Italian conceit, I think, as so many collectors and re-tellers of popular folktales and romantic stories, perhaps found it more engaging for a literate class even though it is seen a divertente (a pleasant diversion). A group of noblemen and women gather at the Venetian Palace of Ottaviano over thirteen nights during Carnivale to entertain each other with stories. (Straparola gives an extended introduction to the principals at this gathering, establishing that while the tales have their rugged and, at times, vulgar characteristics, they are elevated by the splendor of the palace surroundings and the status of the participants sharing the stories. ( p 159, the list of who is there)
Father Scarpacifico, Duped Only Once by Three Rogues, Dupes Them Back Three Times and Lives Happily Ever After With His Nina. One of the best trickster tales in the book, when a trio of rogues succeeds in tricking Scapacifico, his revenge tricks are outrageous and dangerous to the rogues. (Note to self -- What is the joke in trying to trick Scarpacifico into believing his mule is an ass? This must be a common ploy elsewhere, but how is it funny? ) He, in turn, manages to convince them that his goat understands when the priest tells it to take home the food he has purchased and tells Nina to cook a feast. He invites the rogues home for the meal, which Nina cooks (understanding the ruse.) The rogues pay a small fortune to buy the goat, and of course, it doesn't go as they thought, and their wives mock them. The priest then pretends to "kill" Nina (a bladder of blood under her dress) and "revives" her from death by placing a pipe between her buttocks and pretending to blow her back to life. Rogues purchase the line and then manage to kill their wives. Several more deceptions occur, which kill all of the rogues. The cleverness of the trickster, the setups, the stupidity, and usually greed of the dupes all make it darkly funny.
The King's Son, who is Born as a Pig, Marries Three Times, Eventually Puts Off His Pig Skin, and is A Handsome Young Man: pg 168 (cf Three Sisters -- Battista and Swine Herder transformed into a Boar.) It is a fascinating rite of passage tale for the prince. Three marriages, each with a flaw: the two sister-brides are not interested in love or the prince due to his hideous form as a pig (he shits the bed regularly for one thing), but they agree to the marriages for the prestige and wealth of aristocracy. The first two plot to kill him, but he can hear their thoughts, so he kills them with his tusks. The third daughter is kind and loving and indulges all his piggishness; she does not secretly harbor violent ideas in her thoughts. The Pig King tests her, and when he is sure of her faithfulness, he finally reveals his true self and removes the skin. He is pretty handsome as a human, and in short order, the bride becomes pregnant. The Queen is astonished, and the bride finally reveals her husband's secret disguise. The Queen then arranges to spy on him and see this for herself, and when she does, she removes and destroys the skin (think Monkey Girl et al.,) and the young prince is ready to take his place as a man, a husband, and a father. The fairies play a role here, too -- putting on the spell, helping take off the attack. They show up whenever there is a need for a change in the status quo -- alternating between creating conflict and assisting when the time is right to resolve it.
I woke from an early (really early!) morning dream where Max Fleischer-style cats were on a fence, saying, "I woke up too early, too late. "I can't decide if it was meant for my untimely rising, a description of my whole life, or the character I am writing in a new novel—all three fit.
Midori Snyder is the author of nine books for children and adults, published in English, French, Dutch, and Italian. She won the Mythopoeic Award for The Innamorati, a novel inspired by early Roman myth and the Italian "Commedia dell'Arte" tradition....more
