"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!
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.
Sometimes it's the best. Almost like dreaming and surprisingly effortless.
I think it's time, however, based on this lovely illustration by Italian artist Frank Matticchio, to update the alternate animal taxonomy taken from the ancient Chinese encyclopædia entitled the Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge (and offered by Jorges Borges...which presents us with all kinds of intellectual dilemmas about its authenticity as a document or a charming piece of fiction.) Perhaps there should be a new listing for "Those who tell midnight tales."
• Those that belong to the Emperor,
• Embalmed ones,
• Those that are trained,
• Suckling pigs,
• Mermaids,
• fabulous ones,
• Stray dogs,
• Those included in the present classification,
• Those that tremble as if they were mad,
• The innumerable ones,
• Those drawn with a very fine camelhair brush,
• Others,
• Those that have just broken a flower vase,
• Those that from a long way off look like flies.
Or maybe this cheeky listing: "Those that love the camera"
I would also recommend stopping by to visit Laura Ottina's Animalarium blog -- which is filled with amazing animal illustrations and art from around the world.
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
