Tuesday, October 14, 2008

creative writing ideas by nicole krauss: summary

Let me summarize my last posts on creative writing ideas gained from 'The History of Love'.
1. no antagonist
No antagonist / evil character / bad guy.
2. unconventional start
The very first sentence on the very first page should be eccentric / unconventional / unusual / uncommon.
3. the death topic
The very first sentence of 'The History of Love' refers to death: "When they write my obituary".
4. syncopated rhythm
The rhythm of 'The History of Love' is unusual / irregular / syncopated.
5. identifying with a character
The reader should identify / associate / affiliate oneself closely with a person or group. 'The History of Love' has even three such characters.
6. great sayings
Her ability to produce great sayings / aphorisms / maxims.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

creative writing idea by nicole krauss: great sayings

My last post in this series on creative writing ideas from Nicole Krauss is about her ability to produce great sayings / aphorisms / maxims.

One day the main character, Leo Gursky, is looking out of the window. Just contemplating the sky. Then he thoughts on this situation about himself, with a good sense of humor: 'Put even a fool in front of the window and you'll get a Spinoza' (p. 6).
This scene reminds me of one episode ffom my own life. One night being a boy of about fifteen I didn't sleep at night. So I just got up and stood in front of the window thinking about something. Later, my father told me how he saw me standing in 'such a philosophical posture', as he put it.

One more saying, reminding me of my troubles with my son. 'Perhaps that is what it means to be a father - to teach you child to live without you. If so, no one was a greater father than I.' (p. 262)

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

creative writing idea by nicole krauss: identifying with a character

One of the Kurt Vonnegut's basics for creative writing says: 'Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for'.
The reader should identify / associate / affiliate oneself closely with a person or group.
'The History of Love' has even three such characters.
First, Leo Gursky. A writer aged 80+.
Second, Alma Singer. A girl fourteen or fifteen years old.
Third, Bird (his name is Emanuel Chaim, but everyone calls him 'Bird'), Alma's brother about eight years old.
The formal method for making me identify myself with each of the characters is simple using the first person. But that's not all. The deeper point is that you find many thoughts/feelings of theirs appealing to your heart.