Len Richman, author of Raindrops, Glimpses, Moments: An Unconventional Memoir of an Unplanned Journey (Author Interview and Book Giveaway)

Len Richman is an educator, actor, playwright and loving grandfather who has taught and been associated with the West Island College in Quebec, several universities and middle schools in China, and is currently at the Thomas More Institute for Research in Adult Liberal Studies in Montreal. He has recently worked on the set of Barney's Version with Dustin Hoffman, Mini Driver and Paul Giamatti.

If any of you live in Montreal, I encourage you to see the theatre performance of Raisin in The Sun directed by Len Richman. Details below:

The Montreal School of Performing/Arts Express O Theatre is proud to present:

A RAISIN IN THE SUN by Lorraine Hansberry

An adaptation by Len Richman and Jean-Luc Rey

Directed by Len Richman

Saturday & Sunday November 28th and 29th, 2009 at 8:00 pm

3975 Notre Dame West

Reservations: 514-483-5526

   Admission tickets $10

And now for the interview:

1. Tell us about yourself and what you do.
After involvement in the above three educational areas of World Literature, Outdoor Education, International and multi-cultural studies for years, and an extensive travel history (Asia, Europe, the South Pacific, Latin America, Canada’s Far North) I became “unexpectedly” involved in the performing arts as of August 2004. This led to stage work (acting, playwrighting, directing), and film work eventually qualifying for membership with ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Arts). It continues to be a fascinating new learning curve and experience!

2. How long have you been writing?
I have been writing since my teens.

3. Where do you get your inspiration to write?
My inspiration comes from life experiences and the people around me.

4. Where do you like to write? What type of writing schedule do you follow?
I like to write in the quiet of a “special” corner of the library I belong to, and in my study at home WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS! I try, TRY to write three mornings per week before anything else—e-mail, phone calls, postal deliveries, even breakfast conversation. It doesn’t always work!!!!

5. What genre do you write and why?
I write memoir-type essays and playwrighting because both clarify my perspectives in many aspects of living and being, although two children’s short stories I wrote were recently published in an elegant coffee table book: Essence of Flora – A Photographic Journey through Colour in the Garden (visit http://www.fairchild-designs.com/ for details).

6. Tell us more about your book and where it is available for purchase.
My book’s secondary title – “An Unconventional Memoir of an Unplanned Journey” is just that. Inspired by several sources as given in the Introduction, digging back, I chose certain “moments” be they fleeting or sustained that nourished who I became over the years in the most positive way rather than dwelling on the dreary or negative. It is available for purchase through me, my publisher- Llumina Press, Chapters in Pte. Claire, Quebec, and Amazon.

7. What have you done to promote your book?
I have not aggressively promoted my book since it was written really as a sort of review/catharsis and specifically for my grandchildren.

8. Do you ever get writer's block? What helps you to overcome it?
Writer’s block, no, procrastination, yes! I pay dearly for that and finally have to give in and get back to writing.

9. If you are self-published, why did you choose this option instead of traditional publishing?
Much has changed in the publishing world, and it seemed to me that traditional publishers were only interested in the horrific, the bizarre, the scandalous, the pornographic, the voyeuristic, or, as our media is now described as “infoentertainment.” This is what is selling. I was on another “trip” so to speak, again, as explained in “Currents and Tributaries: An Introduction” at the beginning of the book. No traditional publisher would have found it marketable.

10. What is your next project?
Currently directing an adaptation of the play, A Raisin in the Sun, I am writing two more of my own plays, one solo, the other in collaboration, and making notes for another book that I hope will eventually share my experiences in the performing arts having started much later than most, but still not considering it a second or third career as much as a happy accidental avocation.

11. What advice do you have for new writers?
Keep writing, do a lot of observing and read, read, read!

Book Giveaway

And now for the giveaway! Len Richman has given me one signed copy to give away. For a chance to win, please leave a comment stating why you would like to win this book. Do NOT forget to leave your email address, ex: laura(at)laurafabiani(dot)com. For an extra entry, please become a follower by clicking on the Google Follow on the left sidebar of this site. Read the review of Raindrops, Glimpses, Moments.

Giveaway ends on November 19, 2009. Open to US and Canadian residents only. No P.O. box addresses.

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15 Places to Find Writing Prompts Online

Writing prompts make it easy to stimulate the creative process and find something to write about. There are many different sites online that provide prompts for writers of every genre. Here are 15 places to explore when you feel like practicing your craft:

Writer's Digest - The Writer's Digest, an online writing information warehouse, provides 96 different writing prompts. The prompts cover a wide variety of subjects and will work for almost any writer.

WritingFix - WritingFix offers a random writing prompt generator that is good for improving writing skills. The 542 writing prompts are designed to spark imagination and creativity in writers.

Be Creative - Within the Be Creative site, you can find creative writing prompts designed specifically for adults. These prompts work well for creative writing and English journals.

Creative Writing Prompts - This site provides 329 writing prompts listed by number. Simply place your cursor over a certain number and write away.

Language Is a Virus - The Language Is a Virus site provides a writing prompt generator with prompts for fiction writers, essay writers, philosophers, and poets.

Ink Provoking - New writing prompts are added to the Ink Provoking site every Monday. Site visitors can also browse through previous prompts.

30 Writing Prompts for National Poetry Month - The Book of Kells blog lists 30 writing prompts and exercises for poetry writers.

Super Teacher Worksheets - The Super Teacher Worksheet features creative writing prompts for use with daily journals. The 30 writing prompts cover general everyday ideas that users can easily write using imagination or memories.

Write Source - Write Source features a large collection of writing prompts separated into writing levels. The prompts cover everything from very simple writing concepts to advanced writing concepts.

Fiction Writing Prompts - The About.com Guide to Fiction Writing provides several writing prompts and exercises for fiction writers.

The Writing Journal - The Writing Journal from Tooter4Kids.com offers a wide variety of writing prompts for young writers. Other features include writing topics and links to other writing prompt sites.

Write On - The Write On site offers a writing prompt generator that's great for journal writing and essay writing. Some of the prompts are geared toward young writers; others are geared toward adults.

TheTeachersCorner.net - This site offers an archive of daily writing prompts for beginner and intermediate writers. The prompts work especially well for everyday journalists.

ClassBrain.com - Writing teachers can use the ClassBrain.com writing prompts to inspire imagination and creative writing with the help of the famous Harry Potter series of books.

Everyday Spelling - This spelling site features an assortment of writing prompts for 1st through 8th graders. The prompts encourage writing that is as simple as a note to writing that is as complicated as a personal narrative. This is a excellent way to improve students' writing, spelling, and proofreading skills.

Guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online schools for OnlineSchool.net.

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The Writing Room

I was so honoured when The Quebec Writer's Federation asked me if they could feature me in their Love Ms Julie's Blog—a blog about new Quebec English-language writing. They have a feature called The Writing Room, where QWF members talk about their writing space and writing process.

I'm very excited to share this with my family and friends. Please feel free to visit the post and leave a comment!
 http://lovemsjulie.blogspot.com/2009/10/writing-room.html

Thanks for your support, as usual.
Laura Fabiani Read more on "The Writing Room".

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The Common Comma

There are many reasons for using the comma, the punctuation mark used most frequently within sentences. Today, we will look at one basic function of the comma that is often omitted. Look at the following sentences and see if you can tell what is missing and why.

I told my mother I was famished and she proceeded to make me my favourite peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

The teacher repeated the rules but the students continued to ignore them.

We could barely make out the road ahead for the storm was raging madly across the town.

You can eat out at the diner today or you can make yourself a home-cooked meal.

Peter was cutting the vegetables while Julia was stuffing the large turkey.

You may have noticed that all of the preceding sentences are compound sentences. A compound sentence is a sentence that is composed of two or more sentences joined together. They are joined by a conjunction, such as and, but, for, or or.

The rule, then, is as follows: A comma usually precedes the coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence. In addition, a compound sentence of which the second member is introduced by as (in the sense of “because”), nor or while (in the sense of “and at the same time”) likewise require a comma before the conjunction.

Therefore, the above sentences are corrected as follows:

I told my mother I was famished, and she proceeded to make me my favourite peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

The teacher repeated the rules, but the students continued to ignore them.

We could barely make out the road ahead, for the storm was raging madly across the town.

You can eat out at the diner today, or you can make yourself a home-cooked meal.

Peter was cutting the vegetables, while Julia was stuffing the large turkey.

Sometimes, when the compound sentence is very brief, the comma is omitted before the conjunction.

Mary thought she had a bus ticket but she didn’t.
Tom likes to write poems and he also writes sonnets.

Why don’t you look at the short story, letter, or manuscript you’ve written and see if there are any missing commas in your compounded sentences? You may find a few … From now on, when you write, think of this rule for the comma, and put it into practice.
Read The Common Comma Part II
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The Common Comma Part II

In our last issue we looked at a commonly forgotten usage of the comma. Although the rule may seem simple enough, until one starts writing and conscientiously applying the rule, a new writer may tend to omit using the comma where needed.

Let’s look at how we use the comma for non-restrictive relative clauses and restrictive clauses. Are there commas missing in the following sentences?

The crowd which initially consisted of a few hundred people became a swarming horde of thousands.

In the winter of 2001 when Leila’s daughter was born the worst snowstorm of the century hit.

In the province of Quebec where most of the citizens speak French immigrant children are required to attend French-language schools.

If you guessed that 2 commas are missing in each sentence, you are right. The commas are needed to set off the non-restrictive clause that does not define but only adds to or supplements the sentence. In fact, each sentence is made up of two statements that could be written independently. The corrected sentences should read:

The crowd, which initially consisted of a few hundred people, became a swarming horde of thousands.
OR
The crowd consisted of a few hundred people. Later it became a swarming horde of thousands.

In the winter of 2001, when Leila’s daughter was born, the worst snowstorm of the century hit.
OR
Leila’s daughter was born in the winter of 2001. That year the worst snowstorm of the century hit.

In the province of Quebec, where most of the citizens speak French, immigrant children are required to attend French-language schools.
OR
Most of the citizens speak French in Quebec. In that province immigrant children are required to attend French-language schools.

A restrictive clause, on the other hand, does define or limit the sentence and cannot be separated into two independent sentences. For example:

Women who are severely abused are less likely to display self-confidence.

In the above sentence the restrictive clause (who are severely abused) serves to define which women are less likely to display self-confidence.

Study these rules and refer to them often. Soon you will automatically know where commas are needed for non-restrictive and restrictive clauses.
Read The Common Comma (Part I)
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The Origin of Words

For anyone who loves to read and write, words are fun, interesting, magical. They transport us to other places and times; make us laugh, cry, or shiver with fright.

An often-overlooked way to build one’s vocabulary is to learn the origin of words. This study is called etymology.

If you are not familiar with the meaning of certain words and you take the time to look them up in the dictionary, most of the time you will find its origin. Take, for example, the word fiancé. When I looked it up on Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary this is what showed up:

Main Entry: fi·an·cé
Pronunciation: \fe-än-'sa, fe-'än-\
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Middle French, from past participle of fiancer to promise, betroth, from Old French fiancier, from fiance promise, trust, from fier to trust, from Vulgar Latin *fidare, alteration of Latin fidere - more at BIDE
Date: 1838
: a man engaged to be married

It only takes a minute or so to read the etymology, but it’s certainly worth it. The word will be more readily remembered. And you will be that much more knowledgeable.

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The Home Inspiration Center of Music

Searching for an idea that inspires you to develop it into a work of literature may be as close as going to your home entertainment center. In your unique collection of CDs you might find that special song that stimulates your creativity either through its music or lyrics.

Each of us has a music collection as unique as our writing style. This selection of music offers a glimpse into your psyche. By your taking that same glimpse, you can rediscover aspects of yourself from where ideas will emerge and take on written form.

Music offers the listener the ambiance of an instrumental landscape promoting relaxation conducive to reflection, which is fertile ground for ideas to find consciousness. Emotionally, a portal opens through which our imagination travels a wilderness of sound towards new insightful thought.

The lyrics, often overlooked by many, may provide us with references to people, events or philosophical questions if we take the time to listen to them. As a writer, you should not be dismissive but rather inquisitive of the lyrics in a song for, within the clutter of clichéd phrases, may be found words or sentences that will motivate your creativity. Even titles of CDs and individual songs may hold a depth of meaning.

By way of example, I once purchased a CD by a group called Nightnoise and was moved by one song on their Something of Time CD (1989) called "The Erebus and The Terror". The haunting melody took me to the local library where I discovered that the song title referred to the names of the two ships commanded by Sir John Franklin who, in May of 1845 set sail from England, and sought to find a nautical passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean through the islands of Canada's Far North. All 129 men of The Franklin Expedition were never heard from again.

I was intrigued to watch a subsequent television documentary, "Buried in Ice", documenting the 1986 Beechey Island exhumation of three Franklin crew members who died in the first year of the expedition. A forensic reconstruction of how these men lived and died was made possible in the scientific analysis of their frozen remains, giving me a vision of their everyday lives in the isolation of the frozen North; an essential motivator for me. This led me to read the book documenting the Beechey Island findings: Frozen in Time: Unlocking the Secrets of the Franklin Expedition by Owen Beattie and John Geiger (1989).

Two more books on the Franklin Expedition gave me further insight: The Arctic Grail: The Quest for the Northwest Passage and The North Pole by Pierre Berton (1988) and The Voyage of the Fox in the Arctic Seas: A Narrative of the Discovery of the Fate of Sir John Franklin and His Companions by Francis L. M'Clintock (1860).

The Franklin Expedition was no longer a mystery to me and the need to give this historic event my own written treatment gained momentum because of a single song title dormant in the many CD's that constitute my collection. Dormant until I asked the question "What does the title to this song refer to?"

I was not the only one so influenced. Singer/composer James Taylor's song Frozen Man (1991) is based on John Torrington, one of the three crew members buried on Beechey Island. David Solway's Franklin's Passage (2003) offers a poetic essay on The Franklin Expedition and Dan Simmons incorporates his interpretation of the Franklin Expedition in the horror fiction novel The Terror (2007)

Years earlier, on hearing the song, Vincent (Starry Starry Night) written and sung by Don McLean (1971), I was taken to Irving Stone's novel Lust For Life (1934) where the life of painter Vincent van Gogh was portrayed that demonstrated determination, perseverance and tragic consequences; an inspiration for all who seek to create in the manner gifted to them.

The reward in hearing the lyrics to the song "Cinema Show" by Genesis from their CD Selling England By The Pound (1973) is the name "Tiresias", a figure in Greek Mythology. The song is also inspired by T.S. Eliot’s poem The Waste Land which may lure you into doing more research. Novel ideas can be born this way.

Also by Genesis, the CD Wind & Wuthering (1977) has two song titles inspired by the closing line of Emily Brontë's novel Wuthering Heights (1847): "I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth."

These intellectual travels of the mind serve to both further your knowledge and to fuel your imagination. The result may be the discovery of that one gem of an idea shining on a beach of sand that you will pick up and call your own. This spark can now be fuelled into a foundation for your project in whatever genre you feel it is best suited. In moving forward, you have moved back to, when as a child, being inquisitive defined you.

As the famous quote by William Congreve (1670 - 1729) observes: "Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast, To soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak. By magic numbers and persuasive sound."

In the unique collection of music playing in your home entertainment center, ideas for writing are waiting to be discovered. Not only does music "soothe the savage breast", but it can serve to inspire works of literature that transforms both rock and tree through an alchemy of the infinite imagination that is yours, the creative writer.

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