Workshop:
Six Conversations for Writing Creative
Journals
“Basically,
the origin story conducts our identity….within this story, we know who we are.
….This is where we come from. We came this way. We came by this place.”
Leslie Marmon Silko
Just as our physical bodies cast a shadow as we
walk, historic mirrors can cast a shadow within us—an emotional thread that can
twine through time, both real and imagined. It connects an interior map to the
external historical details. Which mirror do you hope to understand more or
connect with?
For example, an historic landmark can be of
value to one individual, or to a nation, or to a continent. The fact that it
carries a history makes it personal whether the reaction to it is positive, or
negative, or neutral. Sometimes even landmarks can be subtle reminders of a
deeper theme, or a key influence. They may be the last witness to an historical
event.
Regardless of what whatever detail, or threads,
you chose to focus on, the key is to make a personal impact that invades,
lingers, and reacts.
Set up a question outline for yourself to help
ground your key foundations but be open to the unexpected as well. Here’s one
possible way to track traditional landmarks that are a factor in almost every
possible location, whether for a forgotten cemetery in a deserted small town,
or well-known sites such as the Eiffel Tower.
As you choose your specific historic markers begin by
asking these questions of each spot you choose. Watch for both the common links
and the unexpected intrusion, or the unusual.
Action
Steps:
1. Is it natural?
2. Is it manmade?
3. What is the history behind it?
4. How might different people personally
react to it?
5. Is it considered holy ground to some? Why?
6. If so, is it open to anyone to visit or
considered forbidden and can only be viewed from a distance?
Share: Which
characteristics made you curious? Why?
Read deep, marcy
Intriguing blog post, Marcy, thank you for sharing it with us. In researching a bit of WWII Chicago history, I learned that neighborhoods put up street corner markers as a memorial with names of that neighborhood's soldiers who had died in the war. This small historical detail struck me so deeply that I inserted it into my own novel when my heroine meets her soldier boyfriend in Chicago, just after she's learned her dad's been MIA. This small detail added depth to my scene.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great discovery, Tisha. We become familiar with the well-known historical sites over the years but the personal and local memories are important gems to remember as well.
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