Monthly Archives: August 2010

Would you knowingly write a potentially ‘banned’ book?

Posted on August 23, 2010 | 2 comments

I have been thinking more about the writing process, since NaNoWriMo is coming up in November and I probably will participate in that. I have been reading more, too, and you will see the updating of ‘my “have read” book list’ page.

In wondering about banned books and those that are challenged – the hope of the challenger being that the book will be banned – I posted a list that I found of some of those classics:

Banned and Challenged Classics:

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Ulysses by James Joyce
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
1984 by George Orwell
Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Animal Farm by George Orwell
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Native Son by Richard Wright
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
The Call of the Wild by Jack London
Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin
All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren
The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
Sophie’s Choice by William Styron
Sons and Lovers by D. H. Lawrence
Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
A Separate Peace by John Knowles
Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
Women in Love by D. H. Lawrence
The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer
Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
Rabbit, Run by John Updike

I would think that books with that reputation would get an increase in sales, thanks to the curious. What do you think? Have you read any of those books, and if so do you understand why the book is on this list? Do you agree?

Let’s take this a little further. Have you ever written a book that has been challenged when it was not your intention for it to receive that kind of publicity? Or, do you have a subject burning in your soul that you want to write about, but you know it could be challenged or even banned? Would you write it anyway?

I hope to hear from many of you on this topic.

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

2 Comments

Posted in Mostly About Reading, Preambles to Writing

Tagged Arts, banned classics, Literature, World Literature

NaNo Writing

Posted on August 19, 2010 | 4 comments

It was so fun giving out awards to other bloggers earlier this week. Even more fun was receiving replies from some of them. It was so inspiring to me (thanks to Laura A. Best) that I am eager to post again so soon.

Now I am again thinking about NaNo writing. Have you ever heard about it? I learned about NaNo last year but didn’t get up the ‘courage’ to attempt it. National Novel Writing takes place the whole month of November. The goal is to write 50,000 words in 30 days! Sounds like a huge challenge, doesn’t it? And it is – especially where the writer does not start with anything at all or simply an outline. The rule is to write, write, write .. whatever comes to mind, with NO EDITING all the way through to the end of the month or upon reaching the 50,000 word count – and the challenge has ended.

Check it out at: http://www.nanowrimo.org

I am thinking of doing this, but … can I manage it? Of course, there is no shame in not reaching the goal, and most don’t, so if I don’t get anywhere near it I at least got started. The purpose is to write and get inspiration from just finding out what you can do. It is suggested to have a support group so that you can encourage one another along.

Have you ever taken part in NaNo? What did you learn about your writing?

Are you interested in participating?

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

4 Comments

Posted in Preambles to Writing, Writing

Tagged Arts, NaNo, National Novel Writing Month, Novel, Reading (process), Thought, writer, Writers Resources, Writing Exercises

Versatile Blogger Award!

Posted on August 17, 2010 | 10 comments

Almost three weeks ago I received a surprise in my Inbox. Author Laura A. Best awarded me the Versatile Blogger Award! I was surprised and honoured, but, admittedly, worried. Why? Because I felt unworthy and intimidated by it since I am not keeping up my blogging very well these days. (Do you hear ‘perfectionism’ in that?) But, if Laura believes in me and wants to encourage my writing, then I will attempt to follow through. Thanks again, Laura! Even though I am late doing this I do appreciate your shout out. 🙂

There are usually rules to follow when receiving something like this, so here are the requirements for this particular one:

1. Thank the one who gave me this award.
2. Share seven things about myself.
3. Present this honour to 15 newly discovered bloggers.
4. Drop by and let my fifteen new friends know I love them.

Okay, I have done the first one … above … and you may like to check out Laura’s blog which is always very interesting and thought-provoking. You can find her at: http://lauraabest.wordpress.com/

Seven things about myself. hmmm

I have been married for almost 35 years! Wow! (In October ’10 we will be celebrating our 34th anniversary and beginning our 35th year together.) How did that happen so fast? We have four daughters (several times I was mistaken for a sister of my daughters – which was quite amusing), a son-in-law, and a grandson.
I have a younger sister, two sisters-in-law, two brothers-in-law, two nephews, and four nieces.
In 2005 I went to Holland with my dad and sister. (Mum had passed away a few years earlier, so – because he and Mum had enjoyed their visit to Holland before Mum became ill – Dad took his two daughters on the trip of a lifetime.) Dad was one of the brave Canadian WWII soldiers who took part in the Liberation of the Netherlands. (I’m so proud of him.) We were members of a Veterans’ tour group and were well taken care of and honoured by wonderful Dutch families. It was an extraordinary 10 days.
I do not drive, made that decision many years ago and most of the time I do not regret it even though I do not live close enough to walk to town – too far for me. I appreciate country living, though, and enjoy peaceful morning walks.
I love the rhythm of music and dance. When there is music it is next to impossible for me to be still.
One of my goals is to go tandem sky-diving as soon as I can. One of my daughters wants to do it too, so we are planning to experience this crazy exciting thing together. We each will step out of the plane secured to a professional tandem jumper, though.
I maintain bird feeders year round and enjoy watching our feathered friends. Right now we have 9 hummingbirds coming, along with 10 or more other varieties of birds. Delightful!

Okay, now that you have read the about me part, the next requirement is to present this award to 15 other bloggers. It took me quite awhile to fulfill that one, but here are the ones I wish to bring recognition to .. so please check them out.

That took some extra doing! The page stopped saving and I lost part of my list so had to finish it a second time. It is worth it, though, and I hope you enjoy visiting these sites.

Note to recipients: You are not obligated to do anything about this award if you cannot manage it. Please simply enjoy the kudos! 🙂

Now that I have finished this (again) … I have to get some sleep. Tomorrow I will try to contact all the 15 above-mentioned bloggers and let them know of their award.

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂