My Third Novel's Conclusion, My Heartbreak

My heart begins to break when I think about completing this particular book -- because this narrative has sustained me like no other story I've known. It's both more personal and more universal than my other works. But beyond memory and archetype, it's a cri-de-coeur about needing to become the person one is destined to be. And in the writing, I have met my own life's work, my own fated journey -- having the sense all the while that the pages are suffused with a resonance, an energy, an electrified field that defies explanation. Writers hope and pray to be overtaken by a work in this way -- to be conscripted into passionate service of a profound story. To experience it even once in a lifetime seems a great privilege. I still have several months before this novel is complete, and this constitutes my reprieve. Because I'm not ready for the beauty to end.




Sunday, March 4, 2018

Adventuring

I'm away from home on work-related adventures!  Enjoy Oscar night, everyone!

20 comments:

  1. Am I going to see you wearing some beautiful gown, walking the red carpet?

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  2. Every time I watch the Oscars, I think of your current book, Lane. The film adaptation is going to be breathtakingly beautiful.

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  3. I wish I were your date tonight, Lane.

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  4. Next year, maybe I can accompany you?

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    1. Thank you for looking ahead that far, David! We'll have to see.

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  5. You lead THE most beautiful life, Lane! Bar none!

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    1. My life contains a great deal of beauty, it's true, Anon. I don't take it for granted.

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  6. Lane, I hope you're working. I'm going to see you up on that stage.

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  7. I'm thinking about you as del Toro speaks about "the power of using fantasy to tell the stories of things that are real." This is what you do.

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    1. Thank you for your kindness, Anon. I appreciated del Toro's speech last night.

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  8. "Ce qui est essentiel est invisible pour les yeux" et tu connait ce qui est essentiel, Lane.

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  9. The world needs your voice, Lane. We need stories that transcend the quotidien.

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    1. Thank you for your kind words, Anon. They matter to me.

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  10. Can I ask what was your favorite film of the year? I'd really like to know.

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    1. Well, at the risk of being impolitic, I will say that I loved Dunkirk for its gravitas, its groundbreaking structural elements, its themes of individual heroism being critical within the context of the larger battle. And the blind man at the end functioning as the "seer" who recognizes the return of the hero? This is straight out of Greek drama. I will always greatly admire this film. It's a classic that will stand the test of time.

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