The end of the Prelude:
The final 20 seconds or so…
As always, if these Abortive Attempt images intrigue you to the point that you want to know more about William Blake’s Inn, have at it.
Category: Creativity
Creating something every day for 365 days
Lichtenbergianism: Building the online empire
Back to work.
When last we looked in on Lichtenbergianism: procrastination as a creative strategy, I was reading through The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published [EGGYBP] and working on all the advice contained therein. Chapter 2 deals with one’s online presence and how to capitalize on that.
Okay, I’ve read the chapter a couple of times and I have to admit I’m kind of stuck in a little mental eddy. I know what they’re talking about, of course, and I’ve seen all of the strategies and platforms in action, but where I’m stuck is figuring out how best to proceed.
There are a couple of stumbling blocks. The first is deciding on who I want to be in this endeavor. I already have this blog, and accounts with Twitter, Tumblr, Imgr, and Instagram, not that I use them (because I don’t have to.)
But I think it’s wise—and smart—to split Dale Lyles from Lichtenbergianism. I can post my liberal rants or muse on the aspects of ritual in the 3 Old Men or post my music and William Blake’s Inn sketches—but that’s muddying the waters when it comes to attracting a “permission base” to Lichtenbergianism. Anyone who heads to the intertubes looking for Lichtenbergianism ought to be able to be immersed in it.
That means a separate website/internet presence based completely on the book and any services/goods I might be offering. (What, you don’t want to buy a Lichtenbergian brand Waste Book? Or a Cras melior est hoodie?)
So there’s the first stumbling block. Do I want to go to the trouble of establishing lichtenbergianism.com and @TheLichtenbergian and all that before anyone shows any interest in the book, or do I need to do that in order to attract interest in the book? Ugh. Around and around I go.
The second stumbling block is the incredible amount of time/work it takes to establish that permission base of online followers. I’m going to be posting about the different strategies in Chapter 2, but a lot of them deal with joining one’s online community.
Who, exactly, is that? I work in a vacuum here in Newnan, and of course that’s my own fault for not looking for my “community” online, but which community is that? Writers? Painters? Gardeners? Efficiency experts? Creativity gurus? All of the above?
Thinking that I have to spend hours a day checking on these communities and establishing a presence there just gives me the fantods.
Oh well. Excelsior.
WBI: 04/20/2016
More imagery of what my song cycle William Blake’s Inn might look like if some enterprising theatre company decided to stage it:
I’m thinking that at their first appearance, the Tiger and the King of Cats should probably be in their puppet avatar. The denizens of the Inn would move forward, perhaps; at any rate, they would “come to life.”
Musicallyspeakingwise, this is from 0:30–1:00.
WBI: 04/15/16
Ghosts
Very few alive have seen this:
It is the dot matrix (!) printout of the young adult novel I wrote back in the 1980s as part of my master’s degree in media education. It was the Adolescent Lit course, and the final project was either read and review 70 of the things or to write one yourself. Hmph, I thought to myself, if S. E. Hinton can do it, I can do it.
So every Sunday, sitting in the choir at First Baptist, I outlined a chapter during the sermon then typed it up during the week. Before I knew it, I had a novel. Odd.
It’s called Twelfth Night, New Day, and it is a completely unremarkable piece of work. It’s about a bunch of teenagers in a community theatre group—if you can imagine such a thing—and every character in it was based on the kids in my company at the time, all of whom are pushing 50 if not already past it at this point. (The plot was a poor thing but mine own.)
I had a good time writing it, and I even started a sequel, but if the truth be told I am not a fiction writer. I don’t think I even have a copy of that one, which was called I Love You in Earnest.
Anyway, I needed space in the filing cabinet for this year’s tax documents, and when I discovered that I actually had two complete copies of this it was easy enough to decide to ditch one of them.
Yes, I’ve flipped through it. No, it’s not worth dragging out and revising, I don’t think. And no, I didn’t find a copy of the suppressed Chapter 13.
WBI: 04/14/16
I’ve done another 5–10 seconds of visualization for William Blake’s Inn, hereinafter known as WBI.
So, yes, the stars are puppets, in the sense that they are held aloft by performers. There are probably stationary stars in the backdrop, but these are mobile. You’ll see why tomorrow.
Again, the music:
The event pictured above is from 0:10–0:15, approximately.
William Blake’s Inn: What might it look like?
So yesterday, in my ongoing efforts to do absolutely no work on Lichtenbergianism: procrastination as a creative strategy or any of my three musical compositions, I started a new project, an ABORTIVE ATTEMPTS notebook attempting to visualize what a staged production of William Blake’s Inn might look like.[1]
Using the ungodly amount of art supplies I have on hand, I just began with the Prelude, and before I knew it I had the first whole five seconds sketched. That means I now have o.2% of the entire work visualized. UNSTOPPABLE, that’s what I am.
Anyway, here it is:
Where it says “appear,” imagine “twinkle on.”
And here’s the music: mp3 Remember, it’s just the first five seconds—only 37 and a half minutes to go!
—————
[1] And remember, if you are looking for a charming, expensive piece to do for a world premiere, I am contactable.
Totems
Before we left for our trip last week, we paid a visit to Richard’s Variety Store in Midtown/Monroe Drive. Richard’s is one of those places that create a strain in a relationship if, for example, one’s lovely first wife had never disclosed that she knew of this chamber of wonders. One might accuse the other of holding out on him.
It’s a magical place, kind of a Woolworths for the hipster/hippie crowd, and if you haven’t been, go.
Here’s what I bought (among other things):
Yes, that is Icarus, the hero of Seven Dreams of Falling, coming eventually to an opera house near you. He’s to remind me that I do have a major theatrical work to compose. Which I’m not doing right now, because I’m writing this blog post to avoid finishing my tax returns.
If I were to link this to Lichtenbergianism, it would fall into RITUAL, as an object which represents a project or a goal and serves to remind me that it will be a beautiful thing—once I finish it.
Do not adjust your set
Back to work
Last week was an away game, so I got nothing done except a lot of Waste Booking. Now I’m back with a handful of (major) emails to deal with, plus all my backlog of work, plus my taxes are due.
But first.
On Saturday night, my lovely first wife and I went to the Isis Restaurant and Music Hall in West Asheville to hear a group called Harpeth Rising, a trio of young women who played cello, violin, and banjo.
You are wrong: this was one of the most amazing performances I have ever seen. The lead singer (violin) has a voice as good as anything you’ve ever heard come out of Nashville, and their songs are beautiful and incisive.
Some links, all of which I expect you to follow:
- Their webpage
- Songs:
- I am Eve
- Four Days More (not the best recording, but still…)
- Shifted
They ended their set with “Eve” and “Four Days More”, and I have to say that the tepid applause they receive in the video link above indicates brain damage on the part of their audience. The crowd at Isis went wild. I went wild. They are simply amazing, and if they ever perform within range again, you will find me there. And I will have dragged you along with me.
So what’s on my plate? In no particular order:
updated to indicate completion… or not
- Emails:
- a couple of online references to fill out for former GHP faculty – √
- renew the domain registration for lichtenbergian.com — turns out this was not a legit email
- Mike Funt is nattering something something about Miss Ella’s song—a couple of video links to watch; I think he wants me to rewrite the song for a different feel. Will know more after I watch the videos. — still unclear
- several emails from the nice, energetic people who have conned me into steering the Carnegie Library Foundation’s end-of-summer reading program party, which revolves around the game of Minecraft. Oy. — replied to all; meeting tomorrow
- blog postings for the Euphoria Burn art projects (which I didn’t write but am responsible for getting online) — √
- from the Waste Book:
- new ideas for the structure of the chapter in Lichtenbergianism on RITUAL
- idea for storyboarding the Prelude from William Blake’s Inn (vid. sub.)
- note to sign up to be a speaker at the Carnegie on Lichtenbergianism
- todo: make garlic tahini dressing for LFW — √
- recipe for a cocktail called a Thai Orchid (full story: my favorite bar in the world is Sovereign Remedies in Asheville. We were there Saturday, and 1) the bartender Thistle, who has not seen me in a year, called me by name; and 2) another patron asked what I was drinking—it was a Molly 22A, one of my successes (I like to see what the guys at SR will make of my recipes)—and when I let her have a taste, she wanted the recipe to add to the menu at her restaurant, Fig, which was the first restaurant we ever ate at in Asheville. So I gave her the Quarter Moon as well.)
- notes for email to go out to the 3 Old Men crew today — √
- from my ToDo list on the phone:
- taxes — √
- design a bodkin for threading EL wire into the labyrinth — √
- water the houseplants — √
- sew the 2″ channel into the long walls of the 3 Old Men labyrinth
- complete a variance application to build an 8-foot wall in the back yard (current limits are 6 feet)
- type up instructions for getting a blogpost onto the Newnan Theatre Company website for those who need to be doing that themselves — √
- print the scene from Henry VIII for my fellow actors for the ULTIMATE SHAKESPEARE DEATH SMACKDOWN, coming soon on Apr 21 to a Historic Depot near you — √
- prep the labyrinth for a Lichtenbergian fireside tonight — raining, so unnecessary
- write that email to the 3 Old Men crew — √
- buy something called a “shark bite cap” for old pipes I plan to saw off in the basement
- stow the four 5×7 rugs we bought to lay under our tent so roots and stuff don’t poke through the tent floor — √
- test the EL lights on a 3 Old Men labyrinth wall segment
- do laundry — √
- start storyboarding William Blake’s Inn—on the way out of town last week, I bought a sketchbook to make myself visualize what a staged production of WBI would look like
- Otherwise:
- learn lines for HVIII
- volunteer at the Boys & Girls Club around the corner—my first day today! — √
- get my ideas together for how the SHAKESPEARE SMACKDOWN will actually work
- take some things to the cleaners
You will perhaps have noticed that nowhere in here is there anything about a) working on Lichtenbergianism; b) composing anything at all, up to and including Seven Dreams of Falling or my new secret project.