CHARLOTTE GULLICK
  • HOME
    • CONTACT
  • BLOG
  • EVENTS
  • WRITING
    • By Way of Water
  • ABOUT
  • PROJECTS

BLOG: The Spectacular Vernacular


Glissando: Moving Between to Find a Writing Truth

7/6/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
Glissando: “Derived from the French glisser, to slide, the Italianised word is used to describe sliding in music from one note to another.”

When I was in my first graduate program, I struggled to bring forth By Way of Water (it was called The Wall of the Pacific then—a phrase that has found a new home in my current novel, One Man Reservation). One key aspect of the story involves how the main character, Justy, could image and be in the realities of her parents. Specifically, in a given scene, readers “slide” with Justy to other locations, other moments where her parents are but she is not, physically. Whether she does this out of clairvoyance or arrogance is not clear, but I knew this was essential for the book I wanted, and maybe even needed, to write.

One day, while meeting with my thesis advisor, she told me I couldn’t do this: I was breaking the rules when it came to point-of-view. And this wasn’t allowed.

Recently, while working on One Man, I came across the term, glissando. I read the definition with a sense of deep relief. This is what happens in my first book.

As I think back to the me that sat in her office taking in the comment, I wish, for us both, she had said, “You’re breaking rules and you’re not doing it well. Let’s talk about why this is important to us and how you could do this better.” I graduated six months after my classmates, after my thesis advisor grudgingly accepted the draft of the book with these shifts in point-of-view.

In essence, a conversation that focused on the difference between story and craft would’ve helped; a little more time spent on how to move between these two aspects of writing might’ve illuminated the craft problems for us both. I needed to earn the write to make the shifts in point-of-view seamless and credible. This is something I hope to remember as I continue to teach, to mentor, and to bring new, well-crafted narratives into the world. 


1 Comment

    Archives

    May 2021
    September 2019
    April 2018
    July 2017
    May 2016
    January 2016
    October 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013

    Categories

    All
    Earning The Write
    Learning To Listen
    Revision
    The Count
    The People I Meet


    rss subscription

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • HOME
    • CONTACT
  • BLOG
  • EVENTS
  • WRITING
    • By Way of Water
  • ABOUT
  • PROJECTS