Ash Joie-Lee

While there are excellent workshops on creative writing in the Asheville area, especially workshops with a close focus on developing character or writing setting or creating a dramatic plot, there are few, if any, workshops that address the writer’s most basic tool: the English language.

To Write Well’s next offering — February 7  through February 28 -Saturdays from 9:30 am to 12:30 p.m.  at UNC Asheville’s Rhoades-Robinson Hall– provides writers with close-in, hand-on experience with the structure of language, focusing on how to create impact through emphasis, rhythm and cadence, pacing, and suspense. This workshop is a unique opportunity for Asheville area writers — both fiction and non-fiction! — to gain valuable insights into the impact of their writing choices.

General Syllabus

for

Advanced Writing Workshop:

Impact of Style I: Structure

sponsored by To Write Well

OBJECTIVE:

The objective of this four-week workshop is to teach writers how to write at a higher level by intensively examining, then practicing, four basic elements of writing with impact.

Week 1: Understanding the Role of Structure in Style / The First Four Possibilities

Week 2: Writing Sentences That Resonate / The Next Seven Possibilities

Week 3: Hearing The Sound on the Page: Music / The Next Eight Possibilities

Week 4: Tying It All Together / The Last Ten Possibilities

GOAL:

The goal of this workshop is to train writers to understand and consciously use sentence and paragraph structure

• to create impact upon readers,

• to create rhythm and cadence for pace, and

• to set up coherence between the structure of the writing and the ideas being expressed.

Each week begins with a Saturday lecture and discussion (three hours). Students then return home to work independently throughout the week, working through the daily exercises with feedback from the instructor.

• The Role of Structure examines the purpose behind sentence structure, i.e., how the ear hears, and how the eyes see, language. By understanding how language interacts with readers, writers can purposefully select specific structures to create impact, achieving a voice unique to their writing.

• Writing Sentences That Resonate examines the ways in which structure creates emphasis, rhythm, expectation, and suspense.

• Hearing The Sound on The Page extends the writer’s understanding of structure and resonance through practice.

• Tying It All Together examines coherence from the perspective of unifying the writer’s ideas with the writer’s voice, so the written word is memorable for the reader.

Reference materials are provided.

The course text, The Art of Styling Sentences, by Ann Longknife, PhD, and K.D. Sullivan, is required, and the student must have the text by the first session.

For more info and to register: email Ashley at  writewell2009@gmail.com

One of the things I love about dropping temps is to curl up with a cozy throw and watch a good movie or read, and especially for little snoozes on fall weekends! I also love how a variety of throws over the back of my couch can change the look of my living room.
Here is a wonderful deal at Domestications.- Buy one throw and get 2 free!
Keep all of them to change your rooms look, spread them around the house or give them as Christmas gifts; who doesn’t like a comfy throw? I know my kids love getting them as gifts.

Handwoven Plaid Throws: Buy One, Get Two FREE at Domestications®.

I live in a town with great music venues and great musicians. But, for some reason (mainly because we did other things) hubby and I really haven’t been to see many here. So, a few weeks ago, we decided we would start. Last week, hubby casually mentions to me, “Hey, Shawn Mullins is going to be in Asheville.”
I perked up, all excited. Wow! When? Where? He didn’t reply, but a few hours later handed me two tickets to go see Shawn perform.
(You gotta love such a responsive hubby!)
I first heard of Shawn Mullins with his Rock A Bye song, which came out in 1998. I loved that song and I loved Shawn’s unique voice. Hubby bought me the CD Soul’s Core and I loved every song on it. It is one of my Cd’s that I play a lot. Now that I am using Pandora, I have a Shawn Mullins station and was hearing more of his newer songs.
So, last night we went to hear Shawn. The guy who is touring with him and who opened was Chuck Cannon. I had not heard of Chuck before, but am glad I have now! He was fantastic! He is a song-writer, but does have several albums out, and I will definitely be getting one.
Both Shawn and Chuck told stories of how the song they were about to sing came about and Chuck shared a lot of funny stories of his childhood as the son of a preacher. Of course, he is not following the same belief path of his dad and yeah, life is interesting when you have family who are on that path and you are not….like me. I’m also a preachers kid.
I could relate to the stories!
One of the things I love about Shawn, besides the fact that he just seems to be a genuine guy, is that he tells stories with his songs. And I enjoy how he can describe unique characters and settings in his songs.
One of the things Shawn said when he first came out was to thank us each for being there, even in the midst of this crazy, scary economy.
I got to thinking about that. There are things that I have cut back on since this has happened, I don’t rush out to buy new clothes. I haven’t bought anything decorative for my home in a bit and we have been very careful with our food and travel budget. But the one thing I have always and will always spend money on, is good stories, whether that’s buying books or music. Books and music feed my soul.

My son is a musician and just moved to Austin, Texas where he has joined a serious band. He is always sharing new bands with me and we both chat each morning about music in some way.
I love hearing about a new author who has put out a great book and to learn of new bands.
Here is a band my son met and hung out with this past weekend…I am enjoying listening to their music.

And of course, some day soon, I’ll be posting the link to the band my son is in.

The video below is the only one I could find of Shawn’s that had the embedding code.
It is his song ‘Beautiful Wreck’ (Turn the playlist off before you listen to this video!)

OK, so this video was the first thing I watched online this morning…I love when laughing is the first thing I do in the morning! While I don’t have any Jewish/Floridians in my life, this was too funny not to share.

I like using music to set a mood when I write. Years ago, I was addicted to listening to Bob Dylan, especially while working on one particular story. I guess Dylan’s ’story’ style of writing in his music allowed me to feel situations and the emotions that went with them. Was great for getting ideas for stories.
So, yesterday I was working on a scene where a character finds her old guitar and another character picks it up and starts playing it. I was using a Gary Jules Pandora station for my ‘writing music’ and was listening for a good song that the character could play. One thing led to another and I got to thinking about the first song I taught myself to play on the piano.(well the first song beyond Heart & Soul!)
I was in the 6th or 7th grade and was pretty much self-taught. I got the sheet music for One Tin Soldier and learned to play it. I played that song over and over and over!
One Tin Soldier is a ‘60s era anti-war song written by Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter. The Canadian pop group Original Caste first recorded the song in 1969. The track briefly reached limited popularity locally and reached Number 34 on the American pop charts in early 1970.
I went over to You Tube and looked for One Tin Soldier. I actually don’t recall ever hearing it being performed by the original group that did it. I knew about the song because a friend of mine, who was a few years older than me and could play the piano like nobody’s business, played it and I really liked it.
It was weird to listen to the original. The song is too fast in my opinion. One You Tube video put war images with it, funny how appropriate the Vietnam song is for the situation today?
I wish someone else had redone the song…a slower acoustic/Jack Johnson style.
Here is the original song:

But this got me to thinking about the other things I remember the most from that time. The two I recall the most are: Cheech and Chong’s Sister Mary Elephant. Here is the link to a great YouTube video of someone lip syncing the skit.
Boy, the things we found funny at that age! LOL
The next song that comes to mind was Lovin’You by Minnie Riperton. This song was recently redone and boy, did it bring back memories - all of us girls trying to hit those high notes!
Here is the original-

I found myself stuck in You Tube for a few hours last night playing videos of the songs I liked back then…Seasons in the Sun, Billy Don’t Be a Hero…weird how they are all related to war! Not sure what that is about!
What song do you recall from your Jr High days?

Dog’s Diary
8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 PM - Milk bones! My favorite thing!
1:00 PM - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 PM - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 PM - Dinner! My favorite thing!
7:00 PM - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 PM - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 PM - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

The Cat’s Diary

Day 983 of my captivity. My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little
dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and
I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the
rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up
my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an
Attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet.

Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had
hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates my
capabilities. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a
“good little hunter” I am. Bastards! There was some sort of assembly of their
accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of
the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that
my confinement was due to the power of “allergies.” I must learn what this
means, and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors
by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow,
but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are
flunkies and Snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly
released, and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously Retarded.
The bird must be an informant. I observe him communicate with the Guards
regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged
protective custody for him in an Elevated Cell, so he is safe. For now..

Inspiration struck today. This time it was with a color palette. I am not someone who loves  nautical/seascape colors in my decor, but while working on what I would be featuring over at Paisley Goddess Home, I found this color palette and fell in love with it!

While I am not a  Pisces, I am a water person and some of my favorite activities involve water - swimming, lakes, baths, boating - I just can’t have those colors in my decor. I need warm earth tones..probably because too much of the cool water stuff and I can’t get grounded! (but thats another story!)

As that wonderful thing called serendipity would have it, as I was online grabbing hex codes for the colors, I ran across this blog and my jaw dropped. Not only was it a pleasure to read, but she has some great photos of the beach! It added to my inspiration!( Go visit her and see what I mean!)

We did have 2 vacations last year, both at the beach and I did take some photos. Since we had our new puppy along, I found it hard to hold onto him and catch good images at the same time. But, after going through the images from our vacations, I found a few I could play with.

And just for fun, I’m going to share a few!

Speaking of new puppy at the beach - here he is! This picture cracks me up now! He was so tiny then! You can see a more current picture of him in my left sidebar. What a sweetie pie dog he is - but he didn’t like the water at the beach!

The sky reflection in the water

While not the same as a tropical beach, you just can’t beat North Carolina’s island beaches!

Ahhhh…sweet memories and I will always love time near water! Now…back to creating with that wonderful color palette!

This morning while I was in that in between place when you are just waking up, I was reciting the lines that are on the base of the Statue of Liberty:

Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

Now, normally, I don’t even recall the words to this, but I was reciting it as I was waking up. I do this most every morning. As I am waking up I am either having a conversation with someone who is not in my life or discussing a topic not relevant to my waking life. It is a fascinating thing indeed. If I can recall what I am saying, it leads to some interesting discoveries.

I got up to do my usual email and website checks. Since a feed I use was down and causing havoc in my sites, making it so I couldn’t can’t do any posts or work in them, I decided to work on some new images. As I was going through a disc of old images, I came across one I had started last fall. It was meant to be for my son for Christmas, but I never finished it.

As I was looking at it, the title came to me “Looking For Hope”

I wanted to add something else to the image…which at this point was just tree branches surrounding a bright ray of sunshine. I wanted to add another image to the center where the light was. I got to thinking about images that signified Hope.

Well, there is the Dove - the sign that gave Noah hope that the waters would be receding. And there is the…..oh my gosh, it hit me! There is the Statue of Liberty!
Now, I don’t want to put the Statue of Liberty in the center of this image, but how weird that I woke up reciting the words on the Statue of Liberty!

Now, my mind was spinning….references to hope….so many topics and memories, current events, all came racing to my thoughts. Then a song title - which has been my absolute favorite song since I was in Jr. High - The Last Resort by the Eagles.

EAGLES LYRICS

“The Last Resort”

She came from Providence,
the one in Rhode Island
Where the old world shadows hang
heavy in the air
She packed her hopes and dreams
like a refugee
Just as her father came across the sea

She heard about a place people were smilin’
They spoke about the red man’s way,
and how they loved the land
And they came from everywhere
to the Great Divide
Seeking a place to stand
or a place to hide

Down in the crowded bars,
out for a good time,
Can’t wait to tell you all,
what it’s like up there
And they called it paradise
I don’t know why
Somebody laid the mountains low
while the town got high

Then the chilly winds blew down
Across the desert
through the canyons of the coast, to
the Malibu
Where the pretty people play,
hungry for power
to light their neon way
and give them things to do

Some rich men came and raped the land,
Nobody caught ‘em
Put up a bunch of ugly boxes, and Jesus,
people bought ‘em
And they called it paradise
The place to be
They watched the hazy sun, sinking in the sea

You can leave it all behind
and sail to Lahaina
just like the missionaries did, so many years ago
They even brought a neon sign: “Jesus is coming”
Brought the white man’s burden down
Brought the white man’s reign

Who will provide the grand design?
What is yours and what is mine?
‘Cause there is no more new frontier
We have got to make it here

We satisfy our endless needs and
justify our bloody deeds,
in the name of destiny and the name
of God

And you can see them there,
On Sunday morning
They stand up and sing about
what it’s like up there
They call it paradise
I don’t know why
You call someplace paradise,
kiss it goodbye

With Global Warming, the war and the greed of the present administration (not to mention the mis-use of claiming to be doing God’s bidding) and the immigration issues, this song is so relevant for today. The song even references the Statue of Liberty…the Mother of Exiles.

I could see that so much more than how to finish this image was going on…..here we are, as a country, in the middle of an election year, looking for change, looking for hope to end the madness that has been going on.

I’ll let this swirl around in my head for a few days and see what comes of it in regards to the above image. But as I was talking to my son and daughter about this today, I asked them…what do you think of when you think of the word Hope?

What images or symbols do you think of?

(Below is the entire poem that is on the Statue of Liberty)

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Emma Lazarus, 1883

When I saw the word for today was Explosive, I was going to create something visual. But then I had an explosive occurrence this weekend.

Now, normally, I wouldn’t say anything negative about my hubby here on my blog, but, well, he has an explosive temper and to be truthful, when I saw the word, that was the first thing to pop into my head.

To his credit, I will say, he has come a long ways since I met him and his explosive outbursts are now few and far between. As a matter of fact, his last major explosive outburst caused him to break his hand when he hit the refrigerator door. A very good lesson for him!

So, all of that said- This weekend his neck/shoulder were spasming and he was in a lot of pain and therefore took some heavy duty muscle relaxants and pain killers. On Saturday, we decided to take our dog to the dog park. He should have stayed home as these meds make your brain mush and knock one out, but he went along.

He ended up just staying in the car and sleeping while I did the doggy park thing.

So, once we were done, dog in hubby’s lap, on the way home, I thought it’d be nice to stop at Sonic and buy one of our fav drinks there - a Route 44 Cherry Limeade ( for those who don’t know, I think it is a bit more than 64 ounces)

Well, we were in hubby’s car, he has a Saab (no drink holders) so he installed these very nifty drink holders on the doors, but with this drink being so big and top heavy, one has to keep a finger on it and hold it on corners or it will topple out.

Now, he had slept, I thought he was awake and doing OK.

He didn’t say a word regarding this drink when I was ordering it and there was no way I could hold it on my side as his car is a manual.

So, he has the drink in his drink holder, holding it with a few fingers.

We are on our way home, happy dog, my mouth salivating, anxious for the sweet cherry limeade elixir to hit my throat once we got home.

All, is fine, until we got on the very winding street to our house. I hadn’t noticed, but he had dozed off……

I rounded a corner and suddenly this huge drink of pink heaven is flying out of the holder and all over the floor on his side.

At this point, an explosive reaction occurred. Ummm…I dare not even repeat the words and the actions. The poor dog was terrified and I thought hubby would bust his door and break his elbow and I think the entire county heard him. Wasn’t pretty.

This explosive reaction went on for another 10 minutes while the dog and I hid.

I lost every ounce of my precious drink….my last visual was of that bright juicy cherry sittng next to that glorious wedge of lime, glistening in a pile of pink ice, about 3 inches deep all over the floorboard of hubby’s car.

One redeeming quality of hubby’s explosive temper is that after his explosion, he is fine. He never holds grudges or harbors his anger. A soaked pink floorboard mat is draining on the porch. And I, well, I am still craving a Route 44 Cherry Limeade from Sonic.