Thursday, March 19, 2009

Another Sleepless Night

Thanks to my sister Martha, her husband Don, my friends Donna, K.and Ryland Y. and Ron R., I have spent a very difficult night. With their help I now have a blog. But what am I going to do with it?"

I think everyone has had this experience at one time or another. It was one of those sleep periods when you toss and turn and have to keep reaching for your note pad and pencil to record ideas flooding your consciousness. Ideas that will be a vague memory in the morning.

With the light of day you scan the sheets of paper. What you find is the ideas may have seemed better in the darkness or their rationale has been lost because your penmanship is so bad you can't make out the scribbles(you were too lazy to put your glasses on).

So what did I come up with you might ask. I thought it might be fun to do a section on "My Bedside Table" and list books I am reading. Currently the three are: Voyage, a Novel of 1896, by Sterling Hayden, Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris author of Silence of the Lambs, The Husband by Dean Koontz. What are you reading?

Other thoughts captured last night before sleep, from the mind of a Community Developer were, Yes, there are more of us than the President. The ideas were:

As an individual looking at a shelf of books, what is it about a particular book that makes you want to take a second look?

While reading a book what is it about the book that makes it sing for you?

Besides insomnia, what is it about a book that makes you stay up all night reading?

After obtaining a book, what makes you close the cover never to open it again?

These questions are usually answered by saying, plot, action, character development, theme, cohesiveness or insomnia. These answers while true do not represent the whole, I believe thinking about these questions a deeper reason will emerge that is a clearer understanding of what makes books work. Any thoughts?

I'm going to sleep on these questions and perhaps in the morning I will have a sheet of paper filled with answers.


6 comments:

Donnie said...

What makes me keep reading a book is wanting to know what happens. If I'm not really involved I skip to the back page because I don't care enough about how they got to where they end. If I care I'll read every sentence. I'm reading Sharyn McCrumb's Lovely in her bones. Not skipped to the end yet but may before too long if she doesn't involve my senses. Good post Bro :>)

Terri Tiffany said...

Found you!! Great job--now you need to post at least three times a week but more importantly--visit other ones so people get to know who you are as a writer. Write about your book too! Put some exerpts here as well:)) Yes you are in the 21st century, Bob.

Kathleen said...

Hey ... I followed Terri over to say "hello". Welcome to the world of blogging. It's great fun.

Good luck with your writing, too. You're in good company with Terri & Donna, though not so much me. I mostly blog (though I'm secretly working a book about my family & Christian heritage).

Kathleen

Donna M. Kohlstrom said...

You're off to a good start with your new blog! Lots of thought provoking questions about reading.

I need a book that grabs me from the first word and plunges me through to the end, leaving me breathless and satisfied!

Technonana said...

Hi Robert!! Welcome to bloggy land!! You don't need to put so much effort into blogging. For most of the people I follow, it's just whatever comes to mind.
I will tell you that I really enjoy the bloggers that are REAL, by that I mean, they just tell it like it is. The everyday things that are going on in their lives. It's important to me to know that we are all pretty much alike!!
Your New Friend in SC
Sharon

Laura said...

What keeps me reading is a clear writing style. Every sentance must provoke interest and lead somewhere. The book can't bog me down with too many details, but must have a balance of information, description, and dialog. Complicated? Yes. A good read. You bet.

Now, how many people can create a book worth reading? Not many.

But I like your work Bob. I think it meets my criteria. And I'm picky.