Stephen Brooke's Blog: Stephen Brooke's Scribblings - Posts Tagged "fantasy"
Magic
True art is magic.
Not the mystical stuff of fairy tales and fantasy; no, art is the skilled stagecraft of the illusionist, the sleight of hand and lateral thinking that directs our minds to see that which is not, strictly speaking, there. Art leads us to believe in real magic, the magic that lies within us.
It requires the illusions of words, of paint, of misdirection, to allow us to suspend our disbelief. Art opens us up to possibilities we would not otherwise see, that do exist yet remain so hard to recognize.
The creation of art, true art, good art, requires all the craft of the stage magician. It does not spring forth without thought or plan from the artist. The idea that it is all talent is simply part of the illusion, a mystical pass of the hands, a flip of a flamboyant but concealing cape.
Does it hurt to know how the trick was performed? Not really; if anything, it opens the mind to new ways of dealing with problems. At the same time, it is certainly not necessary to have any inkling of the mechanics for one to be profoundly affected by either art or magic. The feeling of wonder, of suspecting there are things we do not know -- but should -- is the important part.
I will now produce a poem from my hat. Chances are, you'll never see how it was done, as your eyes will be on my beautiful assistant.
Not the mystical stuff of fairy tales and fantasy; no, art is the skilled stagecraft of the illusionist, the sleight of hand and lateral thinking that directs our minds to see that which is not, strictly speaking, there. Art leads us to believe in real magic, the magic that lies within us.
It requires the illusions of words, of paint, of misdirection, to allow us to suspend our disbelief. Art opens us up to possibilities we would not otherwise see, that do exist yet remain so hard to recognize.
The creation of art, true art, good art, requires all the craft of the stage magician. It does not spring forth without thought or plan from the artist. The idea that it is all talent is simply part of the illusion, a mystical pass of the hands, a flip of a flamboyant but concealing cape.
Does it hurt to know how the trick was performed? Not really; if anything, it opens the mind to new ways of dealing with problems. At the same time, it is certainly not necessary to have any inkling of the mechanics for one to be profoundly affected by either art or magic. The feeling of wonder, of suspecting there are things we do not know -- but should -- is the important part.
I will now produce a poem from my hat. Chances are, you'll never see how it was done, as your eyes will be on my beautiful assistant.
Schedules
The best laid plans can indeed run into difficulties. For example, my hopes that my latest book – whatever that might have chanced to be – would be out by the end of the first quarter of 2012, the first day of April.
It seems I was an April Fool. However, there will be a new title officially released tomorrow, May 1, from Arachis Press. Who knows, I may yet meet my goal of publishing four new titles this year, even if the first was a month late.
That doesn’t really matter, of course. New material will come out when it’s ready. In the mean time, there is a great deal else going on in my life that requires my attention.
So, the book: that would be ‘The Contrary Fairy,’ ostensibly a beginners’ chapter book. About 4000 words, spread over 11 chapters and forty pages, with 18 black and white illustrations. The pictures are all mine, naturally, and I think them adequate, considering I don’t really believe I’m that great an illustrator.
‘Fairy’ is available, as are all my titles, through The Arachis Press (http://arachispress.com and http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/arachis...). Retail price for the paperback is 6.99; the PDF runs 1.99. I have eschewed an EPUB version for this book as it is not well suited to products for small children.
What comes next? Much of that depends on how my life goes, my time spent as a caregiver, my projects in music, and so on. There will be more writing, more illustrating, more books. Just maybe not on schedule.
It seems I was an April Fool. However, there will be a new title officially released tomorrow, May 1, from Arachis Press. Who knows, I may yet meet my goal of publishing four new titles this year, even if the first was a month late.
That doesn’t really matter, of course. New material will come out when it’s ready. In the mean time, there is a great deal else going on in my life that requires my attention.
So, the book: that would be ‘The Contrary Fairy,’ ostensibly a beginners’ chapter book. About 4000 words, spread over 11 chapters and forty pages, with 18 black and white illustrations. The pictures are all mine, naturally, and I think them adequate, considering I don’t really believe I’m that great an illustrator.
‘Fairy’ is available, as are all my titles, through The Arachis Press (http://arachispress.com and http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/arachis...). Retail price for the paperback is 6.99; the PDF runs 1.99. I have eschewed an EPUB version for this book as it is not well suited to products for small children.
What comes next? Much of that depends on how my life goes, my time spent as a caregiver, my projects in music, and so on. There will be more writing, more illustrating, more books. Just maybe not on schedule.
