Post #7 – Memoir Writing, Journaling – Amber Starfire
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Journaling
About journaling (keeping a diary), Ned Rorem, Pulitzer prize winning composer and writer, wrote:
A diary has impact only through the accumulation of unlimited observations (of which many are obsessive and recurring), never through the development of themes (for then it would no longer be a diary). Works of art must have a plan: beginnings and ends. A diary necessarily has no form beyond the accidental one of improvisation; hence, though it cannot be a work of art (improvisation precludes this), perhaps it can be a masterpiece.
Rorem makes an interesting observation about the value of keeping a journal (diary) and compares/contrasts art to improvisation.
Daily inspiration writing prompts for journaling:
• What is your first impression of Rorem’s statements?
• Does your journal writing tend to be obsessive and recurring in nature. If so, how? What are the recurring issues? How can you use the accumulation of these writings to learn?
• Do you agree with his idea that art cannot be improvisation? Why or why not? How is journaling like music improvisation?
• Finally, how can a journal be a masterpiece? What kind(s) of masterpiece can it be? What kind of masterpiece is your journal?
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I invite you to share your thoughts in the comment section below. Also, if you have a quote you’d like to see in a future Daily Inspiration post, send it to Amber Starfire, using her contact form on WritingThroughLife.com.
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