Do you know if your class will be recorded and sent to people who sign up? I can't make that time but would be willing to pay so I can listen to it later.
Looking forward to the class. Your analysis of writing and how it works is among the best I ever see. Full of examples, specifics, advantages, disadvantages. Anyway, I'll be there. :)
I have nothing to say about the first part of the post except I nodded a lot in understanding and agreement. But that last paragraph - empathy is one of my favorite topics.
One of the best essays I ever wrote was titled "The Failure of the Empathetic Imagination." It was a reaction to someone asserting that she couldn't understand someone else's experience because she hadn't experienced that thing herself. What she really meant was that she could imagine it all too well, and the idea of it alone was so painful that she nipped it in the bud to avoid the discomfort of going there even a little.
As someone who has lived my entire adult life with HIV, I have lost count of how many times I've heard, "I can't even imagine..." And every time, I'm like, yes, you can. Now, does that mean you'll know precisely what it felt like to get that news, esp back in 1984? Not 100%. But imagining it has tremendous value. If I imagine what it is like to be a woman in the Congo barely escaping from a burning village with her two children, will my best efforts fall far short? Of course they will. That's not the point of empathy. It how just imagining it changes your behavior. (How you vote, for one thing.) It's also essential for successfully writing points of view not your own.
My mother used to say "Losing a child was unimaginable to me" but when she lost one, she in fact discovered that it was precisely as awful as she'd always imagined. All those years she would say it as invocation, a warning to God not to dare do such a thing, for she could not bear it. It made her feel safer.
Thank you again for a great "Five Things" seminar last night. You were clear and helped me re-organize my thinking on Point of VIew. You are a stand-out teacher--plus fun to listen to. One thing--get a cup for the water.
What a wonderfully insightful and subversive post. One begins reading it out of a desire to learn a bit more about some nuts and bolts about crafted writing- and the end the piece transitions seamlessly into a beautiful passage that points out that we live in a time where empathy is under attack- if only to say that, if empathy is taken from us, and as it is so connected to the integrity of our social consciousness, then a crucial ingredient in whatever made this country great will be dealt a fatal blow. I really find this post so masterful and wish it could be published to a larger audience through a more mainstream paper (Substack, I still love you).
Hi Rebecca, really enjoyed the class. I wonder if you'd share some techniques or lines of thought that you find are helpful (for you) for getting a sense of your characters. I know there are tons of exercises and strategies out there, but I'm curious if you've found ones that help get you where you want to be? Thanks!
Do you know if your class will be recorded and sent to people who sign up? I can't make that time but would be willing to pay so I can listen to it later.
Yes, it will be!
Looking forward to the class. Your analysis of writing and how it works is among the best I ever see. Full of examples, specifics, advantages, disadvantages. Anyway, I'll be there. :)
Yay!!
Can we plan a “Let’s continue to terrify these people” themed rally? So well said, RM.
I have nothing to say about the first part of the post except I nodded a lot in understanding and agreement. But that last paragraph - empathy is one of my favorite topics.
One of the best essays I ever wrote was titled "The Failure of the Empathetic Imagination." It was a reaction to someone asserting that she couldn't understand someone else's experience because she hadn't experienced that thing herself. What she really meant was that she could imagine it all too well, and the idea of it alone was so painful that she nipped it in the bud to avoid the discomfort of going there even a little.
As someone who has lived my entire adult life with HIV, I have lost count of how many times I've heard, "I can't even imagine..." And every time, I'm like, yes, you can. Now, does that mean you'll know precisely what it felt like to get that news, esp back in 1984? Not 100%. But imagining it has tremendous value. If I imagine what it is like to be a woman in the Congo barely escaping from a burning village with her two children, will my best efforts fall far short? Of course they will. That's not the point of empathy. It how just imagining it changes your behavior. (How you vote, for one thing.) It's also essential for successfully writing points of view not your own.
My mother used to say "Losing a child was unimaginable to me" but when she lost one, she in fact discovered that it was precisely as awful as she'd always imagined. All those years she would say it as invocation, a warning to God not to dare do such a thing, for she could not bear it. It made her feel safer.
signed up. I think I have it, but I need to be sure.
Rebecca,
Thank you again for a great "Five Things" seminar last night. You were clear and helped me re-organize my thinking on Point of VIew. You are a stand-out teacher--plus fun to listen to. One thing--get a cup for the water.
What a wonderfully insightful and subversive post. One begins reading it out of a desire to learn a bit more about some nuts and bolts about crafted writing- and the end the piece transitions seamlessly into a beautiful passage that points out that we live in a time where empathy is under attack- if only to say that, if empathy is taken from us, and as it is so connected to the integrity of our social consciousness, then a crucial ingredient in whatever made this country great will be dealt a fatal blow. I really find this post so masterful and wish it could be published to a larger audience through a more mainstream paper (Substack, I still love you).
Excellent.
Succinct, insightful, and so-so readable. On to Part 2!
Where will we find the recorded class? I'd also like to pay and watch it. Thanks.
I'd like to pay for the recorded class. Can I do that?
Yes! It'll be up very soon (if it's not already)!
Hi Rebecca, really enjoyed the class. I wonder if you'd share some techniques or lines of thought that you find are helpful (for you) for getting a sense of your characters. I know there are tons of exercises and strategies out there, but I'm curious if you've found ones that help get you where you want to be? Thanks!