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Heather Blakey, who is passionate about education, is at the forefront
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The Pythian Games Begin
The Pythian Games took place at Delphi every four years. The festival not only involved athletic contests but included musical competitions and drama.
Begin your week by participating in the Pythian Games. The games are a Soul Food Cafe weekly challenge that help you clock up the writing miles. The Pythian Games site provides space for participants to undertake a challenge and, in so doing, complete their training for the games.
Kick up your heels, have a break from the serious head stuff and rest and relax with a fun shape shifter. One moment she is an Enchanteur who takes people on transformational journey's and the next she is the Raven.
Sometimes she is the Abbess of the Lemurian Abbey but then, on a whim, she changes in a telephone booth and becomes Captain Ebony Wilder. It is Captain Wilder who stands at the helm of the Calabar, Soul Food's very own pirate ship.
How mad would you be not to join us. You can come in your pyjamas, tell corny jokes, bring your imaginary friend and let your hair down. But don't be surprised if you suddenly realise that Raven has played with your mind.
New Table of Contents
Benefit from Twitter
receive prompts and other suggestions
Twitter with Heather Blakey
A Reminder to Self
Check out the modules here. Once you have found the stimuli that hooks you, join WORDPRESS and ask Heather Blakey (heatherblakey at fastmail.fm) if you can become a USER and post at the Pythian Games
Featured Challenge - Always Halloween At Soul Food
especially with A.M. and Joanne of Weird Hauntings fame lurking in the corridors
The Red Death had long devastated the country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal--the redness and the horror of blood. There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men. And the whole seizure, progress and termination of the disease, were the incidents of half an hour...Use the passage from Edgar Allen Poe's story to write about the coming of Red Death.
Amuse your Muse
and train for the Pythian Games
Make sure to regularly check the links below. Some will take you in to the Soul Food Vaults to special collections that have been built up over the years. But others will take you to new lenses that contain activities for a month. For example, March is March Hare Month here at the Pythian Games while October leads us right in to Halloween. Expect some especially tailored activities to help celebrate the months of the year.
- Monster Book of Activities
- The Monster Doodle Book for Writer's and Artist's is chock full of activities which will keep an individual or group, who likes some direction, who appreciates stimuli, busy for at least a year.
Buy yourself a new unique, Soul Food journal and commit yourself to following The Soul Food Way. Make writing and art a daily practice. - Email Fiction
- Email Fiction is the fiction you write using emails as a kick starter. Begin by establishing two email accounts so that your primary characters can begin to communicate with one another.
- Coco Pop Day of Horror
- From the moment you get up, look into yesterday's bowl of coco pops and find ants forming the word UNLUCKY you know that today is not going to be a good day. The hot water is not working and you have a cold shower, all your undies are grubby and you miss the bus.
- Master List Making as a Creative Technique
- Learn how to use a Plain Indians War Bonnet to kick start your writing.
- Portraiture and Self Portraiture
- Anais Nin was a master of word portraits of her friends and acquaintances. It was her fine detail that helped to infuse life into the characters who were so much a part of her life. As Tristan Rainer points out in 'The New Diary' portraits evolve as another person evolves. She explains that they are as much a device for self discovery as they are a device for coming to know a character better.
- Bridge to Lemuria
- Undertake a guided imagery, walk down a pathway through the woods, come upon a bridge, cross it and reach the world of Lemuria as seen by children.
- Monster March 08
- It is March at Soul Food and the March Hare invites you to join in some fun activities.
- Red Death
- A favorite Soul Food Cafe project that will warm you up ready for Halloween.
- Technique - Making Creative Medicine, Heart Bags
- Learn how the Native American Medicine Bag can enhance your creativity.
- Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
- Use Style Hive to create characters and write narratives in which they strut, larger than life. Make hives for your alter egos and just have a bit of fun.
Amusing My Muse
A Little Survey
Source of Pythian Games Stimuli
Heather Blakey and the Soul Food Cafe
Folk often wonder where exactly the creative stimuli originates. You may as well search for the mead that the Nords drank from, or go on a pilgrimage to Delphi, raid the Delphic Treasury and drink from the waters of Castalia. Alternatively you could, like Heather Blakey, sit under the oak at Delphi and meditate for some time.A simpler approach is to raid Heather Blakey's bookshelves. There are clues to be found there.
Freeing the Creative Spirit
is an old favourite that offers delightful exercises, rituals and practices for opening up your inner creativity .
Freeing the Creative Spirit: Drawing on the Power of Art to Tap the Magic and Wisdom Within
Amazon Price: (as of 05/09/2008)
"Freeing..." is filled with exercises to do just as it is titled, "tap into the magic and wisdom within" all of us. It starts by explaining how to tap into your spirit through "Creative Meditation" in which you can renew your sense of self esteem, recognize your connections with the rest of the world and to free the flow of creativity in the individual and society. Although this is mainly dealing with painting, I feel it is useful for all people in any art medium. The exercises of consciousness of breathing while finger painting are just as useful for those who throw clay on a pottery wheel. Using your childhood memories to recall playful experiences and to feel like that child again is always a good way to tap into your creativity. The child never judges when it comes to art, whether their own or others. Although most of the exercises are aimed at the adult they can be adjusted to apply to children. There are individual as well as group exercises and are very encouraging to those who deal with "blocks" to creativity. This book is filled with information and advise and definitely flows from the authors personnel journey. I recommend it highly and that you go with it and play.
Write Brain Book
The Write-Brain Workbook: 366 Exercises to Liberate Your Writing
Amazon Price: $13.59 (as of 05/09/2008)
Tomorrow I am giving a talk at an author's conference. The topic is Getting To Know Your Writer-Self. The premise behind the presnetation is that the better you know your inner writer, the more you will do things that s/he likes and, therefore you will write more. It's a fact that the more you write, the better you write. This has been proven time and again when you learn a musical instrument or a sport. Doing things that your writer-self likes does not mean you get to avoid all the tough things like the 15th edit of a book or sending your work out into the world. Rather, it means you do them with more joy and ease. Not bad, eh?
The handout with the list of questions/explorations that I am going to present to the attendees at my workshop tomorrow is way, way, way too long to cover in a single session. So... I thought I'd share some of the activities here so you can also take some steps to get better acquainted with your inner writer... and start doing the things that make him/her happy... and begin to write more... and ultimately become a better (and happier) writer.
1. What do the writing monsters that trouble you (do they live under your bed?) look like? Instead of slaying them, is it possible to befriend them and use them to your advantage? How would you do that?
2. Picture your writing-self as a house. What ideas/projects do you currently keep in the Powder Room? Master Bedroom? Attic? Spare Bedroom? Now that you have seen your writing priorities in a tangible place, what will you change?
3. Choose a pen name/nom de plume for yourself. Does having one free you up to write new topics? Why or why not? Do you feel like you want to save your best stuff for your own name? What else comes up?
For more questions like these, check out my book, Write-Brain Workbook, 366 Exercises To Liberate Your Writing. There's one on every page in a little box titled Take the Next Step.
With wishes for a most prolific fall...
-Bonnie
Are you mad enough to join us at Soul Food?
You would have to be mad or bored to join Enchanteur or Captain Ebony Wilder on Soul Food's Pirate ship. One thing is for sure, sail on the Calabar and not only can you expect the unexpected but you will not have time to be bored or to complain about writer's block.
So did you have a good time
some feedback on the party food thrillseekers!
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Evelyn_Saenz
Great Lens! 5 stars and favored! Posted April 25, 2008 |
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wyrdspirit
This lens is fabulous Heather - I shall be returning again and again! Posted April 16, 2008 |
This really is lots of fun, and I love the survey. But you know, it was awfully hard to just pick ONE answer!
Posted April 14, 2008
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Imogen_Crest
I had a great time at the Games! Making portraits is the best fun. Posted April 13, 2008 |
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anitam
This is my favorite home away from home. Posted April 12, 2008 |
You know me...I'm always about having a good time when I write and THIS is a good time
anita64.wordpress.com
Posted March 19, 2008
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Imogen_Crest
Tried the sand activity and it was the best fun! Posted March 11, 2008 |
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RavensSilkRoad
As if I don't have enough to write about-now I am off to start my own little wicked garden as well as the voices are already beginning to whisper to me--this is a terrific lens--among other things...thank you for never stopping with such amazing ideas... Posted February 25, 2008 |
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Globalstudent
This lens is just going to make a fabulous addition to the GlobalTeacher/Student project.Out at Reservoir East Primary School they are using it already. Posted February 18, 2008 |
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kvwordsmith
Unfair! Now I have no more excuses like, "I can't think of anything to write about!" (Too many good ideas to choose from here!) Posted February 18, 2008 |
