tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post4462717296850749845..comments2024-03-25T01:39:10.406-06:00Comments on Mysterious Musings: Carol Shields on the Notion of Protecting the LivingJulia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-51365504881026073872010-03-07T22:04:35.271-07:002010-03-07T22:04:35.271-07:00Thurber inspired me but I suspect he was so creati...Thurber inspired me but I suspect he was so creative that his relatives wouldn't have had much to complain about since they were, in his version, mostly fictional. But I wonder if anyone has explored the question of what his family was really like and what they thought of his versions of them. Maybe he depicted them to a T!<br /><br />As Carolyn says, we probably all dip into characteristics of people we've observed to create characters. Writing historicals as we do Mary and I are probably safer than writers of contemporary stories in that there's probably less risk of inadvertently coming up with a character who would resemble someone we know too closely. The tunics and robes and such are good disguises.Mary or Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17210964762989092658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-33670453735815180482010-03-07T20:46:36.914-07:002010-03-07T20:46:36.914-07:00That's a great point, Carolyn, since I think p...That's a great point, Carolyn, since I think people who become writers tend to be unusually observant.Julia Buckleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-20951867970566664832010-03-07T15:00:02.934-07:002010-03-07T15:00:02.934-07:00Like Eric, I've agonized over this. I make it ...Like Eric, I've agonized over this. I make it a point not to "borrow" the outstanding characteristics of people I've known.<br />But all those we've encountered over the years leave traces of themselves with us--let's call it literary DNA. After many years there are thousands of traces creating a "character soup" in our memories. It's almost impossible to create fictional characters without sipping from that soup.<br />www.deadlyduomysteries.comCarolyn J. Rosenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-82941750646027388342010-03-07T12:51:18.677-07:002010-03-07T12:51:18.677-07:00Eric--
What an interesting--and well written--art...Eric--<br /><br />What an interesting--and well written--article. I suppose it would be less of a danger for authors of fiction, but a danger nonetheless, if they feel they are "disguising" someone who remains quite obvious to all who know him or her.<br /><br />Your article about the flood sounded very good--and made me think of another Thurber story called "The Day the Dam Broke," which also exposed the eccentricities of his family, especially his crazy grandfather, whom they had to subdue with an iron. I wonder what Thurber's family thought of all his published tales.Julia Buckleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29204932.post-58330258200534626032010-03-07T10:00:25.139-07:002010-03-07T10:00:25.139-07:00This is a really big issue for me. When I was much...This is a really big issue for me. When I was much younger I wrote some pretty innocuous, humorous essays, based on real people but I became convinced that it was wrong. What right did I have to poach on other peope's lives for my own selfish writing needs? I actually wrote an essay about it for a fanzine. I agonized over that essay, trying to express the rather complicated feeliings I had. Alas. It was completely ignored. However, if you are interested it's in this pdf zine. It starts off speaking to the hobby group but mostly it's my general thoughts on the matter.<br /><br />http://efanzines.com/TAA/TAA03.pdfMary or Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17210964762989092658noreply@blogger.com