Sunday, January 27, 2013

Day 21 of the 365 Days of Blogging

The author, Dane F. Baylis

Write About One of Your Niches

 
Yeah, I got a niche right between my shoulder blades and I was wondering if...Oh, like in a unique space in the writing landscape my style, voice, and work tend to inhabit? I get it now!
 
Tonight's prompt is a relief. After a series of topics about novels I haven't written and blurbs I've yet to have applied, we're back in territory where I can do a little more than kick at the crumbled copier paper under my desk and mutter, "Well shucks!"
 
Having a history of writing and publishing poetry and short fiction I definitely have a niche in both. I grew up on the streets, one of those literate smart asses with an attitude and a novel or collection of poetry in my back pocket. I've read widely but the ones who have had the greatest influence spoke to my environment and experiences. Not unusual then that I should have translated that well worn bit of advice, "Write what you know.", to a hard edged take on life and living. As I was introduced at one of my earliest readings for a summer course on creativity and modern poetry at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts, "You've heard tweedy, now here's seedy." I wasn't the least bit put off by that because it was right then I realized I was already on my way to distinguishing myself from so many others in the field.
 
So now I try to portray in sound and feel the settings and mood of the urban landscape. My characters are never all good or all bad and their dreams and hopes are the same as anyone else's except for the crust of soot and road salt and the fact that at times they have to be louder or more intense to stand out. Love is still love, whether you're at the top of the heap or the bottom of the pile. Everybody has doubts and triumphs and nights full of dark despair or moments in the sun. The difference in my stories is that moral quite often is, "Pick yourself up and try again."
 
So love can be edgy, anger can have compassion, and sweet relief may only happen behind a dumpster in an alley, but hey, that's life on the streets.
 
Still looking for short fiction to 1200 words, poetry to 25 lines, and short, well thought out essays for the Your Work/Your Love page. No pay. Just exposure. You retain all rights.
 
Would love it if you have comments, critiques, or questions. Use the form below for that or submissions. On the right margin of the page are gadgets to follow or subscribe. I'm a little tied up at times but I reply to anything fairly quickly. You may have noticed I haven't posted anything new to the My Work/My Love page for a while. Like I said, I've been a bit busy but I'll rectify that omission ASAP.
 
For now, my mantra...live,love,write.
 
 
Dane F. Baylis

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