The other night, I attended my first author reading. While the crowd who wanted to hear Philip Beard was small, he seemed unfazed and told us a lot about the publishing business. Perseverance and a dash of luck seem to be required if you want to make it in this crazy business.
As a writer and photographer, I wear two hats. Some days, I don my writing hat, working on a historical novel that spans the era from 1849 to 1865 (and most of my life, it seems). On other days, I put on my photographer's hat. This week, I'm very busy preparing for a photo exhibit at the Sewickley library which I'll install on September 1. I will show my best bird photographs, but also a few of my fall foliage images. Autumn is upon us and I think it is timely to include them in an autumn exhibit. It's my favorite time of the year, after all.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Friday, August 18, 2006
On writing
I recently met two school friends and one of them said to me, "You always wrote the most beautiful essays and had to read them to the entire class. I was green with envy." I was stunned since I don't remember this at all. She also said that she still can't write a decent report for work. Is writing a talent you are born with or can you learn it over time?
It's true that I always enjoyed reading and writing. My greatest influence was my 3rd and 4th grade teacher. Not only did he teach me local history, he also was a freelance writer and photographer for our local newspaper. On top of that, he managed the library which was open once a week. I often went there and listened to the stories he told us. They were mostly legends about the rich history of our area and I could never hear enough of them. What would my teacher say now that I have followed in his footsteps and have published eight photo features in a newspaper and a couple of magazines?
It's true that I always enjoyed reading and writing. My greatest influence was my 3rd and 4th grade teacher. Not only did he teach me local history, he also was a freelance writer and photographer for our local newspaper. On top of that, he managed the library which was open once a week. I often went there and listened to the stories he told us. They were mostly legends about the rich history of our area and I could never hear enough of them. What would my teacher say now that I have followed in his footsteps and have published eight photo features in a newspaper and a couple of magazines?
Thursday, August 17, 2006
What I did on my vacation
I have just returned from my fifth visit to my homeland of Germany since immigrating to the U.S. eleven years ago. It always amazes me how easily I can slip back and forth between two languages (three if you count my dialect) and two cultures. Here in Pennsylvania, people often address me with, "You have an accent. Where are you from?" In Germany, however, people say, "You don't have an [American] accent!"
Not much has changed in Germany since my visit last year, except for one thing: flags. Never before have I seen flags flying from cars and houses in Germany. The World Cup, however, spurred an enthusiasm for national pride that must have been intoxicating. Personally, I wanted to avoid the hoopla of the World Cup and opted to travel when it was over. My county seat of Kaiserslautern was one of the sites of World Cup and the crowds must have been incredible. Unfortunately, my visit fell right in the middle of yet another heat wave (the most recent one was in 2003). I wanted to attend my father's 80th birthday and therefore did not have much influence on the date. The upside was that I saw people I had not seen in decades. During the first week, I was not able to do any sightseeing in temperatures of almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but spent the evenings with friends. Most memorable was a get-together with school friends I had not seen in 32 years. It was most amazing that we were able to throw together a mini-reunion in less than two hours. Other friends arranged their quarterly meeting during my visit. I am very happy that I seem to bring people together who would not meet otherwise. It is gratifying that I have not been forgotten in my hometown.
Not much has changed in Germany since my visit last year, except for one thing: flags. Never before have I seen flags flying from cars and houses in Germany. The World Cup, however, spurred an enthusiasm for national pride that must have been intoxicating. Personally, I wanted to avoid the hoopla of the World Cup and opted to travel when it was over. My county seat of Kaiserslautern was one of the sites of World Cup and the crowds must have been incredible. Unfortunately, my visit fell right in the middle of yet another heat wave (the most recent one was in 2003). I wanted to attend my father's 80th birthday and therefore did not have much influence on the date. The upside was that I saw people I had not seen in decades. During the first week, I was not able to do any sightseeing in temperatures of almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but spent the evenings with friends. Most memorable was a get-together with school friends I had not seen in 32 years. It was most amazing that we were able to throw together a mini-reunion in less than two hours. Other friends arranged their quarterly meeting during my visit. I am very happy that I seem to bring people together who would not meet otherwise. It is gratifying that I have not been forgotten in my hometown.
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