Conversations with Calliope- The Ideal Reader

(In Muir Woods)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How is your CD coming?
JOE:Thanks for asking. I completed it, sent in the tracks and jewel case info and am now waiting for my demo to arrive.
CALLIOPE: Then what?
JOE: If it sounds good, I'll set it up for distribution.
CALLIOPE: Good. Time to relax now?
JOE: I did that yesterday and also read more of Julia Cameron's book, The Write to Write.
CALLIOPE: Did you discover anything profound?
JOE: I found something I already knew but phrased better than I could have done.
CALLIOPE: Please share.
JOE: She quoted Arthur Kretchmer as saying, "Write for your ideal reader, the one who will get everything you say."
CALLIOPE: So you don't waste time trying to reach people who are only vaguely interested in your work.
JOE: Exactly. Anything I write will enthrall some people, raise some interest in others and bore the rest.
CALLIOPE: So you concentrate on those who care.
JOE: I have been trying to but will work harder at it. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Waiting for Spring

(Storm Clouds over the Lagoon- San Juan)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Waiting for Spring.
CALLIOPE: Tell me about it?
JOE: I feel as if my mind has been fallow lately, like a a field not yet plowed and planted for the new season.
CALLIOPE: How did you reach that conclusion?
JOE: It just occurred to me this morning while I was writing my journal.
CALLIOPE: What did you realize about yourself and your writing?
JOE: I don't feel creative ideas tugging at me anxious to be written.
CALLIOPE: What about the computer virus problem you wrote about yesterday?
JOE: I think it was just an excuse for not doing anything. I could have turned off my computer and written on paper.
CALLIOPE: No doubt. What do you think is paralyzing you?
JOE: I hadn't thought of it as paralysis but now that you mention it, I suppose that is what I am feeling. I think it might be a philosophical problem. My chosen goal is to help others understand themselves and take responsibility for their interactions with others. Lately it seems many people are giving up any concern about each other and just grabbing what they can with no concern for their own integrity or effect on anyone else.
CALLIOPE: Sounds depressing. Do you plan to just give up?
JOE: I'm not that desperate. But I do need to get refocused. I just need to figure out how. Talk with you on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Writing and Feelings

(Butterfly in a museum)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Anything exciting going on today?
JOE: Maybe, but not here. It's a quiet day and cold too. Carol and I did get out for some early morning cross country skiing.
CALLIOPE: Sounds adventurous of you.
JOE: We try to make the best of whatever comes our way. It seemed better to ski than to curse the coldness to paraphrase one of my favorite bible sayings.
CALLIOPE: Can't argue there. What else is going on?
JOE: I had lunch with a fellow Leroy writer yesterday, Bob Fussell.
CALLIOPE: How did that go?
JOE: Quite well. We have a fair amount in common in our life outlooks but have taken different tacks in our approaches to writing.
CALLIOPE: That's what makes life interesting.
JOE: I can't argue there.
CALLIOPE: What are you up to today?
JOE: I wrote an article for a new magazine which is still in the developmental stages.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: As they develop, they are refining their focus. As a result they asked me to refine the piece I wrote for them.
CALLIOPE: How do you feel about that?
JOE: Okay. The longer I write the less sensitive I am to comments and suggestions about refining my writing. I plan to work on it today to see if I can adapt to their needs. They too were interested in my feelings and wanted a more feeling oriented piece. We shall see what emerges. Talk with you on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Into the Woods)
JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: A bit discombobulated.
CALLIOPE: How so?
JOE: I finally got my computer back from the shop yesterday. Now I have the task of reinstalling my programs which can be a challenge.
CALLIOPE: How's it coming?
JOE: Slowly. I think I will need the day to get set up again.
CALLIOPE: No literary activity today?
JOE: Probably not.
CALLIOPE: How about over the weekend?
JOE: Tomorrow I am scheduled for a writers' retreat at a farmhouse in Albion. I'm looking forward to meeting some new people and recharging my creative batteries.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like fun.
JOE: I hope so. I also plan to meet some new contacts, particularly from the Linkup writers group in Rochester.
CALLIOPE: What do they have to offer you?
JOE: I hear they focus on publishing more than my group. I am hoping they can be helpful in my search for a home for Marital Property once it's finished. I have to leave early tomorrow. I'll talk with you if I have a chance. Otherwise we'll talk on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(With Carol at the Mardi Gras Museum- New Orleans)
JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine, but a little preoccupied.
CALLIOPE: With what?
JOE: I am planning a move from Batavia to Leroy in the next month and have been busy preparing.
CALLIOPE: Tell me about the process.
JOE: Since I moved here twelve years ago, I retired as a psychologist and began writing full time. Much of the detritus of my former life still fills my apartment. Now as I prepare to move, I am sorting through the remains of my past life and preparing to move on.
CALLIOPE: How does that feel?
JOE: A little strange. I don't often stop to look back over past chapters of my life. I just close the volume and move on. Deciding what to throw out and what to pass on to others makes me think of what I have accomplished and what I still want to do.
CALLIOPE: Have you come to any great realizations?
JOE: I now realize I have been motivated mostly by achievement and helping others. I have become a little unbalanced, letting go of the opportunity to make sure I enjoy life in the process.
CALLIOPE: How are you planning to become rebalanced?
JOE: By making sure I spend more time with people and also making room for painting and photography.
CALLIOPE: My sisters will be proud of you.
JOE: Please put in a good word with your sister muses for me. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Quite busy. My mind is swimming.
CALLIOPE: What's on your plate?
JOE: I have a presentation tomorrow at 1:00 PM at the Lift Bridge Book Shop in Brockport. I have done the presentation before but want to review it and make sure everything is ready to go.
CALLIOPE: What's it about?
JOE: I will be discussing the various types of writing I do and using examples of my work for people interested in writing. It is part public relations and partly for publicity.
CALLIOPE: What else is going on?
JOE: I received my first professional review of The Pastor's Inferno. I will post it on my website. The problem is that I can't access my e-mail or website for some reason. I am trying to reach my Internet service provider to see what the problem is.
CALLIOPE: Anything else?
JOE: Yes. I have come to the realization that I have been presenting The Pastor's Inferno as a novel about sexual abuse with I think might be turning people off. It is really about the search for redemption and I think I need to stress this more in my publicity.
CALLIOPE: Good thought.
JOE: I better get going before I run out of time to do everything. See you on Monday.

(Last gasp of winter in Batavia)

Conversations with Calliope

JOE: Good morning Calliope:
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. I feel energetic and focused.
CALLIOPE: What brought that about?
JOE: Darned if I know. Maybe it was the beautiful sunrise this morning with it's promise of Spring. Or maybe it was the progress I made yesterday getting my space organized.
CALLIOPE: Whatever the reason, I hope to put it to good advantage.
JOE: I hope to. I have a busy afternoon with an appointment and a mental health board meeting, but I'll do what I can.
CALLIOPE: Did you do any writing yesterday?
JOE: Yes. I wrote a column on Living in Our World Community and got it sent to the paper this morning.
CALLIOPE: Can I see it?
JOE: It will be on my website Saturday.
CALLIOPE: I understand there is an addition.
JOE: Yes. For some reason my ending, Life Lab Lessons, was not included with the column, so I added it to this week's. I hope this doesn't become a habit.
CALLIOPE: How about Marital Property?
JOE: I got to start my next chapter at the dinner table, but the family is still eating. I will have to help them finish their meal today. Talk with you tomorrow.

(Fishing bouys- Smokey's house- Hanover, MA)

Conversations with Calliope

JOE: Good morning, Calliope.

CALLIOPE: Good morning, Joe. Ready for a new year?

JOE: I believe I am.

CALLIOPE: What did you do yesterday?

JOE: Not much of anything. I remember reading about crop rotation and that sometimes a field is left fallow for a growing season to restore itself.

CALLIOPE: You're not going into hibernation for several months?

JOE: No. Just for yesterday. I thought I would let my mind rest and not tax it.

CALLIOPE: I guess I can live with that. What are your plans for today?

JOE: First I have a column to write about context for my life.

CALLIOPE: Where did that come from?

JOE: A talk by Steve D'Annunzio on Sunday. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. If I have a sense of where I am headed and why I am doing what I am doing, I will be much more focused. I guess you could say I just spent yesterday thinking about this and today I will write a column about it.

CALLIOPE: Sounds good. Anything else planned?

JOE: I finished another chapter of Marital Property after we chatted on Monday. I plan to finish another today about my two main characters in a counseling session.

CALLIOPE: Do you expect fireworks?

JOE: I don't expect them, but you never know. I guess I had better get on with it and see.

(Butterfly Museum- Niagara Falls, Ont.)

Conversations with Calliope

JOE: Good morning, Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning, Joe. How did the dinner go last night?
JOE: Both the bread and soup were very well received. I was relieved.
CALLIOPE: How so?
JOE: Last week I couldn't bake to save my life. On Thursday I burned a loaf of bread, in an automatic bread machine no less. On Saturday, my cranberry bread was a flop literally, only two inches high. My attempt at Russian tea cakes yielded a baking pan with one big flat cookie. I must admit the crumbles were good on ice cream, but not what I intended.
CALLIOPE: To what do you attribute the difficulty?
JOE: I think I was so absorbed in the process of getting signed up with Booklocker that I was good for nothing in the kitchen. It's the first time I can remember being good only for writing. I guess there are times when my passion overtakes me. I spent most of yesterday working on various publishing and writing tasks.
CALLIOPE: Did you do any work on Marital Property?
JOE: Cynthia woke up and spent a whole chapter in bed thinking about developments in her marriage.
CALLIOPE: And today?
JOE: I plan to work on a final edit of The Pastor's Inferno this morning. I have to go to Rochester on a couple of errands a little later. I am hoping to be back this afternoon to write another chapter of Marital Property.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like a plan.
JOE: I'm excited about it and ready to get going.

(The attic)