Posts Tagged ‘symbols’
on my book shelf: ‘Crow Impressions & Other Poems’
I am now reading Crow Impressions & Other Poems’ by Edith Miller. Crow Impressions is another book from my publisher, Chapel Street Editions in Woodstock, New Brunswick. Edith and I both launched our books at Westminster Books in Fredericton on June 9. Although I gave her book a quick read before the launch, I have now been able to sit down and enjoy a thoughtful read, as this insightful book deserves!
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Edith Hoisington Miller, Crow Impressions and other poems. Chapel Street Editions: Woodstock, 2016.
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The other evening at a local writing event I sat next to a fellow book-lover who asked me if I’d read Edith’s book. ‘I love poetry about nature,’ she said. ‘The poems in Crow Impressions make you feel like you are there!’
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Throughout her book, Edith’s first-hand knowledge of her subject matter shines through. Edith has watched not only crows, but herons on the shore, song sparrows in the rose bush, and eaglets in the nest. It has been said that crows recognize individual humans and I am certain they know Edith! I know she reveres this kindred ‘spirit sign’, understanding the crow’s sharing of this world, the intricacies of their language. I love her inclusion of her first poem, written when she was seven – it will be a mystery for you to solve in your own reading, what part of nature she addresses in her poem.
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As I read, I am able to follow a journey to places Edith has lived and visited — from Long Island Sound to Arizona, from Penobscot Bay to New York City, here to Fredericton in New Brunswick. As I read, I am taken to places I have been but stopped short of fully knowing. I read ‘Tidal Bore’ and experience the wild ride on the Shubenacadie River. The sounds and smells in ‘Air Shaft’ recall my own few days in New York City in the 1970s and show me what it might have been like to live in the Village (truly ‘the dream of a 1950s suburban girl’!). Edith’s poems show she shares my interest in American Hopi culture and her poems show the respect she has for other cultures through her experience in issues of social justice.
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Crow Impressions is a lovely book, from the feel in a reader’s hands, to the easy-on-the-eyes layout. From the etching on the cover (a woodcut of a crow from a skate board created as a tribute to the memory of her grandson Isaac William Miller) to the final poems of the book. These return to the image of the crow, acknowledging the true nature of the ‘spirit sign’.
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I recommend a close read of Crow Impressions – it will recall your own journey, make you ponder the symbols in your life for their particular meanings, and give you the joy of a walk on the beach even if you are far from the shore. Edith’s book is available at http://www.chapelstreeteditions.com and at our planned joint reading at Tidewater Books in Sackville this fall.
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Copyright 2016 Jane Tims
in the shelter of the covered bridge – messages left in the bridge
On our latest drive to see the covered bridges in the watershed of the St. John River, we visited four bridges near Sussex.
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The Urney Covered Bridge (Trout Creek #4) is a relatively small bridge (20.1 meters in length) built in 1905.
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The Urney Covered Bridge (Trout Creek #4) in Kings County. New Brunswick
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The water of Trout Creek is clear and cold – at one end of the bridge is a small sandy beach. The bottom of the stream is mottled with bands of pink bedrock.
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sandy beach along the Trout Creek, at the Urney Bridge 2015
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When my husband and I visit a covered bridge, we look for three things. First, we look at the structure of the bridge (is the roof sheathed in metal or cedar shingles? what is the roof type? do the timbers show signs of damage?). Next, we look at the plant life growing in, on and around the bridge, and any signs of animals using the bridge. Then, we look at the markings on the bridge.
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The roof of the Urney Bridge is rafter construction with a ridge board. The roof is sheathed in metal.
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Markings tend to be of three types: carving, paint and chalk. To me, some of these markings are more destructive than decorative – spray paint in various shades of fluorescent paint is more and more common. Carvings made in the wood with knives or other sharp instruments seem more decorative to me. Chalk is more ephemeral. All have historical statements to make. I think the spray paint is a commentary on ‘modern’ times – a tendency to choose the quick and easy. Carvings take effort and are characteristic of a less time-constrained age. All these ‘tags’ tell a story. The stories I like the best include initials, an indication of relationship and a date (J. T. + G. T. 2015).
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A symbol in spray paint on the Urney Bridge.
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Some of the messages left in a bridge are unique. I like the simple carving below. Perhaps it is meant to represent a house or the covered bridge itself. It looks unfinished, as though the carver was interrupted, or meant to return to finish the carving. To me it is a portrayal of the importance of shelter in all our lives.
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simple carving of a shelter on the Urney Covered Bridge 2015
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Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel – searching out the symbols
When I wrote ‘Open to the Skies’, I used various ways to examine and tighten the plot. One of these was to list the various objects in the book and consider them as symbols.
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For my book ‘Crossing at a Walk’, I will use this process to help my eventual readers understand the progress of the story.
Mentioned once, an object, such as a candle, is just a candle. Mentioned twice, it becomes a symbol, and the reader remembers the first mention of the object and draws understanding from the symbolism. So a candle may be remembered for its light. If, in a subsequent mention, someone blows out the candle, this may make a comment on the idea of communication. Passing a candle from person to person suggests the passing of stories between people. The use of symbols deepens meanings and helps the plot reverberate throughout the writing.
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Symbols operate like mini sub-plots throughout the story. These mini-plots echo the main plot, and the objects change in a way that illuminates the main plot. The mini-plots also tend to occur in three ‘beats’, providing a beginning, middle and end. For example, an unlit candle becomes a useful source of light and is passed between people at a wake.
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In this round of edits, I have tried to examine the use of symbols in my novel. To do this, I built a list of the objects I have used as symbols. Then I looked for their occurrence in the novel to see if I could identify three ‘beats’ and a mini sub-plot. In some cases, I identified gaps – fixing these has helped me to solidify my overall plot.
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This is a short version of my list of some of the objects/symbols in my book. When I assembled the list, the items in red were missing and I had to fill out the story accordingly. Perhaps you can use this method to help strengthen the narrative in your own fiction.
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| Object | Symbol | Occurrence (page numbers) | Mini-plot | ||
| coyote | fear | 87 | 104 | 120 | coyotes howl in woods; they rattle some of the retreaters; Sadie considers it a failing of the retreat |
| church tower | refuge | 15 | 104 | 181 | tower is off-limits to retreaters; becomes a place to sleep in safety; a place to write a poem |
| paper maché ball and chain | servitude | 39 | 58 | 180 | Sadie is asked to provide a community service placement for Minnie, a trouble-maker; Minnie stores the ball and chain, a theatrical prop, on a library shelf during her stay; when the time is up, she destroys the ball and chain |
| rain | a barrier | 6 | 133 | 186 | rain interferes with the retreat at every turn and ends up being the source of the flood that threatens the covered bridge |
| scale model of a covered bridge | remembering | 35 | 132 | 150 | a scale model of the covered bridge is purchased at an auction; helps tell the story of a character in the novel; could become the only memento of the bridge |
| burning candles | passing stories from person to person | 58 | 140 | 188 | candles are not allowed in the old church but later become a practical source of light during a storm and a way of passing stories about the covered bridge from person to person |
| loon | communication | 21 | 169 | 182 | loon calls at retreat encourage people to talk to one another |
| stars, shooting stars | hope | 12 | 109 | 185 | stars become inspiration for an artist, encouragement for a love-interest, and an inspirational setting for a wake |
Copyright 2015 Jane Tims
writing a novel – objects and symbols
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Title: unknown
Working Title: Saving the Landing Church
Setting: a writers’ retreat, including an abandoned church
Characters: main character Sadie, a writer; her husband Tom; people from the community
Plot: the story of how Sadie tries to win over a community in order to preserve an abandoned church
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If you are new to following my Blog, you may not know I have been writing a novel since last November. If you have followed my Blog for some time, you may be wondering if I have abandoned my novel for the world of watercolor painting – not so.
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I am on Draft Six. I have taken the comments of my readers and members of my writing groups to heart, considered them carefully and made many revisions in the Fifth and Sixth Drafts. I have also paid careful attention to three workshops I attended on writing fiction.
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One of these workshops was exceptionally thought provoking, teaching me to look at elements of my book in a new way.
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Our instructor at this course suggested we pay particular attention to the objects mentioned in our writing. Mentioned once, an object, such as a table, is just a table. Mentioned twice, it becomes a symbol, and the reader remembers the first mention of the object and draws understanding from the symbolism. So a table may be remembered for the people siting at it and the subject of their conversation. Perhaps it becomes a symbol for family, for example. If, in the second mention, someone breaks the table by putting too much weight on it, this may make a comment on the idea of family in the story. By breaking the table, the family may be damaged or broken. The use of symbols deepens meanings and helps the plot reverberate throughout the writing.
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The instructor also said that symbols operate like mini sub-plots throughout the story. These mini-plots echo the main plot, and the objects change in a way that illuminates the main plot. The mini-plots also tend to occur in three ‘beats’, providing a beginning, middle and end. For example, the table is bought at an auction, broken and finally mended.
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In this round of edits, I have tried to examine the use of symbols in my novel. To do this, I built a list of the objects I have used as symbols. Then I looked for their occurrence in the novel to see if I could identify three ‘beats’ and a mini sub-plot. In some cases, I identified gaps – fixing these has helped me to solidify my overall plot and improve the understanding of my readers.
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a lych gate is one of the objects I use as a symbol in my novel
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This is a short version of my list of some of the objects/symbols in my book. When I assembled the list, the items in red were missing and I had to fill out the story accordingly. Perhaps you can use this method to help strengthen the narrative in your own fiction.
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| Object | Symbolism | Occurrence (Chapter Numbers) | Mini-plot | ||
| long bench | togetherness | 11 | 21 | 23 | bench moves from private to communal space; people start working together |
| stained glass | relationship between sacred and secular | 1 | 9 | 23 | stained glass window breaks and is repurposed; the sacred becomes the secular |
| lych gate | death | 1 | 9 | 20 | lych gate falls into decay; fear of death is no longer the driving factor in a family |
| red shoes | respect | 1 | 9 | 21 | community’s view of main character is altered |
| minister’s collar | mentorship | 1 | 15 | 21 | although he leaves the church, a minister grows as mentor to a family and the community |
| blue plastic truck | secular within the sacred | 3 | 11 | 21 | a plastic toy becomes an object worthy of protection; the secular becomes the sacred |
| Jasper the dog | companionship | 8 | 16 | 19 | a new dog helps build a family |
| air fern in a swan vase | ability to change (a sea-creature poses as a fern) | 3 | 8 | 23 | something unwanted becomes valuable |
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Jasper the dog was a late addition to my novel, but he opened up so many story possibilities, I’m glad he came to be one of the characters
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Each time I add something new to the narrative, I have to make other edits in consequence. However, I find these changes are worth the effort since they contribute to building the story.
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Have you considered the use of objects as symbols in your writing?
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
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