The Writing Salon
Not your usual source of insights, but regardless of its objective, this piece has a lot of moments that tug at the heart. The Writing Salon in Boracay Press Release (Feature Article Style) shown in its entirety:
* * *
Cell phones, wireless laptops, Blackberrys, email, internet: Never have there been more ways to communicate, yet, with so many messages whizzing around and with information available at the touch of a button, why do so many people still feel so isolated?
"People yearn for deep, personal contact. They want to see what is said by the eyes, they want to sense the heart of an uttered phrase, they want to touch emotions, they want to smell the dishes of their childhood cooking on Grandma's stove, they want to taste the air that surrounds a treasured conversation," said renowned American poet James Navé, who is holding a writing retreat in Boracay in October.
In an age where voices are so easily drowned by the screeching pace of development, many people have turned to writing. One need only walk through bookshops or browse Amazon to see that the world is crying out to be heard. There are books on every subject imaginable, from the "Kitchen Soups" for my soul, childhood memoirs, alcoholics, shopaholics, workaholics, to the politics of money, how to become a millionaire and even the so-called fruitful lives of young celebrities famous at age 21. At no time in history has there been so much said, in so many volumes, and we aren't even counting the numbers of novels, short stories and poetry that never get printed for the public eye.
"Writing has become many things to many people - a creative outlet, a refuge, a channel of anger or sorrow, a means to express our wildest dreams, ideas or darkest mysteries," Navé said. But one thing is constant, that writing remains for the most part a solitary activity and the potential masterpieces, rough drafts, joys, frustrations and epiphanies are often left unshared.
That is, until now.
The Writing Salon, a collaboration between Navé and screenwriter and journalist Allegra Huston, of the illustrious Hollywood Huston clan, is making its way to our humble shores. The first Salon was held in Taos, New Mexico three years ago and in that time it has evolved into a cross-disciplinary writing adventure designed to energize, deepen, and extend one's practice. Navé describes the salon as a place "where people take the time to talk, to listen, to understand, to reflect, to write, to imagine, to eat, to sleep, to discover and to get to know each other."
Through years of dedication to the power of his pen and his inner voice, Navé has created a place that belongs to no one and everyone, where stories rise organically from a community of fellow writers interacting on multiple levels, all driven by the desire to engage and make form of stories.
Who comes to such an event? "Anybody who has a story to tell, which, of course, includes everybody," said Navé. "The Writing Salon is an old idea recycled for the 21st century, where `slow and easy' claim their place - a place of poetry, a place where what seems to be real is real, a place where people show up, a place where people write."
For four days, writers will meet twice a day for two-hour sessions. Various aspects of the writing process are explored, such as telling your own story, characterization, poetry writing, screenwriting and using your critical mind to shape and strengthen your work. The "Word Safari", Navé's signature brainstorming workshop, is a constant favorite. Navé begins his workshop with the following statement, "By the time you're finished today many of you will be so impressed with your rough drafts that you will want to read them in front of the class. Moreover, years later some of you will claim that today was the day you realized you could become a writer."
The success of the salon lies in the participants who attend them. As Allegra likes to point out at the beginning of each Salon, "We are not here to teach you, but to guide you… Writing is a continuous process, one that evolves and never ceases to surprise". The Salon held in Thailand earlier this year attracted professional writers as well as artists, a scientist, a filmmaker, ad executives and even a private banker.
When asked what she feels is The Writing Salon's biggest contribution to writers, Allegra said, "To give people that sense of power, that sense of possibility of connecting to their own creativity, which may be repressed or dormant, or simply unacknowledged because of fear or lack of confidence. To provide a time and place that gives people permission to write with no goal beyond just that."
The choice of Boracay as the venue for the first Philippine Salon is a natural one. According to Navé, a peaceful, inspiring setting is instrumental in "discovering voices in your writing that you've never heard before". Workshops will be held from October 6 to 9, at the boutique resort, Seawind. Guest faculty will include Carlos Celdran, beloved local Philippine artist famous for his offbeat and irreverent walking tours around Manila's historical sites.
The Salon fee is PHP28,000 inclusive of tuition, all lunches and a welcome dinner. Participants who sign up before 21st August, Ninoy Aquino day, qualify for the discounted rate of PHP24,000. For more information on The Writing Salon in Boracay, visit www.thewritingsalon.net or email info@thewritingsalon.net.
JAMES NAVE', Director
James Navé is one of the pioneers of the performance poetry movement in America...In 1995, Navé began working with the author Julia Cameron to develop creativity workshops based on her bestselling book The Artist's Way, which he subsequently taught across the U.S. He also teaches ideation to business people, working for companies including Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Adidas, and the pharmaceutical giant Baxter Industries. The Writing Salon, which Navé developed from decades of experience, is now in its third year.
The magic of poetry is alive in Navé's words. "It starts with the imaginative utterances in the poet's mind and continues, much as a musical score continues, long after the final draft. Poetry is meant to be read, memorized, published, put to music, and spoken out loud. Poetry is oxygen for the soul. Whenever a poets lifts a pen, the world is better off."
With over 600 poems memorized, Navé likes to tell the story of American poet Maxime Kumin, who says she memorizes poems so she'll have something to do in case she's taken prisoner by an invading army. "While it's unlikely Ms. Kumin will land in jail," he says, "it's fair to say that she, like the rest of us, will find her memorized pieces useful in times of solitude." When asked what writing means to him, Navé says, "Writing is where I find my center. The place where I tell my story. When I think of writing I think of a warm room in soul. It is the place where I stop and become anyone I want. I can drive a car through a waterfall or fill a grocery cart Almond Joys. Emotionally, it allows me the time to be silent and wait for my interior to connect flow."
ALLEGRA HUSTON, Director
Allegra Huston is a screenwriter, journalist, and book editor. After gaining a First Class degree in English Language and Literature from Oxford University she entered publishing, where she worked with authors including Iris Murdoch, Edna O'Brien, Robert Conquest, and Jane Goodall. From 1990-94 she was Editorial Director of the well-known literary house Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London.
Ask Allegra what positive feelings and emotions she associates with writing and she'll tell you, "A feeling of surprise, that's my favorite. When I write something and wonder where it came from. (There is) a sense of power entirely separate from ego."
And what does she most look forward to in her writing? "Time. Empty time."
* * *
Cell phones, wireless laptops, Blackberrys, email, internet: Never have there been more ways to communicate, yet, with so many messages whizzing around and with information available at the touch of a button, why do so many people still feel so isolated?
"People yearn for deep, personal contact. They want to see what is said by the eyes, they want to sense the heart of an uttered phrase, they want to touch emotions, they want to smell the dishes of their childhood cooking on Grandma's stove, they want to taste the air that surrounds a treasured conversation," said renowned American poet James Navé, who is holding a writing retreat in Boracay in October.
In an age where voices are so easily drowned by the screeching pace of development, many people have turned to writing. One need only walk through bookshops or browse Amazon to see that the world is crying out to be heard. There are books on every subject imaginable, from the "Kitchen Soups" for my soul, childhood memoirs, alcoholics, shopaholics, workaholics, to the politics of money, how to become a millionaire and even the so-called fruitful lives of young celebrities famous at age 21. At no time in history has there been so much said, in so many volumes, and we aren't even counting the numbers of novels, short stories and poetry that never get printed for the public eye.
"Writing has become many things to many people - a creative outlet, a refuge, a channel of anger or sorrow, a means to express our wildest dreams, ideas or darkest mysteries," Navé said. But one thing is constant, that writing remains for the most part a solitary activity and the potential masterpieces, rough drafts, joys, frustrations and epiphanies are often left unshared.
That is, until now.
The Writing Salon, a collaboration between Navé and screenwriter and journalist Allegra Huston, of the illustrious Hollywood Huston clan, is making its way to our humble shores. The first Salon was held in Taos, New Mexico three years ago and in that time it has evolved into a cross-disciplinary writing adventure designed to energize, deepen, and extend one's practice. Navé describes the salon as a place "where people take the time to talk, to listen, to understand, to reflect, to write, to imagine, to eat, to sleep, to discover and to get to know each other."
Through years of dedication to the power of his pen and his inner voice, Navé has created a place that belongs to no one and everyone, where stories rise organically from a community of fellow writers interacting on multiple levels, all driven by the desire to engage and make form of stories.
Who comes to such an event? "Anybody who has a story to tell, which, of course, includes everybody," said Navé. "The Writing Salon is an old idea recycled for the 21st century, where `slow and easy' claim their place - a place of poetry, a place where what seems to be real is real, a place where people show up, a place where people write."
For four days, writers will meet twice a day for two-hour sessions. Various aspects of the writing process are explored, such as telling your own story, characterization, poetry writing, screenwriting and using your critical mind to shape and strengthen your work. The "Word Safari", Navé's signature brainstorming workshop, is a constant favorite. Navé begins his workshop with the following statement, "By the time you're finished today many of you will be so impressed with your rough drafts that you will want to read them in front of the class. Moreover, years later some of you will claim that today was the day you realized you could become a writer."
The success of the salon lies in the participants who attend them. As Allegra likes to point out at the beginning of each Salon, "We are not here to teach you, but to guide you… Writing is a continuous process, one that evolves and never ceases to surprise". The Salon held in Thailand earlier this year attracted professional writers as well as artists, a scientist, a filmmaker, ad executives and even a private banker.
When asked what she feels is The Writing Salon's biggest contribution to writers, Allegra said, "To give people that sense of power, that sense of possibility of connecting to their own creativity, which may be repressed or dormant, or simply unacknowledged because of fear or lack of confidence. To provide a time and place that gives people permission to write with no goal beyond just that."
The choice of Boracay as the venue for the first Philippine Salon is a natural one. According to Navé, a peaceful, inspiring setting is instrumental in "discovering voices in your writing that you've never heard before". Workshops will be held from October 6 to 9, at the boutique resort, Seawind. Guest faculty will include Carlos Celdran, beloved local Philippine artist famous for his offbeat and irreverent walking tours around Manila's historical sites.
The Salon fee is PHP28,000 inclusive of tuition, all lunches and a welcome dinner. Participants who sign up before 21st August, Ninoy Aquino day, qualify for the discounted rate of PHP24,000. For more information on The Writing Salon in Boracay, visit www.thewritingsalon.net or email info@thewritingsalon.net.
* * *
BIOS (Excerpts)JAMES NAVE', Director
James Navé is one of the pioneers of the performance poetry movement in America...In 1995, Navé began working with the author Julia Cameron to develop creativity workshops based on her bestselling book The Artist's Way, which he subsequently taught across the U.S. He also teaches ideation to business people, working for companies including Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Adidas, and the pharmaceutical giant Baxter Industries. The Writing Salon, which Navé developed from decades of experience, is now in its third year.
The magic of poetry is alive in Navé's words. "It starts with the imaginative utterances in the poet's mind and continues, much as a musical score continues, long after the final draft. Poetry is meant to be read, memorized, published, put to music, and spoken out loud. Poetry is oxygen for the soul. Whenever a poets lifts a pen, the world is better off."
With over 600 poems memorized, Navé likes to tell the story of American poet Maxime Kumin, who says she memorizes poems so she'll have something to do in case she's taken prisoner by an invading army. "While it's unlikely Ms. Kumin will land in jail," he says, "it's fair to say that she, like the rest of us, will find her memorized pieces useful in times of solitude." When asked what writing means to him, Navé says, "Writing is where I find my center. The place where I tell my story. When I think of writing I think of a warm room in soul. It is the place where I stop and become anyone I want. I can drive a car through a waterfall or fill a grocery cart Almond Joys. Emotionally, it allows me the time to be silent and wait for my interior to connect flow."
ALLEGRA HUSTON, Director
Allegra Huston is a screenwriter, journalist, and book editor. After gaining a First Class degree in English Language and Literature from Oxford University she entered publishing, where she worked with authors including Iris Murdoch, Edna O'Brien, Robert Conquest, and Jane Goodall. From 1990-94 she was Editorial Director of the well-known literary house Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London.
Ask Allegra what positive feelings and emotions she associates with writing and she'll tell you, "A feeling of surprise, that's my favorite. When I write something and wonder where it came from. (There is) a sense of power entirely separate from ego."
And what does she most look forward to in her writing? "Time. Empty time."
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