I have some summer studio space, so while I'm not technically in class, I'm still working at ceramics. And by that, I mean, I'm trying to throw on the wheel. Uh, pardon my graphic language here... but I really suck at it. I mean, really.
I feel that even as a novice I've done some really lovely hand-built pieces. I do not feel I've done anything approaching lovely when I use the wheel. I've done a couple eh pieces. And I'm actually quite proud of their mediocrity because moving from suck to mediocre is progress.
You see, there's some real knowledge that's required when using a wheel, but there's some muscle memory, too. Some measure of understanding the feel of what you're doing. And while I've read what to do, and I've watched a few potters at the wheel show me what to do, that academic knowledge doesn't do me any good without understanding the feel of it...without having some sort of muscle memory.
So I'm working at developing muscle memory. And when I have some less than great pieces, I still have been using them to experiment with other aspects of pottery. A few pieces have died as I've tried to cut in the foot (the bottom of the piece). I use the survivors to play with handles, underglazing, and more mocha diffusion pots. None of my time and effort has really gone to waste.
What I'm learning in the ceramic studio is feeding into other aspects of my life. I was thinking about muscle memory and realized it's definitely present in writing. If you read one of my early books, I hope you see my glee in the process. I hope you hear the beginning of my voice. I hope you see I worked hard at my attempt. I hope you find a nice story. But I also hope that in my later books, you see there's a greater ability. They're more polished. I'm able to paint the story with more grace. (If you don't see any growth from early books to new ones, I'm doing something wrong. LOL) I think some of that growth has to do with muscle memory. I understand how a book is constructed. Even when I try something new (like moving from third person in all my early to works to sometimes writing in first person in my more recent ones) I still come to each book with a certain skill set. One I hope grows with each book I write.
We all have muscle memory. Certain dishes in the kitchen we can make without really thinking about it. How to cope with kids...seriously, muscle memories helps with this, but even at that, each situation is vastly different. Taking care of kids can feel like herding cats. LOL And maybe that's where muscle memory can be a disadvantage. If you treat each situation as you have in the past, maybe you're missing out on a new angle...a better way. If a kid has a temper tantrum and you just send them to their room, maybe you're missing out on a new approach. Forgetting that kids don't have the ability to tell us what's wrong all the time. Maybe asking, Would you like an apple? might shock them out of the tantrum, as well as alleviate the cause if it's hunger. Maybe working to find out what started the tantrum will help you figure out how to stop it.
School really does make me look at my world in new ways...and I for one think that's always a good thing.
Holly
PS Have you picked up my new release, Polished Off: A Maid in LA Mystery?
Join in the fun at:
Amazon
B&N
Amazon
B&N
As always, you can find my ebooks, paperbacks, hardbacks, audiobooks and available through Kindle Unlimited. They're also available in a lot of other languages. I hope there's something for all of you!
Find my books at:
In Erie, you can find my books on the shelf at Werner Books! Stop in, check them out and tell them I said hi!
No comments:
Post a Comment