~ Written by Danielle N. Bilski ~

It has been a massive year for me, to say the least! The highlight so far would have to be a rainy night in July when I attended a reading and book signing by my all-time favourite author, Jodi Picoult. She and her daughter Samantha Van Leer co-wrote a young adult novel titled ‘Between the lines’. After they both read extracts from their novel, the floor was opened for the audience to ask questions. My heart was pounding in my chest as I gathered the courage to walk up to join the line that had formed behind one of the venue attendants holding a microphone. I’ll never forget the moment the venue attendant turned to me and said ‘We only have time for one more question. You’re the last one.’ The girls behind me went back to their seats and I went over the wording of my question in my head, over and over, until the microphone was eventually handed to me. The feeling was surreal.

I addressed my question to Jodi, thanked her for coming, told her I was an aspiring writer and asked her ‘If you could talk, now, to the person you were when you were writing your first novel, what advice would you give yourself, that you have learned over the years?’  Jodi looked directly at me from the stage and the first thing she said was ‘Don’t give up!’ To have my favourite writer look at me personally and tell me ‘Don’t give up’ was one of those incredible moments when you come face to face with your destiny! Jodi spent the following few minutes generously sharing advice. I am so incredibly humbled and truly grateful to have experienced such a profound moment!

Minutes later, I lined up in the foyer with other fans to have my favourite novel ‘Second Glance’ personally signed by Jodi and I gave her a cute kangaroo bookmark, with a message I had handwritten on the card which accompanied it. After I placed my signed copy safely in my bag, so it wouldn’t get wet as I made my way to the station, I rang my Mum to tell her about my exciting encounter with Jodi. She was as ecstatic as I was, knowing how much I admire Jodi and her work. For me, it was one of the most unexpected, exhilarating and defining times in my life and writing career! Even re-living it in words right now, a few months later, it makes my heart pound faster and my stomach flutter.

It is funny to think about all of the hours I have spent reading her novels over the years, never for once considering that one day I would be in the same room as her, let alone her talking directly to me! Now when I pick up one of her books, I appreciate it even more. I will forever cherish her words, intelligence, creativity and time spent in my home city. It is still breathtaking for me to think about!

At that time I was in the later stages of the previous study period at uni and it undoubtedly inspired me to work on ‘My time with you’ manuscript as well as motivating me for my final assignment (for which I received 73%) and my literature examination (for which I received a Distinction). I’m now writing more creative pieces than ever before and thoroughly enjoying the practical subject I’m undertaking. I am awaiting the mark for my second assignment, I have had two of my pieces (a poem and a piece of prose) workshopped by some of my fellow students, I have had the honour of reading and providing feedback to writers in my uni group and I am looking forward to writing my final assignment piece which is due in just under a month. A few weeks ago I was inspired by a new idea for a script, which I have completed 44 pages of to date.

On August 4th, mytimewithyou.com.au turned three years old! Eighty posts later, it’s somewhat overwhelming and completely fulfilling to have been able to capture the most significant moments in words.

Since March 9th when I posted the beginning of my ‘Texts read in 2012’ list, I have finished reading:

6. Beowulf by Anonymous – for uni
7. Macbeth by William Shakespeare – for uni
8. Handle with care by Jodi Picoult
9. The Odyssey by Homer – for uni
10. House rules by Jodi Picoult
11. King Lear by William Shakespeare
12. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer – for uni
13. Harvesting the heart by Jodi Picoult
14. Medea by Euripides – for uni
15. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Anonymous – for uni
16. Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare – for uni
17. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte – for uni
18. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy – for uni
19. Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris- 5th August, 2012

I have also read a number of short stories, poems and extracts for the creative writing unit I am currently studying this study period. This list includes inspiring writers such as:

–  Graeme Kinross-Smith
– Glenda Adams
– Jean Kent
– Michael Ondaatje
– William Carlos Williams
– Samuel Wagan Watson
– Hazel Smith
– Edward Cummings
– Yuriya Kumagai
– Chris Mansell
– George Herbert
– Salman Rushdie
– Marcelle Freiman
– Adrian Henry
– David Malouf
– Gillian Mears
– Merle Hodge
– Kate Grenville
– Ursula LeGuin
– Peter Goldsworthy
– Robert Drewe
– Kim Scott
– Phaswane Mpe
– Carmel Bird
– James Joyce
– R.K Narayan
– Tim Winton

The three texts I am currently reading are:

– Old Man Goriot by  Honore de Balzac
– Mercy by Jodi Picoult
– Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

I also started a new casual job last week, which is very exciting since I have been so intensely consumed by writing, reading and studying. I am so grateful for the opportunity to pursue two of my main passions – writing and coffee. If anyone had told me at the beginning of the year that I would experience all of the wonderful things I have, the times when I haven’t felt so confident I would have reminded myself how lucky I am and not taken myself so seriously.

To have taken a few months break from posting and now having such extraordinary things to now share with you is really special for me and I hope you find it inspiring. Some things you can try to describe in words, but ultimately some feelings are relatively indescribable! The words come to life, so to speak!

Thank you to everyone who has read any of my creative pieces or posts on this website. I don’t want any of you to be afraid to do things you love, because some times you have to make sacrifices for love. If you’re lucky, you will be rewarded with some of the love in return – what form it will take, you won’t know until it comes. Just make sure your eyes, ears and heart are open when it does. Something only comes around in a particular, unique way, once! Live it, love it and let it constantly inspire you, hereafter.

Witnessing words transcend a page,

My time with you.

©2012 Danielle N. Bilski

~ Written by Danielle N. Bilski ~

ENG210 Creative Writing: A Practical Introduction
Workshopping piece based on an ‘I remember…’ exercise

At a loss
Written by Danielle Bilski

I remember holding it in my palm, everything going black, waking up, my eyes feeling heavy, in an unfamiliar room on an uncomfortable bed. He’s sitting in a chair to my left, holding my hand, softly tracing circles with his thumb. His furrowed brow un-creasing, the colour of his eyes illuminating his weary disposition. Asking him how long he has been sitting there, him telling me ‘three days.’ He leans forward, gently brushing the hair off my face, lingering a kiss on my forehead. The deepness of his voice, the smell of his aftershave, his chin prickle against my skin. I remember wondering why I had slept so long, how I got there and when he would take me home.

I remember trying to sit up, my legs stiff, a backless gown falling from my right shoulder. Pulling on my jeans, clasping my bra strap, tying my shoe laces extra tight. Reaching into my pockets, looking for the ring, only finding a tissue in one and a ball of lint in the other. His serious expression transforms into a smirk, ‘let’s get out of here’, did he say it or did I? The stream of paper for my release, feeling like a jailbird, wanting to steal the nurse’s Parker pen. Automatic doors opening and closing, solemn faces coming, relieved faces going. I remember him whispering into his phone, smiling when he sees me looking, pays for my bail.

I remember his arm around me as we step outside, his hand settling on my hip like they were old friends. Being helped into the passenger seat, winding the window down, fastening my seatbelt extra carefully. His hand rubbing my thigh, asking ‘are you ready?’, wondering ‘for what?’ He’s singing along with the radio, laughing at the words he makes up as he drives. I remember smelling the ocean, travelling the opposite direction to home, feeling free.

I remember kicking off my thongs, feeling the sand tickle my toes, blonde curls swirling around my head. ‘The celebrant is here’, finding my balance, losing my breath. Admitting I lost his grandfather’s ring, disappointment making him crumple, losing him.

‘We don’t need the ring, you just don’t want to be my wife’, ‘I do’. ‘Where is the ring?’, ‘I really don’t know, but I will spend my life trying to find it for you’. ‘When you do, come and find me’, he was gone. I remember sitting on the beach, alone, ‘Come on miss, I will take you home.’

My time with you

©2012 Danielle N. Bilski

~ Written by Danielle N. Bilski ~

ENG210 Creative Writing: A Practical Introduction
Workshopping piece based on an ‘image or object as a trigger’ exercise

Tea set me free
Written by Danielle Bilski

Tall, white coffee mug
deceptively decorated with matte gold flowers
holding hostage
a gold, patterned spoon.
Drowning a teabag, staining the water red
a gold Twinings of London tag
hanging by a thin, white thread
only one way this scene can end.

Two galahs in a eucalyptus tree
sit on the green and white cork coaster
cacatua roseicapilla
rose-breasted, white feather-crested.
The remedial smell of eucalyptus
mixed with tea leaves
infuses the air
birds laugh at a joke, only they share.

Raspberry, strawberry and loganberry
tickle my nostrils
hot liquid burns my mouth
warms my soul.
Suddenly seated at elegant high tea
Buckingham Palace with Her Majesty the Queen,
now drinking straight from the billy
on a fallen log, beside Harry Power and Ned Kelly.

Home was a polished, plywood desk
my cup needed  a lifesaving refill
life was an overflowing, plastic in-tray
every day the script read the same.
When I open my mind wide enough
in reality, tea gives me boundless opportunities
everywhere in the world I choose,
all I need is a thermos and comfortable pair of shoes.

©2012 Danielle N. Bilski

~ Written by Danielle N. Bilski ~

ENG210 Creative Writing: A Practical Introduction
Assessment 1 – Creative piece + Reflective statement based on a word pool exercise

Screaming grass

Written by Danielle Bilski

No one hears the grass scream
cut
ravaged
downtrodden.

Where have all the insects gone?

Annoying Ant
in an apartment air vent
assembling crumb-sized
assassins.

Beautiful Butterfly
floating around army barracks
dodges battering
bullets.

Comatose Caterpillar
cradled in a cave
bathed by candescent
candlelight.

Dainty Dragonfly
working in a diner
serving delicious sticky date
dessert.

Evil Earwig
lingering in an elevator
eavesdropping on an emotional
episode.

Fatuous  Flea
fled a flat
being fumigated for
fungus.

Gangling Grasshopper
pottering in a garage
gathering tools to
garden .

Heckling Hornet
hangs in a hut
hovering hypnotically over-
head.

Immoderate Inch worm
huddled in an igloo
eating icecream from an esky
isothermalised.

Jocular June bug
jumps into a jar
of juicy juniper
jam.

Knowing Katydid
hides in a ksar
keeping watch for king
killers.

Luminous Ladybird
living in a luxurious lodge
filled with light and
life.

Malnourished Mosquito
sitting in a meal room
peruses a menu of meaty
mortals.

Nocturnal New Forest cicada
nested in a nook
noiselessly having a
nap.

Overnight Owlfly
arriving in an office
out-tray on time for
once.

Precocious Protura
partying in a penthouse
with a pitcher of
Patrón.

Querulous Queen bee
hibernating in a qunizee
on a quest for quintessential
quietness.

Raging Red-back spider
hunting on a ranch
riding horseback under the roasting
rays.

Slovenly Snail
sneaks into a stable stall
to share a salt block with a
stallion.

Tireless Termite
lying in a tent on soft terrain
telling ghost
tales.

Unconventional Underwing moth
squatting in a unit
uses unwashed kitchen
utensils.

Vivacious Vinsonia stellifera
standing in a vestibule
greets visitors with
vehemence.

Wiggly Weevil
frozen in a windowless warehouse
wishes  for a strong
wind.

Xyloid  Xyleborus beetle
carried in a xebec
sails zestfully to
Xanadu.

Young Yellow jacket wasp
steps out of a yurt
yawning at the yearly crop
yields.

Zonked Zorotypus
sleeps in a zephyr
zooming through a no-fly
zone.

All the insects have gone. Where?

Downtrodden
ravaged
cut
the grass hears no one scream.

©2012 Danielle N. Bilski

Reflective statement

This piece was born from a word pool exercise I completed using 22 individual words. ‘Screaming grass’ was the combination that appealed to me most which became the title. I thought of connotations for grass and why it would be screaming. I decided to personify grass by playing with the emotion of screaming, coming up with the human response to being cut or stepped on.

I thought about who or what secondary character would afflict such action on the grass that would render a screaming response. Insects coexist in relative harmony with grass. Contrastingly heavier animals, particularly homosapiens cause grass to be ‘cut’, ‘ravaged’ and ‘downtrodden’ as results of manmade imposition. This ties in well with the current social and political issues involving the environment and war as major themes.

I haven’t written much poetry using alliteration as a major, deliberate structural element. I decided to find an insect type starting with every letter of the alphabet. This involved some online research. However, it created the basis on which the alliterative aspects could be built upon. Once I had the chronological list of insects, I personified them by placing them into different kind of internal structures in contrast with the natural growth of grass outside. I combined each place, from a to z, with the insect using the linking words ‘in a’. At this point I was aware of the consistent structure of each stanza.

I  thought about why the insects had gone inside manmade structures. The metaphor of insects seek safety from the ‘warzone’ of grass cut down symbolises the displacement of humans when the environment is damaged or war-torn. I wanted the insects to perform recognisable, human-like actions as a form of assimilation, also following the alliterative structure.

I found adjectives, from a to z, to precede each insect, deliberately increase the alliteration while developing  the insects’ characterisation as well as the narrator’s voice. The word at the end of each stanza is also deliberately alliterative to the adjective, insect and dwelling. When I looked at the time, I realised I had been writing, researching and editing this free form, alliterative poem for seven hours.

The final line that came to me, which ties the poem together is ‘Where have all the insects gone?’ and I used the phrase manipulation technique from Hazel Smith (pp11-14) to write ‘All the insects have gone. Where?’ These lines were inspired ‘Where have all the flowers gone’ (1955) by Peter Seeger attributed to a society feeling the effects of war. Phrase manipulation also helped transform ‘No one hears the screaming grass’ to ‘The grass hears no one screaming’. Insects abandoned grass for the superficial existence of human construction as a consequence of human intervention in contemporary environmental processes. The insects experience different emotional states throughout; some characteristic, some unconventional.

From this process I learned the value of a completing a word pool exercise and using phrase manipulation to trigger alternative, metaphorical connotations for everyday things, actions and emotions, even as quotidian as grass. I also learned to utilise literary techniques including alliteration, characterisation and metaphor to create meaning based in context of current global themes of environmental sustainability, war and immigration. I am happy with the result, but would like to improve the flow and impact of some stanzas. The structure is simply and consistent, yet alliteration adds complexity and variation.

My time with you

©2012 Danielle N. Bilski