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Not exactly a blog . . .

OK, so what is this all about? When I was producing the weekly Legacy Online newsletter for my gallery, I came to enjoy having a regular outlet for short works of writing, even while I was working on a full-length novel.  Short-form writing presents its own challenges, but gives an immediate gratification not available in a long work of fiction.  So, after I closed the gallery this past spring, I started looking for an outlet which would allow me the freedom to write in this way, and to share it with others.  I approached the local newspaper about a column, and now I write a regular column on the arts for them.  But, this site allows me the flexibility in choosing the format and length of the writing I do, not constrained by a 600-800 word weekly column.  Oh, I can be disciplined in my writing, and produce a work of whatever length required (see some of the essays which have been published).  But more freedom means more creativity.

I also wanted to merge some of my other artistic endeavors with my short-form writing.  For me, they aren't that separate, they're just different aspects of communicating an idea.  The novels (see books), of course, are long works, a leisurely stroll to explore and develop an idea along with the reader.  The madvertisements are weird little nuggets playing off of popular culture and consumerism, more like a virus of an idea than some higher lifeform of writing.  Then there are the projects: Paint the Moon was a collective fantasy of physics; Nobel Prize for Jo was a collective fantasy of entrenched bureaucracy; the Glass Canopy was about a community vision; and my entry into the Oklahoma City Memorial Competition was about shared response to tragedy.

So, this is the result.  Part blog, part library, part archive.  I won't be posting here every day, but it's a fairly safe bet that if you drop in once a week or so, you'll find something fresh.  And you can always go diving in the older stuff that's here.

Thanks for coming by.  Feel free to drop me a note if you have something you want to respond to, if you're looking for some freelance writing to be done, or if you're a publisher who realizes just how big a seller my novel could be.  Reach me at jim@afineline.org


contact me:
jim@afineline.org
all work © James T. Downey, 1993-2006
photos © Martha K. John, 1994-2006
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