open for business

[Chance]

Hey All-

I've been doing some blogging lately, and you are invited to have a look... http://www.magicchance.blogspot.com

There are only a dozen postings so far, but more are on the way. You can also leave messages there, so let me know what you think.

Chance

[Butterfly Man]

Feed me!

Chance,
I enjoyed your writing immensely.

I particularly liked the imagery of the Atlanta cop story, white knuckles and all.

The pictures, for the most part, are great also (you Do have lovely legs!) However, I would prefer that, rather than posting a picture and then explaining the circumstances surrounding it, you write the story first and then add a picture, if appropriate.

Only one more thing ... being a novice writer (like yourself) I have shown my stuff to people who have little or no knowledge of busking. They have all pretty much let me know that I don't explain busking terminology adequately (E.g. expressions like "working the line", "circle shows" etc.) ... keep this in mind, it might help.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot ... something I need as well ... an editor. What seems to be working for me (though I don't enjoy the process) is to write the story first and then put it away for a while. Then come back to it later with a fresh eye ... it's amazing what a little sweat and an outside eye can do for your work.

Please ... more stories ... what's going on inside your head ... interesting stuff, no doubt! Again, good work.

P.S. Robert McGee's "Story" is worthy of a read.

[Doctor Eric]

Hey Chance, you should try to sharpen your stories a little, the content is there, but it needs more punch, and is still largely ego-driven (hard to avoid with this kind of material, isn't it?), try to broaden the audience a little

P.S. This is the same advice I am giving myself currently, so maybe I'm just projecting.

[Chance]

Thanks so far for all the input and advice.

That said, I just want to add that I am not attempting to write stories with "punch" (this is not a criticism Eric), and I won't lose any sleep if a few words are misspelled or misplaced. I hold no secret ambitions as a columnist, and am not sharpening my skills for some as-yet unnamed retirement plan or career choice.

I just want to write my stories the same way I tell them in person, as bland as that may be. The blog so far is strictly cathartic (sp?), an effort to help clear my mind of more than ten years of collective experiences and memories -- some ego driven, some not. But mostly. It is my blog after all, written from my very singular perspective.

So far there are just 13 essays. But at this rate I suppose it could reach 70 or 80 by this time next year. My fortè happens to be on the legal side of busking -- for example Free Speech and many connecting issues -- which will be beneficial to literally any busker taking the time to read over my essays. But rather than preach it, I am going to reveal facts through my stories, hopefully recreating them as they came to me originally.

Thanks again! Please keep those critiques coming...