Shakey Graves, The Changeling, a conversation on craft, and a Missoula morning.
Good morning. I hope it’s a lovely morning for you. Me? Mine's been nice. Coffee. Meditation. A good book. All and all, an easing into the day with activities that gift me delight. And it’s always a joy to share my delights. I’m grateful to do so on a platform that travels space and time. You can come to this post when you want, if you want, whether it comes to you in your inbox as a newsletter or you’ve come to it on my blog. Whenever and however you’ve found yourself reading this, it takes an intention I’m grateful for. Now on to some of my recent delights: Shakey Graves, The Changeling, a conversation on craft, and a Missoula morning.
Shakey Graves on Audiotree Live
Shakey Graves on Audiotree Live
Alejandro Rose-Garcia, a.k.a Shakey Graves, is a wonder and a unique surprise that defies categorization. Yes. He’s rock. Sometimes bluegrass, sprinkled with the blues. There are hints of folk and flavors of country. Perhaps call his art rockabilly or describe it as Americana as apple pie. But be sure to make it a la mode. It’s that sweet. His music is lovely and can put you in a trance. His voice whispers and rasps and growls, and he beats his suitcase drum, and strums his guitar, and is often a one-man show. But don’t put him in that box because he’ll change up his style. He plays what he wants to listen to. Lucky for us, he’s got great taste and talent.
But for this delight, I want to zero in more granularly on one specific performance on one specific day—Thursday, June 20th, 2013—when Shakey Graves graced the Audiotree Live set. In it, you can watch a performative artist at work where one moment he’s lost in his own beautiful creation, the next breaking into a light-hearted banter with the host about his copious perspiration. Then back to it, bearing his soul, that of his music, and its sublime, with an otherworldly charm that’s seemingly improvisational. The effect stays with you like your heartbeat long after. And less I forget to point out, observe the budding chemistry between him and the host. There’s a friendship that grows before our eyes, or so I presume, believing this is the first the two have interacted. And so I imagine that they today are still friends and speak fondly of their first meeting and laugh about how the origin of their friendship was first caught on video, then streamed by the millions. A buddy genre movie, they liken it to, one with the most delightful soundtrack.
The Changeling by Victor LaValle
Sometime last year, we had a subscription to Apple TV. My wife and I enjoyed the streaming platform for its many fantastic and, in my opinion, underrated series that call it home. I’m specifically looking at you Severance. We’ve since canceled our subscription, not for any lack of quality, but because our subscription came complimentary with some other consumer good I’ve bought and since forgotten. But I digress. I mention Apple TV because there is where I first became familiar with The Changeling, Apple TV’s adaptation of the novel, by the same name. I watched one episode, loved it, and stopped watching because I wanted to read the source material first. Now that I’ve read its source, I’m itching to see how they fully treated it. Looks as if Apple TV played the long game well in regards to my wallet.
This haunting, sometimes meandering, tale has its roots in folklore of old and created new and weaves itself, sometimes suffocatingly, yet still captivatingly, around the pervasive anxieties and themes of parenthood, racism, and the surveillance society that catches most all. It catches most all because we consent to most all in the name of progress and ease and belonging. LaValle’s prose is often whimsical, particularly within the first third of the story, and I found the story enchanting like a fairy tale until the proverbial caca violently hits the fan. Then unanswered questions hoped answered compelled me along. The read is thrilling and a page-turner. Most threads are satisfyingly tied at the end where hope shines. This is my first read by Victor LaValle. It won’t be my last. Fortunately, I know which novel of his I’ll read next. His latest novel, Lone Woman, was recently nominated for a Bram Stoker award.
A Lovely Discussion About the Craft
A conversation with J.E. Schleicher on the writing craft.
Recently, I was invited to be a guest on the Page Tunerz podcast and had a blast. Paul Brooks and I nerded out about the writing craft, and throughout, Paul was a most gracious and considerate host as he gave me time and space to discuss my process and published stories. Our time together flew, and I left our conversation full of gratitude for the connection made as we, two authors, tried to make sense of this challenging, yet soul-enriching, craft.
A Missoula Morning
Last Tuesday morning, I left the house for a walk in a sour mood. I forget why, so whatever was bothering me was unimportant. But on my way, I looked up and breathed in the beauty. Missoula can do that. Kick you out of your gray matter. Sometimes, it does it gently. Other times, it’s a wallop. All the time, the reminder that beauty surrounds us is helpful. Even when we don’t feel or see it. And it’s okay when we don’t feel or see it. Because it’ll be there that next moment. And the next one after that. And so forth. So what are we to do? Look. Listen. Breathe. Be kind to ourselves. To others. Simply do our best.