groop therapy

Groop met late last night for a session examining a first chapter by Marika. Since the work is written in the mystery tradition, there was discussion of genre. Some baulked at the term, others embraced it, but it was agreed that critique of the work itself was important whether certain conventions were in play or not.

This prompted a meta-debate about the project of critique in general. Then such practical matters as narrative voice, pacing and how best to introduce the victim in a whodunnit were considered. Yes, writerly work is being accomplished.

As critique wound down, however, Nick brought up suicide. We've lost a number of friends and acquaintances to what is estimated to be the 15th most common cause of death in the world (just after diarrheal diseases) and by some strange coincidence my latest entry to the AJ Episodes discusses it (something I didn't realize last night).

This sobering topic was adroitly derailed when, in an act of conversational jujitsu, the discussion turned to Ben's blue belt ceremony.

Obamathon

Political fiction from Michael Chabon:

"To support Obama, we must permit ourselves to feel hope, to acknowledge the possibility that we can aspire as a nation to be more than merely secure or predominant. We must allow ourselves to believe in Obama, not blindly or unquestioningly as we might believe in some demagogue or figurehead but as we believe in the comfort we take in our families, in the pleasure of good company, in the blessings of peace and liberty, in any thing that requires us to put our trust in the best part of ourselves and others. That kind of belief is a revolutionary act. It holds the power, in time, to overturn and repair all the damage that our fear has driven us to inflict on ourselves and the world."