I started to write about God.
I'm putting together a solo piece called--tentatively--"You Might Be God" that will be going up in March.
So I spent a month writing about God, or a lack of God. I wanted to explore the issue every way I could, and then cull the best stuff and put it into a show.
Then yesterday, I had an idea for a piece about God going to India.
But, I thought to myself, that sounds sort of familiar.
Why did it sound familiar?
Because when I was in college I read a fantastic collection of poems called "God Went to Beauty School" by Cynthia Rylant.
The poems are about God coming to Earth and experiencing things humans experience. I know it doesn't sound that original but Rylant's writing is really clever.
She writes poems about God getting cable, getting arrested, finding God, and oh yeah, going to India.
Today I went back and looked at everything I've written this month. Although none of it is word-for-word plagiarized, my writing style is VERY close to Cynthia Rylant. This is mainly because she writes poetry, and as those of you who read my writing know, when I write fiction, I tend to do it in verse form.
Some of the better stuff from this month (in my opinion)--"Fishing with God," "Bowling with God," "God in New York"--seems to come a little too close to Rylant's work even though I hadn't read her book in years. Still, I remember it having a huge impact on me, more than I realized apparently, so it's more than probable some stuff just got soaked up into my unconscious.
So now I'm not sure what to do. I'm going to go ahead and do the show, but I'm wondering if I can still include the work that's similar to that in the book as long as I make some sort of acknowledgment that this book has similar ideas.
My show isn't going to be about God having a human experience, but rather, different human perceptions of God or Not/God. That being said, I wouldn't feel right not mentioning the book.
As a matter of fact, I'm going to suggest that you all read it and tell me what you think.
I could use some other opinions.
I'm putting together a solo piece called--tentatively--"You Might Be God" that will be going up in March.
So I spent a month writing about God, or a lack of God. I wanted to explore the issue every way I could, and then cull the best stuff and put it into a show.
Then yesterday, I had an idea for a piece about God going to India.
But, I thought to myself, that sounds sort of familiar.
Why did it sound familiar?
Because when I was in college I read a fantastic collection of poems called "God Went to Beauty School" by Cynthia Rylant.
The poems are about God coming to Earth and experiencing things humans experience. I know it doesn't sound that original but Rylant's writing is really clever.
She writes poems about God getting cable, getting arrested, finding God, and oh yeah, going to India.
Today I went back and looked at everything I've written this month. Although none of it is word-for-word plagiarized, my writing style is VERY close to Cynthia Rylant. This is mainly because she writes poetry, and as those of you who read my writing know, when I write fiction, I tend to do it in verse form.
Some of the better stuff from this month (in my opinion)--"Fishing with God," "Bowling with God," "God in New York"--seems to come a little too close to Rylant's work even though I hadn't read her book in years. Still, I remember it having a huge impact on me, more than I realized apparently, so it's more than probable some stuff just got soaked up into my unconscious.
So now I'm not sure what to do. I'm going to go ahead and do the show, but I'm wondering if I can still include the work that's similar to that in the book as long as I make some sort of acknowledgment that this book has similar ideas.
My show isn't going to be about God having a human experience, but rather, different human perceptions of God or Not/God. That being said, I wouldn't feel right not mentioning the book.
As a matter of fact, I'm going to suggest that you all read it and tell me what you think.
I could use some other opinions.
Comments
Post a Comment