Thursday, January 8, 2009

You've Got Our Ear!

Dear Vi's and Vins,

I swear that this will be the only cute kitten picture that I will subject you to in 2009.  On my honor! :-)  But I really needed a big ear, and this one just fit the bill.

Robin and I are so looking forward to getting together after our recent long separation (sob!), and among other vital catch-up items, we will be talking about you.  We want to make sure that we address topics and issues that are important to you in this coming year at Shrinking Violets. While we both are mighty intuitive beings, seems wisest to just ask.  

So, without further ado--

What are some topics that you'd like to see covered during 2009?

Are their any introverted authors/illustrators, or folks in the biz, that you would like to see interviewed and/or profiled?  (And if you have any connections to those said parties, do let us know!)

Any suggestions for us of other features that you'd like to see here in this space?  We are open to your ideas.  Please share!

While you are percolating, I'll leave you with this from someone I hope to interview for SVP here this year-- author Anneli Rufus. This is a clip from her Salon Mag interview she did talking about her book, Party of One: The Loner's Manifesto. Glorious, gorgeous stuff. 


We are the ones who know how to entertain ourselves. How to learn without taking a class. How to contemplate and how to create. Loners, by virtue of being loners, of celebrating the state of standing alone, have an innate advantage when it comes to being brave -- like pioneers, like mountain men, iconoclasts, rebels and sole survivors. Loners have an advantage when faced with the unknown, the never-done-before and the unprecedented. An advantage when it comes to being mindful like the Buddhists, spontaneous like the Taoists, crucibles of concentrated prayer like the desert saints, esoteric like the Kabbalists. Loners, by virtue of being loners, have at their fingertips the undiscovered, the unique, the rarefied. Innate advantages when it comes to imagination, concentration, inner discipline. A knack for invention, originality, for finding resources in what others would call vacuums. A knack for visions.

A talent for seldom being bored. Desert islands are fine but not required. We are the ones who would rather see films than talk about them. Would rather write plays than act in them. Rather walk Angkor Wat and Portobello Road alone. Rather run cross-country than in a relay race, rather surf than play volleyball. Rather cruise museums alone than with someone who lingers over early bronzes and tells us why we should adore Frida Kahlo.

Peace to you each in this New Year,
Mary & Robin

7 comments:

Yat-Yee said...

Thanks for the quote from A. Rufus. 'S about time more people become aware of the privileges introverts are given!

Love the cute kitty. I know, I know, but definitely awwww-inspiring. (Sorry, sorry. See what a pic like that will do to provoke all manner of groans? Seriously, I do like it.)

Irene Latham said...

Love the clip! Also love it when writers admit right up front that they're loners. Not as an apology, but like, dude, that's just the way I am.

Anonymous said...

The kitten is adorable--what every introvert needs!

I just read an incredible book by Martha Beck called Finding Your Own North Star. (She's also the author of Expecting Adam, which I read years ago--but didn't make the connection till I was already reading the new book). I don't know if she's an introvert, but I would almost guess so... She's VERY big on listening to yourself--to what your mind and body are telling you that you want (need?!). I have NO connection, but maybe an interview with her (if you thought she fit the blog!)

Becky

jama said...

What an amazing excerpt. Thanks so much for pointing us to Anneli's book!

Looking forward to another year of SV -- this is probably the year Mary has lunch with Anne Lamott!!

Mary Hershey said...

Hi, Yat-Yee, Jama, Becky and Irene!

Thanks for the lead about Martha Beck, Becky. Doesn't she do the coaching column for a major magazine like Oprah or More?

Yes, Jama! I'm quite certain this is my Anne Lamott year. ;-)

XO,
Mary Hershey

Anonymous said...

Mary, I think she does do a column for Oprah. Haven't read it!

Sarah Laurenson said...

Wow. Love The Loner's Manifesto. Thank you for posting it.