, ,

In search of sfumatura

The average English speaker knows between 20,000 and 35,000 words and even at four years of age we have mastered about 5,000 words. Clearly it’s a lifetime of discovery. Avid readers, writers and students of grammar will naturally fall to the upper end of this range of words, and I’d like to think I’m somewhere in among them. So it’s been an awakening of sorts to start studying a new language and be back with the four year olds! 

This is my fourth full year of weekly Italian lessons. After a big start back in 1999 when I took a trip to foreign language school in Florence, Italy, for 3 months, I languished in learning from the minute I moved to the Yarra Valley – life, distance, distraction took over. It was due to the movement of so many classes to the online environment during COVID, and the overwhelming need I had to make the most of lockdowns, that I was able to return to study. And its been such a joy. 

I’m not sure how to quantify how many words I know but for the B1 level I am currently mastering, a little research indicates 5,000 seems about right. (Plus blessedly Italian is a familiar sounding language – the Latin base that is the foundation of Italian and English gives us much in common that I am forever grateful for.)

But there is one thing that truly frustrates me when I try to write and speak in this new language. The difference between knowing 5,000 words and 35,000 words can be summed up in one word! Sfumatura, which is the Italian word for nuance. 

Sfumatura is how we bring meaning to our words, how we find the depth of description, the carriage of emotion, the speakable and the unspeakable. Nuance is the difference between pedestrian and powerful. Nuance is the marker of a great writer and communicator. Nuance is what makes a life story resonate, inspire and move.

So I will persist in the search for sfumatura and this next chapter will be about me living in Comiso, in Sicily, for six weeks over the Italian winter; writing, studying and more importantly immersing myself in the subtleties of daily life and language.

And meanwhile, there have been so many ways that learning a language has been meaningful for me.

Learning a language has helped me to:

  1. Develop better listening skills.
  2. Understand the deep roots and nuances of my birth language.
  3. Gain a deeper appreciation for the lives of those who can’t communicate easily.
  4. Give myself to slow and incremental growth instead of fast and furious – slow learning is key.
  5. Authentically lean into a culture that represents all the values I appreciate for a good life.
  6. Meet so many gorgeous and generous people I would not usually encounter in life.
  7. Keep my mind curious, active and supple.
  8. Laugh at my own mistakes – there have been plenty.
  9. Hold true to my desire that in this lifetime I will be fluent.
  10. Drive my family crazy when I speak to myself in Italian at home, or anywhere.

In this lifetime I will master a second language. It makes me a better writer in English. And perhaps one day, an accomplished writer in Italian as well. 

So onwards I go, because there are moments when I think first in Italian, or something just magically drops in that makes it all so exquisitely pleasurable. I will find the nuance. Or perhaps it will find me. 

(I’ll be in Comiso 3.12.24-14.1.25)

Chi cerca, trova. Whoever seeks, finds.

 

#lifestoriesaustralia #inspiringlifestory #lifestoryinterviews #hearmystory #sharemystory #livetotell

#biography #therightwordchangeseverything #lindyschneiderwriter #memoir

/by
,

Breadcrumbs

Often clients will ask what the plan is for a life story I am writing. Every writer will have their own process for the gathering, sorting, arranging and writing of life material but I believe it is the material that suggests to us how we might best handle it.

So I am not the type of writer that sets up a chapter by chapter plan.

When I take on a story, I understand there is first the need for open listening and documenting without trying to prescribe any sort of format or outcome. 

I approach each story as an act of creative endeavour, an exploration that can only reveal itself as the project progresses. There is no way of knowing every intricacy or turn in a story when we first start. The process is a creative act shared between subject and writer that often follows an uncertain path, but nevertheless one with its own inherent wisdom and foundation.

I liken this to the gathering of breadcrumbs. Every story crumb drops at our feet to be considered and formed into a coherent thread. 

One breadcrumb leads you to the next…

And the next… 

And so the process unfolds.

Every story will reveal itself and for me the end result is richer and more nuanced. 

 

#lifestoriesaustralia #inspiringlifestory #lifestoryinterviews #hearmystory #sharemystory #livetotell #biography #therightwordchangeseverything #lindyschneiderwriter #memoir

/by
,

Life Story Writing

I have always preferred real stories to those of the imagination, but I don’t think I understood how important the imagination was in telling life stories until I dove deep into my first biography project.

I’ve always valued writing as a tool for healing and it is through this lens that I approach my life writing today. Every story, as we tell and retell, requires our imaginative forces to recreate the essence, the detail and feelings of the moment. And in constructing those moments in our lives using words, we are able to peer deeply into the subtleties of our experience.

In life writing we gather together the threads of a life and weave them into a tapestry that can be embraced by others. The opportunity to tell our story in our words is a legacy for others, and one of the greatest acts of faith in ourselves I can imagine.

My pathway into life writing has evolved out of many aspects of my life – writing articles about people as a professional writer and journalist, working with clients as a counsellor and art therapist and from my own practices in journal writing.

When I discovered life writing, I discovered a way to work that brought so many of these elements together. Empathetic listening, authentic questioning, skilful writing and imaginative scene setting all go toward a compelling read, and to write knowing that a story has the power to affect others is one of the most rewarding aspects of the work. But even more than that is the trusted place a life writer occupies in a subject’s world, even if only for a short time. It is work of great privilege and I am forever left with a deep sense of honour that I am invited into a life, a family and a story.

While many life stories are only captured on the page as a project of the twilight years, I encourage people to document their lives at any age or stage. A significant life event, illness or change, decade or transition from one life to another are all worthy of writing about. This means our life stories start right where we are and can companion us throughout our lives.  We all have something fascinating to share and our stories are never finished.

Lindy Schneider

 

 

 

Full Member – Life Stories Australia

www.lindyschneider.com.au

/by
,

Ghostwriting – outsource writing your book to a professional

Ghostwriting is all about getting your book written by a professional writer – think of It as your words or ideas, my labour. Your name as author on the cover, my name in invisible ink. I frequently chat to people who say they’ve never heard of ghostwriting but it is much more common that you might think. 

You may notice there are periods of time when I don’t really talk much about what work I am doing. These are times where I have contracts in place and I am head down, bum on seat writing.

And I love it.

I love the intensity of these writing projects.

I love that we start a process together with nothing and end up with a manuscript. There is a pride for both parties. Everyone wins… and the world wins because your thoughts have been captured to be shared with a wider audience. 

I get genuinely excited for the clients I work with.

I enjoy that we build a relationship for the time I am in your life, and I get to know my clients in a real way. I always need to get inside a clients’ voice so I can write in a way that reflects their uniqueness, and that is a challenge that I relish.

And the client always gets final say.

Each project is a little different – for some there are source materials and loads of research and interviews to be done. For other clients with a clear picture of what they want to say, or a personal story to tell, I am more like the conduit from verbal story to getting something on the page.  Usually content is nonfiction, memoir/biography – what I love most – but it can be anything.

Often I sign Non Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) so I can never talk about who I write for, but I can say this – most books written by ‘famous people’, most columns written in magazines or on blogs by celebrities will have the hand of a ghostwriter in their production.

And sometimes it’s just that people are busy. Writing is hard work. It requires dedicated hours (yes I’ve turned out 65,000 word manuscripts in 6 months) and a skill set that after years of practice I’ve managed to be proficient at. I’ve studied and I’ve honed my skills over decades. And I can tell you it is possible to be ‘writing fit’  – it takes time but it’s a game changer for productivity!

You may have realised there’s value in outsourcing all sorts of ‘life tasks’ to a professional – book writing is no exception.

 

/by
,

Natural wisdom for writers a free resource

I am so happy to share this free resource with you. I wrote it from the heart and I trust it will land in yours in just the way you need it to.

Day by day there is an insight into how I write and what makes it a joyful experience for me, plus a writing prompt you can try for yourself.

Reach out if you need to chat. I am offering 1:1 sessions to get you started and keep you writing. With pleasure!

ACCESS THE PROGRAM HERE

/by

Midnight in the garden

Transformed from a gravel carpark into a sanctuary of curated natives, the gardens of Warburton venue Projekt 3488 are a masterclass in landscape design. Mark Fenech, a former designer and photographer, reflects on almost ten years of patient nurturing and the first flowering of his stunning Gymea lilies this summer.

Published in Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges Country Life magazine – Summer 21/22

Read the full article here.

 

By Lindy Schneider 2021

/by

Summer reading sorted

Summer issue of the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Range Country Life magazine is out now. I’ve done three pieces for the summer issue. Learn about where to find the best blueberries in the region, meet writer Lisa Joy author of Yes Chef! and immerse yourself in the gorgeous gardens of Project 3488 in Warburton. Read more in my portfolio.

/by
, ,

Meet Our Contributor – Lindy Schneider

Autumn Issue 2021 – Featuring Lindy Schneider

Yarra Valley and Ranges Country Life Magazine

Lindy Schneider is one of our well-known and much loved contributors who has been working with Yarra Valley and Ranges magazine for many, many years.

A highly respected and talented public speaker, Lindy is passionately involved with our regional community on many levels. Her words have been published widely; she’s a natural storyteller and intuitive creative, while having a background that informs her intelligence and understanding of the commercial needs of all her clients.

We love working with Lindy –  she’s hard-working, super reliable, unique in her style, and fun to be with. We are privileged to have her as part of the team. Elly Laughton asked her about her practice.

Read article here

/by
,

Why I hate marketing me

Social media’s incitement to celebrate everyone and everything is not the way for me as a solo freelancer

A little while ago, I retired one of my major clients because I wanted to step away from writing work that I knew wasn’t truly satisfying my soul needs and embrace more fully the writing that could. To create the opportunity for this to happen, I needed to first create the space.

So here I sit full of anticipation and delight at what might be, aware that attracting the right type of work is as simple and as complex as showing up and being very clear about what I will and won’t do.

But there is this little voice calling me from afar saying ‘you need to market yourself’ and it is this voice that fills me with revulsion. I can honestly say I hate marketing.

I am a person, complex and wonderful like any other. That, in this phase of my life, now 50 plus and with the sum experience of a 30 plus-year career (ironically much of it in marketing), I need to reduce myself to some sort of commodity that can be marketed is something I am finding very unpalatable.

Social media has done something equally wonderful and terrifying. The way everyday people can build an online persona is a type of freedom I couldn’t have imagined when I first started earning my own living. But this is also the problem. The persona is often another mask designed with the often not so subtle message of ‘pick me, pick me.’ I just can’t go there.

Flowing through my feed are the constructed images of ‘successful’ people telling me how wonderful their method or product is, sharing their ‘secret tactic’, convincing me  their call to action is limited and life changing, and it makes me despair. I take in the dozens of people in my feed alone who promise to share their secret sauce’ if only I register for their webinar RIGHT NOW or who in all their supposed realness do a piece to camera about themselves that is little more than yet another call to action.

I‘m sure I am not the only one whose BS radar is hyperactive.

Self-revelation seems to be the latest marketing tactic (sharing your story is fine but what is the intent?) but it’s not real honesty– it’s designed, it has a goal (usually financial), an expectation attached to it and this I think is at the core of my discomfort. The desired outcome is nothing more than a manipulation.

Build your platform, increase your likes, make videos starring yourself – these are all things we are told we must do to establish or grow our profiles. But what for the people who simply do not wish to turn their life and living into a series of posts? What about women like me who don’t want to be viewed and judged or commented on in such a public space, women (or men for that matter) who simply want to live quietly, with some sense of privacy and dignity about how much of their own personal world is offered to the public arena.

I don’t want to reduce myself to a series of dot points and marketable key points of difference. I don’t want to wake up each morning and have to think about what impressive post I can come up with today to make you all like me, or seek out what I have to offer. I don’t need to feel the adoration of like traffic to let me know I am ok today. I don’t want to treat the people I will write for one day as though those things matter to them, because I honestly believe that beyond the mediated experience of the online environment there are still people like me who value authenticity, not as a marketing touchpoint, but as a way to live held deeply in the heart.

What if we didn’t participate in all this constructed madness and the incessant need to up the ante? I have always said a real product doesn’t need to be marketed.

And I don’t think a real person needs to be either.

 

/by