Pamela Leavey

words and pictures....

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Category: Writing

Susan Tedeschi: 700 Houses (LIVE)

Every time I hear this song, 700 Houses, by Susan Tedeschi, I get chills… This is a great live version from the Cazorla Blues Festival on July 25th, 2009:

700 Houses is on Susan Tedeschi’s 2008 release, Back To The River. Her music, whether from her solo career, or with her husband Derek Trucks, in their acclaimed Tedeschi Tricks Band, always speaks to me. In fact, I listen to Tedeschi Trucks frequently to find inspiration before I sit down to write. I find that a little sing along with Susan, goes a long way to tune my voice for the page.

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Who Is Your Audience?

Writing copy for a website is like writing a paper for college, you always need to be cognizant of who your audience is. If you are marketing to a mixed demographic that might range in age from 18 to 80, it is important to remember that your tone and wording set the stage for how people view you online. Written communication is a powerful tool. If you set the wrong tone you fail to engage and will draw either criticism or disinterest.

Last night, I was comparing the issues statements and websites of two local politicians running for state office. I was struck by the word “my crystal ball leans” prefacing an important issue. Voters don’t want to know a candidate’s supposition, they want to know his platform on an issue and what that candidate will do to make changes. We can all make “crystal ball” predictions, but typically when voters go to the voting booth, they tend to vote for the candidate who has ideas, not predictions.

Communication is a powerful tool. If you set the wrong tone, you leave yourself open for a realm of misinterpretation. This applies in politics and business.

Just my two cents…

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Exercises In Creative Non-Fiction: Let The Woman Scream

I recently finished my 5th semester in a row towards my B.A. in Creative Writing and Digital Age Communication. I’ve written and been published on a variety of topics and subjects over the past decades, but obtaining my B.A. always seemed to allude me.

Now with a few different writing courses under my belt, I am learning to understand my own varied writing styles, techniques, and issues surrounding the ever-present writer’s block. That said, pre-writing practices have become a huge part of my writing process.

This is a piece I wrote a few months ago, for an exercise called “Let The Woman Scream”: (more…)

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Reflections on Walking

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Walking is an exercise in contemplation for me, whether I walk alone or with a friend, my mind traverses the path in front of me and delves into the deepest thoughts in my mind. I am reminded of the words of Sam Keen on walking in his seminal book, Hymns to an Unknown God: (more…)

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Poem: In The Stillness

Solo Swan on the River ~ c. Pamela J. Leavey 2013
Solo Swan on the River ~ c. Pamela J. Leavey 2013

In the stillness
I hear the beating
of the mother’s heart,
in the stillness
I know the pain
of her longing.
I watch, I wait
for her children
to appear,
I know her longing
for it is my own.
I cry out to the Mother
where, oh where could I go,
for I have wandered lonely
in the light of the sun.
She tells me in whisper
Daughter I do not know,
your path is written in the stars
though on the river you do flow.
Sit peacefully in the still
the answers you will know.

© Pamela J. Leavey 2013

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Three Wooden Boats

Over the past couple of years, I have had many friends who have suggested I should sell some of my photographs. I’ve always agreed and put the idea on the backburner. Selling my photography is now officially on the hot plate thanks to a couple of folks who saw this photo and make a personal connection with it.

Last week I was contacted about selling prints of this photo of Three Wooden Boats, photographed on the Merrimack River at Lowell’s Boat Shop in Amesbury, MA in July 2012.

I made the sale and in doing so, I was inspired to make some of my favorite photographs available in print here on my website…

Three Wooden Boats ~ c. Pamela J. Leavey
Three Wooden Boats ~ c. Pamela J. Leavey

Prints of Three Wooden Boats are available in three sizes listed below: (more…)

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