Organizing your writing life

WIM WENDERS FANATIC: Since my last post, I have been in a total Wim Wenders daze. Over the weekend, I saw the five hour (yep..FIVE HOURS) version of his masterpiece Until the End of the World. It was released on DVD in Italy first (not sure why), so I had it shipped over. Luckily most of the film is in English and I can understand enough French to make out the few scenes between the lovely Solveig Dommartin and Jeanne Moreau to get the gist. The film was cut to shreds when it was originally released back in 1991 to make it 2.5 hours. Wenders saved his master negative and took the five hour version to several film festivals over the last decade. It's now three films...the original trilogy that Wenders envisioned. It was glorious to finally see the "whole" film, like finding puzzle pieces or lost home movies of loved ones. Then on Saturday afternoon, I met up with fellow writers and movie buffs Phyllis and Mardeene to see Wender's Wings of Desire on the big screen as part of the Atlanta Film Festival. Neither had seen it and it was a pleasure to experience it with them again (although the film broke twice and the print was in horrible shape). Tonight, I introduced Faraway, So Close at the Goethe Institut as part of their Wenders' retrospective (and Phyllis and Mardeene surprised me by showing up for this--thanks guys!). My friend and Goethe director Michael Nentwich introduced me as a Wim Wenders fantatic. Guilty as charged!

I'm off to NYC for my reading at Cornelia Street Cafe. I'll have a full report when I return. Very excited!