Rose and I went to see The Artist the other night - it's the modern day silent movie and it's as great as you've heard. I recommend it highly.

This weekend we also saw The Blood Countess, a new ballet by the Rochester City Ballet. This was amazing and if you live in Rochester and you can still get tickets, you really need to see this show. Absolutely fantastic. Okay, it was my first ballet and I have nothing to compare it to, but it was still fantastic.

So what does this movie and this ballet have to do with the book I should be writing at this very moment? Neither had any dialog. (Well, one of them had a line or two of dialog, but you know what I mean.) I was transfixed by performances and the story lines, and there was no dialog to move the plot along or explain inner motives. All that was conveyed though gestures and facial expressions and body language - all the things that are more difficult to show in writing. It got me thinking about how much I might learn from deliberately taking on writing challenges that would be easier to avoid.

Then I shared this crazy idea with Rose. She laughed and said, "Hello? Isn't that what you did with YOU?"

Still, there's something to be learned from The Artist, and The Blood Countess. See them both and let me know and let me know what you think.