I’ve mentioned a couple of times that the next challenge for our writing group is to write something surreal, or maybe write about something which is surreal, and I have been pondering on it. I haven’t quite sorted out exactly what I’m going to write but I have the bones of an idea. I wonder if others in the group will feel the same – to have an idea what surrealism is, and although they could identify something surreal, will have to put their thinking caps on to write something. In the meantime, this is what Wikipedia says:
Surrealism is an art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike scenes and ideas. Its intention was, according to leader André Breton, to “resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dream and reality into an absolute reality, a super-reality”, or surreality. It produced works of painting, writing, photography, theatre, film-making, music, comedy and other media as well. Works of Surrealism feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur.
About a month ago I wrote about one of my all-time favourite books which I guess could be judged to surrealist, ‘The Master and Margarita’ by Mikhail Bulgakov: https://loiselsden.com/2026/02/26/zapping-back-to-the-south-of-france/↗ This month’s challenge has been in my thoughts, and I’m reaching the point where I might to begin, although no doubt it will take a lot work, editing and rewriting. Have I ever written anything before which might fit the criteria (not that I’d use that, I always write something new for the group.) If I cast my mind way back to when I was fifteen/sixteen, I was just beginning to write odd bits and pieces (some quite odd in fact!) and among the romantic and adventuring imaginings, there was a story which featured a young woman, her friends, a talking dog and a ghost – although maybe the talking dog was the ghost. I have no idea what it was about, but it didn’t survive for even a few years, unlike some of my other excruciating juvenilia!
As usual I’ve been jotting notes on my phone, and one of them must be either a dream, something which sprang into my head, or maybe something I saw on TV which segued into an idea for a story: There’s a child of about seven or eight, kneeling up on a chair and looking into a large porcelain bowl on a round table. The bowl is oriental in design with fantastical dragons, exotic women, warriors and strange plants, and as the little girl is staring at the designs, somehow she is magically pulled into the scene is so entrancing her. This sounds more like a longer story, but maybe I could use some of the ideas to write – but is it Surreal? Actually, no I don’t think it is.
Perhaps I should go back to the ghost and the talking dog, or maybe I should think of something completely different (those last three words spring Monty Python thoughts – now that really was surreal!)
Lois Elsden 