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My senior center offered me a year’s membership to the Master Class website free of charge. Of course, I took advantage of this offer. The site offers a cornucopia of courses taught by famous, highly successful people. As a would-be writer, I found this too tempting to pass up. Where else could I get classes taught by the likes of David Sedaris and Joyce Carol Oates? I lept at the chance.
In my defense, I have taken the
complete course offered by David Sedaris.
I found it very informative and David Sedaris very captivating. I have also begun to take Joyce Carol Oates’
class. However, I have that one on “pause”
right now. Instead, I went through a
course in comedy by Steve Martin. I have
no ambition to become a standup comedian.
The idea of standing in front of an audience trying to be funny gives me
royal conniptions. Don’t get me
wrong. I love performing. I have spent most of my adult life as a
professional opera and concert singer. I
just don’t like the kind of performing where you have to talk extemporaneously
instead of singing and where people can talk back to you if they don’t like
you. So why did I go all the way through
a course by Steve Martin? If you know
the answer to that question, please tell me.
I am now going through a course
in Country Music taught by Reba McEntire.
I don’t sing country music. I
like it, but I don’t sing it. I have an
operatic voice, and any attempt by me to sing in country style sounds
ridiculous. So why do I find this course
fascinating while Joyce Carol Oates’ class is still on hold? Again, please don’t ask me. You’ll just get a silly answer.
I think my next class will be
on writing or something related to it.
After all, my year’s subscription to the site will expire, and I will
have to decide if I want to pay their yearly price and continue. I’d better get all the writing instruction I
can before the decision-making time comes if I choose to be frugal for a
change.
In the meantime, Reba McEntire will
still tell me how to sing country music, whether I plan to do it or not.
