Second Extract Of: 'Keep what you got by giving it away.'

Sample piece from autobiography:

As a kid growing up i was always very observant so anything that stood out to me i would try and adapt to my life. I recollect being really interested in black & white films from a early age, this is because i really enjoyed sitting down with my dad and watching them as he would give me the running commentary on the actors funny moments because he had seen them so many times, and we would both laugh out loud. Something we still do together when we get chance. Also i was very impressed with their dress sense, confidence, arrogance it all seemed to touch a nerve with me and i was hooked.
My early hero's in films were Humhrey Bogart, James Cagney, Errol Flynn, Robert Taylor and John Wayne. I was impressed with Bogarts appearance and seeing him wear a Burberry Mackintosh in the film Casablanca, made me love the whole quintessential British Garments. Having solid imprints in my head of these stars gave me my first introduction into clothes. It also helped that my dad was a snappy dresser like most blackmen were who arrived here in the fifties, that's where the mod's and the rude-boys influence and dress sense came from. It didn't necessarily have to be famous people, even at school i had admiration for teachers who dressed the part compared to those who didn't. I liked the tweed jacket over a crew neck sweater and shirt, with corduroy trousers and well polished wing tip brogues, with the metal studs in them too make that very distinctive noise coming down the echo corridors.
Maybe i just like power dressing in a nutshell, i have always admired the way barristers dress and act, in their pinstripe suits, bespoke shirts and gleaming cufflinks and ties in full windsor knots. Whenever i watch prime ministers questions at the house of commons, it always makes me laugh, on the one side you will have labour in their drab boring suites and ties that don't match and the tories opposite in their classic british tailoring, everything matching and speaking with words i sometimes have to look up in the dictionary.
My experiences and observations have shown me that having a good dress sense, education, stature, confidence and a hint of arrogance allows you breath easier and too get away with more things. I think the term i'm looking for is Establishment, the world of privileges and contacts.

Comments

Dave I check every day to

Dave I check every day to see if you have blogged . Really look forward to it. I don't enjoy prose much as I get bored and become impatient and only connect with certain writings esp those that come from self analysis and personal experience. You have connected witn me as a reader. Clear and concise, nothing is left to interpretation and we can choose to agree or dismiss what you say.

I like being inside your head ! The ideas you present are interesting and I totally agree with this :

good dress sense, education, stature, confidence and a hint of arrogance allows you breath easier and too get away with more things. I think the term i'm looking for is Establishment, the world of privileges and contacts.

especially because I am very aware of this myself; my own self - training. I have had to train myself in order to achieve success, to move about in all social circles. It is even harder for a woman with a small stature and soft voice to make an impression. Some would disagree but I don't. It can sound snobbish I mean but it is the quest to succeed in life which you are presenting and sharing here. I do think it is very brave to write all this - I know I couldn't :)

OK, crit :
Flow - tends to drift a bit and is very vague. As a kid - could you give a specific eg of a day ?
and then at shool - maybe contextualise and be very specific eg a memory of a particular teacher / subject?

'distinctive noise' could be better described I think. Poetry needs to come in here ;)

Have you read Frank McCourt? He is good at writing 'I' yet not overwhelming the reader with being introspective. By creating a scene for us and detaching yourself a little (even though it is an autobiog) would really bring this to life. Reducing the number of 'I's would help. I am not an expert on prose , in fact not an expert at all. I am just responding as a reader and I hope this helps. I do like your work - it is different in perspective and the more I read the more I am amazed at how similar we see things - so that is why I can connect with your work.

Keep writing , keep posting (keep dressing well!)

Thanks Nabila for your

Thanks Nabila for your critique and response, it enables me to adjust and tweek my piece in order to give the reader the correct ingredients. :)

Thank you for your critique

Thank you for your critique Nabila, all responses enable me adjust and tweek my writing, so that i can present a clear picture for the reader. :)