100 of His Most Celebrated Tales

For those of  you who frequent the SoGoPro.com page often, or have followed the career of Hilarie Burton, then you have heard her make mention, on numerous occasions, the book "Dandelion Wine" by Ray Bradbury. If this is a book that you havent had the pleasure of reading then I suggest that you do so because you will find that it is every bit as wonderful as Hilarie makes it out to be! I recently purchased another book by Mr. Bradury, which is actually a collection of 100 of his most celebrated shorts (as it says so in the subtitle).

The book includes an introduction written by the prolific author and in it he says this:

"It is hard for me to believe that in one lifetime I have written so many stories. But on the other hand I often wonder what other writers do with their time. Writing, for me, is akin to breathing. It is not something I plan or schedule; it's something I just do. All the stories collected in this book seized on me at the strangest hours, compelling me to head for my typewriter and put them down on paper before they went away."

Some of us are meant to be the writers, the painters, or the musicians of our time. Some of us will be called to war and others to hedge the way for peace. Some of us will tell stories from the big screen and others will do it from the classrooms to inspire eager young minds. When I first read those five sentences they stopped me and so I read them again, and then again and again. What Ray Bradbury discovered about writing is the passion that we all need to discover within ourselves. We were all born to do something. In Ray's case it was to write, to teach the world valuable life lessons through the written word. And he did so faithfully. But, what were you born to do? What, in this life, for you, will be akin to breathing?

Find that thing and then give it everything you have to offer, and if you are faithful to it, then your legacy will far out live you. And isnt that the point? Doing something that bridges generational gaps, creating something that everyone can relate to. Changing the world in such a way that your great great-grandchildren will be proud of.

I read Ray's words and found them encouraging. I hope that when you read them you receive some of that same encouragement.

What's Your Ripple?

"Years ago it occured to me that most people are like their favorite body of water. There are Ocean people, who find beauty in the overturning of things, always moving but always ending up back on the sand. There are Lake people, who ... (See Morehold) great depths and are serene. There are Pond people, who are ambitious and appreciate the power of man to conquer anything...even the landscape. There are Swamp people, full of mystery and unconventional beauty. Then there are Swimming Pool people......who are chemically and smell funny. I have always been a River person. I grew up near a spiderweb of rivers as a kid, and I looked for arrowheads and animal footprints along their banks. I live next to the haunted Cape Fear River in Wilmington. That fluid forward motion is soothing to me, and it's a rhythm I find strength in. A river doesn't go back. It just finds a new bend to pool up in for a little while. " -Hilarie Burton

In Oregon you can pretty much count on one thing almost all year round, water. Whether it's coming up from the ground or down from the sky Oregon is a very wet place to be. You must either learn to love the beauty itself and what it brings to its surroundings or you will eventually be driven to relocate. Growing up in Oregon, relocating without the accompaniment of my parents wasn't an option, so I learned to love it.

No matter where in Oregon I lived I was always at least an hour from the nearest ocean, and it was never a place that I wanted to visit often, it was cold and windy, and you were more likely to get a burn from the abbrasiveness of the sand against your skin then the sun (not my idea of fun). I love the ocean, but I'm not an ocean person. When I was younger I almost drowned in a lake and have since then shied away from all bodies of water where I couldn't see and/or touch the bottom. So while they are lovely to look at, and if there's a boat you can find me on it, I'm not a lake, pond, or swamp person either. That leaves me with two options and one can be elminated with no real thought to it, swimming pools are out because I'm allergic to chlorine. So, that brings me to rivers.

In Portland I had the Columbia River, in Bend there was the River West, and in Eugene, where I spent the last 12 years (prior to moving to LA) I had the Willamette and McKenzie rivers, plus every stream and creek that you could want! I found a love in hiking, and if when, I went hiking, there was some river-like body of water that I could cross then it made the hike even better. There's a great perspective one gets about life, nature, and yourself when standing in the middle while an unpredictable force rushes around you. Nothing stands in the way of a river, rocks, trees, islets, the water finds a way around them all. Anything that enters the water with rough edges won't stay rough for long. All that come to the water are refreshed. Though the surface may look calm, never take for granted its determination to stop at nothing and for no one. Yet, even as the river rages if you look along its banks there are always places where the water is calm, settled, restful. There's no mistaking about which way the river is flowing, and even if it were to dry up its existence would not go unnoticed. I look at the 'life' of a river and I see my own, I see what I want people to see from and in me.

I want to be a force to be reckoned with, but approachable and inviting. I want to be full of words of encouragement, refreshment, and peace. I don't want there to be any confusion about the direction that I am moving and I dont want to be discouraged by what's in my way, no matter the size. When my time is up, I don't want my existence to go unnoticed.

I AM A RIVER PERSON. What type of person are you? (and whatever that type, make sure you're proud of it!)

What Are You Wanting The New Year To Bring?

So as 2010 is finally upon us, what are everyone's new years resolutions? i kinda have 2 and maybe they contradict themselves but hey-ho, so my first is to become better at blogging on the street team blog and my own blog http://stephhicklin.blogspot.com hopefully picking up some inspiration on the way and well my second resolution is to well not make any proper resolutions as i always break them =S.
So what do you guys want to see the new year bring? and what do we want the New Year to bring for Southern Gothic Productions? i know i cant wait for more news from F.U.C.T, news about Kelly, Nick, Hilarie and Austin and more short movies have you downloaded SoGoPro's new video if not head over to there website now and buy it, its only $2.99 what are you waiting for?!?!
Look forward to reading your replies
Much Love
Steph x

Outsiders

First, wanna say hi and sorry I haven't posted in a while, in the middle of exams atm and very stressed, so this is gonna be very short

You see, for my English Language paper, part of the assignment was to describe a time in our lives when we felt like an outsider. For mine, I wrote about the week I spent trekking in Morocco with my friends, and one of them lost her passport in the desert, so she and I had to run around Marrakesh asking people where the nearest police station was. Unfortunately, people acted like we were criminals and I truly felt isolated.

When I got home from the exam, I got to thinking... nobody is an outsider in SoGoPro. After all we're just "a bunch of misfit strangers, brought together by this safety zone of creative tolerance". And that just made me smile.

Thats it, thanks for reading

Izzie
xoxo

Q&A

Hi again,

So this week I was thinking of SoGoPro's impact on the world. I mean, it's pretty impressive to think that in such a short amount of time, so many people are impacted by their work. So, I have a few questions for you all..,

1) Where are you from?

2) What would you like to see SoGoPro achieve in the next 10 years

3) If SoGoPro could make an adaptation of a novel, what novel would you love it to be?

4) What does SoGoPro mean to you?

I'd love it if you all could reply back, it would be great to hear your thoughts

Sorry this was a tad short, i've had a 6 hour art exam today and am exhausted YET i find the time to write to you awesome people in the SoGoPro family just cos i love ya

Speak to y'all later
Izzie
xoxo

Hilarie, Oth, & SGP

Hey crew,

So, while I was thinking of what to write for my newest blog post I suddenly realized that I did't even formally introduce myself to you all in my first post. Well, my name is Whitney and you may see me posting on SoGoPro.com often. Now, when I say often I mean it's an everyday thing. I try to keep up with everything SoGoPro and I was honored when I recieved a message from Kendall asking if I wanted to be an author. I love to write and I love SoGoPro so to be able to put my two favorite things together is mindblowing. I have been following Southern Gothic Productions since the very beginning, and it has really changed me in ways I can't even begin to describe. SoGoPro encourages us to live out our own dreams and to not be afraid of being different in a world that tends to judge. I think SoGoPro gives us the courage to be ourselves and to shake off the judgement of what others say. They give us encouragment to act silly, to show off our creative side, and to be humble while loving where we come from. I truely think that I now have much more respect for Hilarie, not just as an actress, but also as a person too. When she said she was leaving one tree hill I didn't quite understand the reasoning behind it. But, then when I found out about SoGoPro It was like the fog faded away and the sun came back out and shined light one everything it touched. Her blog post that she posted not to long ago talking about how she is a river person... SO INSPIRING! And even though I am such a big One Tree Hill fan I have to be completley honest... I am kind of glade she decided to leave the show because if she would of stayed she wouldn't of been able to stretch her wings and go toward greater things in life. And, SoGoPro might not of been as big as it is now.

So in honor of one tree hill and Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer here's a painting I did a while back that was inspired by oth. Enjoy!



xxx

whitney

Hey guys...

Ok, so when I was invited to become a co-author of this blog, I must say, I was nervous. Honestly, the world of SoGoPro is so full of talented writers and artists, I didn't believe I was worthy to be on the blog. Then I realised something. It's that you don't need to be the next Steinbeck or John Lennon to feel a part of the SGP family, just that you share a love for southern gothic excellence. I think the reason why I love SGP so much is that it's an outlet. Whether you're an OTH fan seeking a Hilarie fix, or simply an appreciater of fine literature, music and film, you can find something that speaks to you in innovative and meaningful ways. You can speak your mind and find solace in the witty blogs and hilarious vlogs. After reading a recent post by Hilarie, I finally understood her move from OTH to SGP. Her beautiful river analogy really showed me her mindset behind the move, and I wish her all the best on her journey "down the river". Therefore here is my tribute to her incredible time as Peyton on One Tree Hill (a quick sketch i drew once when watching some vintage oth).


Now i'm not going to be posting daily, I think i'll keep it to weekly posts of my thoughts.
Much love
Izzie
xxx

One Day Pass...Post OTH/Peyton Inspired Artwork... Read On

Alright folks- You've all probably read Hilarie's most recent blog. In it she talks about finding herself in the One Tree Hill environment. Quite frankly, all of the stuff she said about her loving that experience and taking a lot out of it- I'll admit I was moved.
One Tree Hill is already important enough to me outside of the fact that it inspired one of the most inspirational figures I personally have, Hilarie. I am in love with SoGoPro and I know you folks are too- so I don't see the harm in allowing Tuesday, 11/10/09 to be One Tree Hill/Peyton inspired artwork day in honor of her evolution that took place in that character.

I know a lot of you are fans and have probably done a thing or two, so here's your chance to show it off!
A good way to keep this post SGP related- would be to mention one way Hilarie Burton has since (post-OTH) inspired you. (Not limited to one way!)

Any posts made after midnight (EST - Im in Boston :) ) will have to be removed as this is the Official SoGoPro Street Blog, and the focus is naturally on SGP...
But this is to honor Hilarie- one of the wonderful Co-owners of SoGoPro... and so much more!

my little dédicace

i know a lot of sgp member have see my pic but i want to put it on the sogopro street blog,because hilarie share a lot of thing with us it's the réality

VOTE for Hilarie and SGP

Guys don't forget you can vote for Hilarie and SoGoPro on the Mashable Open Web Awards.

It is easy to vote.

This year, MashableMashable has created a unique and social voting platform for the Open Web Awards. Submitting your nomination requires 4 easy steps:

Step 1: Visit OpenWebAwards.com

Step 2: Log in via FacebookFacebook or Twitter

Step 3: Choose a Category and Nominee

Step 4: Submit Your Nomination and Repeat (for other categories)
*You may nominate/vote in all categories once per day

The nominations period will last until midnight of November 15th and we are allowing you to nominate in each category once per day. The top 5 nominees in each category will then move on to the final voting round which will begin on November 18th and end on December 13th. Winners will be announced on December 15th.

Getting voting y'all.....