Got me thinking

[madbaker]

Websnark had a good essay on What good is Nanowrimo?

One of the first professions I ever wanted to have was "writer". Probably because I was (and am) a voracious reader. I was always good in English, highly literate and literary, smart even if I say so myself. It was a natural progression. What could possibly go wrong?

Just that I never... had that spark of talent.

It took a while to realize. I'd write long, rambling stories that were incredibly derivative of whatever I'd been reading. I'm sure they were crap besides, but some of that is fixed with experience. Many professional authors state that what they wrote as kids was crap. Practice would have improved the technical aspect of my writing.

What can't be fixed is the lack of originality, of inspiration, of muse.
It's been educational reading posts from professional authors, and friends who are striving to get to that level. Writing isn't necessarily easy for them; Neil Gaiman talked candidly about hitting the "Can't write for toffee stage". But he, and they, get through it with work and produce works of beauty.

Those who can create in that fashion, I respect. I do envy them somewhat. But -- like hand-eye coordination -- it's not a talent that I will ever possess. I'm not fishing for compliments or wallowing in self-pity here; I can't change that.

I can wish for what might have been, though.

Comments

Huh.

[learnteach.livejournal.com]

Interesting viewpoint. You're wrong, by the way, but interesting viewpoint.

It's not just learning the techniques of writing, refining your phrases and word selection, editing out the dross for the fine threads of wordgold; it's making the little dancing funny ideas sweat and flex and grow and eventually WAALAAA a muse!

That's why writers have headaches. It's the whole Athena-from-your-forehead thing.

ALL writing is derivative. At the base level, from the language: you can't write what your language can't express (which is why Joyce didn't really write in English, he wrote in translated Gaelic). You can't write what your experience doesn't give you: "Dark Star" the movie worked because someone involved understood that the most important fact is that troops on remote duty are allowed to go crazy if it allows the mission. You can't write what you're not reminded of.

So, my favorite authors...end up eventually developing their own style, but might get boring along the way. Barbara Hambley went back into history. Lois McMasters Bujold writes wonderful romances, in the Georgette Heyer sense. Terry Pratchett? First 5 published novels were all fantasy parodies in a gentle way. Neal Stephenson? Reads a book then writes a fantasy version of it; he'll even tell you the book in the foreword.

Now, that self perception...THAT'S a bitch.

So, sweat a little more. Next year, come play NaNoWriMo. Because I've seen you, and you've got a muse. Just come write (I'm in SoBaNaNo) and club the internal "I'm no good" editor on the back of the head.

Thanks for the post. Made me think.

Hmm.

[madbaker.livejournal.com]

it's making the little dancing funny ideas sweat and flex and grow

I don't get the little dancing funny ideas.

Re: Hmm. Bunnies!

[learnteach.livejournal.com]

Well, they're like that. You know, that Wallace and Grommit film?

The idea to write something derivative is an idea. Writing a thinly disguised version of yourself? That's an idea. Write / with Kirk and Picard? Idea. But not very original, not very complete, not big and strong ideas.

You write the little ideas, and they get bigger. And bigger. Until the thinly disguised you is someone else, and the derivative piece is merely a part of the genre, and the / scene is the relationship between Aubrey and Maturin over 18 books. Little ideas, gotten bigger.

The POINT of NaNoWriMo is to write. Don't worry about the ideas, write. Stop editing in your head, write. Just slap the words down. I'm not good at it yet, but it has definately improved my writing in general.

Here's five bad ideas for you: 1. What would a Runequest Trollball cookbook look like? 2. What style of commedia would Chalion have? 3. Was Shakespear actually a transvestite? 4. And named Francois Basson? 5. What if Ambrose Bierce and some of his writings were under the concrete slab in your garage and you found him?

Re: Hmm.

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you do. I've seen you. Why don't you try to recognize them when they happen?

Re: Huh.

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

Also, an important point is that not only do you need to be able to write interesting, coherent sentences, you really do need to have something to say. Not a lot of teenagers or twenty-somethings have anything worthwhile to share with the world. Why don't you try again, now that you've lived some life?

[farmount.livejournal.com]

I think that LiveJournal itself does a fairly good job of getting people to write. Yes, some people just post tripe such as memes (myself included) but I've seen a remarkable number of essays, debates and the occasional piece of creative writing posted here.

Just write, indeed.

[goldenstag.livejournal.com]

Well, I think those of us that know you, know that you have a lot of imagination, talent and such.

However, I, for one, cannot write fiction to save my life. Well, maybe to save my life, but it wouldn't be good fiction. <g> It'd be a step or two above The Eye of Argon, I would hope, but ...

My forte when it comes to writing is the technical shit -- I figure out how something works and can explain it in closer to plain-English than the guys who wrote it ... that's why the monster book on dBASE was written (and the hopeful follow-ups ...).

But when it comes to fiction? Naw, I'll read it ... if I could manage to trap some of what goes on in my dreams, I might be able to write something cool, but my dreams always go away ... sigh.

Ditto Goldenstag

[callistotoni.livejournal.com]

I write non-fiction for a living (well, I *hope* it's non-fiction), but I can't write fiction at all. I can't even think of stories. I've always thought this was related to the fact that I can't go role-playing games at all. I can't stop being practical, or stop being me.

I have done a bit of acting, and I've enjoyed it. But my roles--the few that there were--were always close enough to me, or had traits I could relate to, so that I could play them. And they always had scripts; I think I would be incapable of improve, for the same reason I can't fathom playing at a roll-playing game.

Well, we are all wired differently. Just the way it is...

[naadhira.livejournal.com]

(raises hand) Uh... what's nanowrimo?

I'm in the same boat as you are... good technician, no ideas. Or rather, ideas that I *know* are tiny and stupid and I'll be damned if I'm going to "waste my time" on them when there's so much else to get done around here...

I've been told that this is all about the process, not the product. As a highly goal-driven person, "process" doesn't get me all a-quiver most times. I know that I'd need to get over that if I want to write more than training manuals for computer networking equipment.

[madbaker.livejournal.com]

Sorry! National Novel Writing Month. (http://www.nanowrimo.org/)

[aastg.livejournal.com]

True, not everyone is a great writer, but it's possible to become a good one.
I think you're a good expository writer, and most people are terrible at it. Also, you know enough about good writing to know what GOOD writing is. This is a gift.

But I often feel the same way when I read something REALLY good: damn, I wish *I* could do that!

...and another thing

[aastg.livejournal.com]

Happy, happy, HAPPY birthday!!!!!