I spent some time around a handful of very good writers today and recognized immediately that I have not been pulling my weight as a wordsmith. Here is the crux of the issue: I’m not that well read. I don’t have the awareness of the writing that a scholar or full time author has. In short, I’ve existed for a very long time as a betweener. By that I mean I have been a person who gets by on talent and a few solid ideas. Instead of standing on the shoulders of giants I reinvent the craft and canon every time I read a book (listen to a book) or write a line. You get a lot further by standing on the shoulders of giants. That, of course, begins with knowing who they are.
The struggle is real and the struggle is balancing all of the elements in my life to the point where I can focus on less and use that extra energy and focus to be legitimately good and knowledgeable about the field as opposed to having to feel uninformed in the presence of authors who do this sort of thing full time.
Knowledge is power. It is also the materials upon which great stories are built.
Some Thoughts:
- There are moments in time when I absolutely realize I have not done well in preparing my kids for what is out there in the world. Having them stumble across Rick and Morty on their own is such a moment. I suppose had I seen it before them, I would’ve had a better sense of what they were getting into. I think that not seeing and reading all the best stuff is a problem I have to conjure a solution for immediately.