Wow, I really did lay a stinker yesterday. Let this be a lesson, dear reader, don’t write while fatigued. Consider it the way you do those warnings on the healing teas and cough medicine. Don’t operate heavy machinery, like a pen. The weight of the thing is often heavier than that of the sword. Yes, I paraphrased Edward Bulwer-Lytton, and I’m kind of proud of that fact. It makes me feel good–well read even–to be able to quote people and reference good writing. It is a form of the garbage in/garbage out theory that suggests that good writing being consumed is highly suggestive of good writing being spewed out. Of course, good ingredients are only a part of making the meal. You need to be a smart and I dare say crafty writer.
Once upon a time (that is code for I’m not digging back through the archive to find the post) I wrote about the qualities of a good writer. What it takes most of all is the dedication to lead that kind of lifestyle. I was picking up my kids from my ex the other night and noticed that she was reading a book. I mean actually reading. She had a book splayed open on the couch and the TV was off. I cannot recall the last time I sat at home and read a book. I’m so immersed in the culture of moving images that the stillness of words feels deeply foreign, like a vacation to a place I long to visit over and again.
Being a part of that culture of stillness is a great deal of what it takes not only to be a writer but to write well.
Some Thoughts:
- First time I’ve seen a particular student in about two weeks and she suddenly looks pregnant. I won’t ask, because she might not be…
- Tomorrow will be Waiver Thursday…