tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post4631395966493889637..comments2024-03-22T00:25:38.125-07:00Comments on Living Dangerously: My Examined Life - The Turned On WriterWeston Ochsehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04407444259518715386noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post-4079768998079208802013-10-18T02:57:06.725-07:002013-10-18T02:57:06.725-07:00Karolina,
Excellent comments. I see I stimulated ...Karolina,<br /><br />Excellent comments. I see I stimulated thought and ideas. I can't ask for more. Best to you and success in your writing.<br /><br />-WestonWeston Ochsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04407444259518715386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post-50190146099437810232013-10-17T12:09:30.802-07:002013-10-17T12:09:30.802-07:00Hm. "tempered by the need to be able to recon...Hm. "tempered by the need to be able to reconstruct them as part of a story" <br /><br />I feel like that implies that writers are motivated by a want to reconstruct these things. Is that what you're saying? <br /><br />It's actually sort of confusing that you mentioned soldiers here, because I immediately thought of police officers who, of course, have worked their minds to be things able to reconstruct and recall entire scenes down to the finest details. <br /><br />If I described a nurse and part-time dog groomer who also happens to watch birds with fierce intention and meticulous cataloging, from your description here I would be describing a writer. <br /><br />I think people are people. Life experiences inform life happenings. I don't believe that I examine flowers or bees or cats more intently than does someone who examines them even for cold, scientific purposes. <br /><br />But again, we're going to probably have different philosophies and belief systems. I don't give myself much credit for what I write. I just write exactly what I mean to write exactly as I mean to write it -- and I'd like to believe that if I awoke from a life long coma (allowing for language in this hypothetical) that I would be able to tell whatever stories I'm set to tell better than I can through the filter of this waking life. <br /><br />What a storyteller sees or doesn't see, examines or doesn't examine I do not think has any bearing on them being a "writer" or the disposition that's implied. <br /><br />I only tell stories because I'm compelled to tell them, and I don't think that I examine flowers or road signs more meticulously than does someone who loves flowers for flowers or someone who is paid to erect road signs. If anything, I think being a storyteller makes me more generic a person. My interest is the total, while their interests are, perhaps, the minutia. <br /><br />I find very little to be at all important. If there's something that defines me as a "writer", something that separates me from the masses, it would be more that trait than any other. I find very little to be at all important. I think most people have a lot of things that they deem to be very, very important -- and can tell you stories about them until your ears bleed. <br /><br />~ Karolina Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post-6281695629453948632013-10-17T11:28:34.013-07:002013-10-17T11:28:34.013-07:00Hi Karolina,
You're of course free to disagre...Hi Karolina,<br /><br />You're of course free to disagree.<br /><br />But what writers do is a little different. We're always recording things to use later, whether it's the color of a flower, the minute buzz of a bee, or the smell of the breeze as it comes through our window. Non-writers/non-creators observe these things, enjoy them, and move on. They might remember them, but their memories, unlike creators, aren't tempered by the need to be able to reconstruct them as part of a story or work of art later on. It's the constant recording then application which seperates us from the rest of the world. <br /><br />As a soldier, who has spoken of this difference at length with other soldiers, I can attest that this is a truism for us. I'd argue that if there are any others out there who are doing the same, they are creators who have yet to find their paths.<br /><br />As far as you write exactly what you want, I admire your ability. I've just had my 11th novel published and I still am surprised by the way my mind works behind the scenes. I don't have your vice-like grip on the muse, but rather my muse has her grip on me.<br /><br />Thanks much for reading my essay. I'm glad it stimulated this discourse.<br /><br />-WestonWeston Ochsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04407444259518715386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post-90366007485829398872013-10-17T11:14:36.031-07:002013-10-17T11:14:36.031-07:00I don't agree with the sentiment that when we ...I don't agree with the sentiment that when we are living we are working. It pretends that the writer's living is somehow more important than is the living done by everyone else who is not a writer. <br /><br />A writer's living is no more work than would be the living of the soldiers and do-nut makers you mentioned. Their experiences similarly inform whatever their burdens and labors. <br /><br />I also don't agree that writing is just a collection of thoughts put to text...but that moves into the realm of a personal belief system, so I'll digress. <br /><br />But as to all of it coming from nowhere and you being surprised when it arrives, maybe a step towards this thing you pursue -- this secret of writing a great novel -- might start with sitting down and writing exactly what you mean to write exactly as you mean to write it. I can't imagine a great magician who is confounded by his own tricks. <br /><br />Write exactly what you mean to write and write it plainly. <br /><br />Good blog otherwise. ;)<br /><br />~ KarolinaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7428205032256232155.post-61147258863701181632013-10-17T08:20:37.655-07:002013-10-17T08:20:37.655-07:00Good one, Weston.Good one, Weston.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com