(no subject)

[wickedflea]

Yikes. Tonight I'm starting to write a sort of memoir-like thing (I feel so silly saying "memoir") that I've had in my head for quite some time. It had a lot more focus when I first conceived it, but I'm thinking about broadening the scope, so it's a little overwhelming here at the beginning. I'm good at telling little anecdotes and stuff (I think), but to string them together into some sort of coherent narrative is a bit daunting. OK, a lot daunting. But hey, maybe they don't have to be tied together as one long narrative. Perhaps a collection of shorter pieces is best--maybe I can invest enough common meaning in each piece so that I don't have to connect all the dots. I dunno. The thing right now is to write it. I should know from college that I am not the sort of writer who can figure out everything beforehand. I can't just churn something out. I have to think/write myself through things before I realize what they are. So time to do it. I know there's good stuff here; I just have to get it down.

You ever look at your old journal entries and think, goddamn, I was a much better writer then? I know a lot of people say that they cringe when they read their old stuff. And I do cringe at some of my old entries. But geez, I used to write about ideas. These days I'm all about goofy pictures, one-liners, and baseball. Eh. Maybe it's cyclical and I'm just in a low point.

Comments

[ilfracombe.livejournal.com]

When I first started writing my first LJ, I drank a lot and I would always write the coolest, most descriptive, nihilistic prose. Now I'm sober and my writing sucks, but my liver probbaly isn't skittle-colored, soooo.... its a trade.

But yes, I know how you feel. :)

[wickedflea.livejournal.com]

Heh--thankfully, I think I'm a better writer when I'm sober. My shit would be all over the map and I'd look back later and think, what the heck was THAT about? :)

[hauntedskipper.livejournal.com]

If David Sedaris can string a bunch of short stories together and call it a book, I don't see you couldn't.
I'm sure yours would be just as fun as his are, as well.

Speaking of David Sedaris,
Have you ever read his short story titled "Six to Eight Black Men"?
Holy Shitmas is that one funny!
He describes what Christmas is like in Holland... and it's pretty fucked up... but so easy to laugh at.

[wickedflea.livejournal.com]

That's one I don't think I've read, but I just found it online and will print it out to read at lunch. :)

[bellastrega.livejournal.com]

I want a moustache, dammit.

[wickedflea.livejournal.com]

This afternoon, we walked into a fruit store, and the clerk thinks I'm some out-of-town hick. "Those apples will be two bucks each," he tells me. I pass over a five. And as he's about to give me a dollar change, I say "keep it, we're even. On the way in, I stepped on a grape."

[dichotomous.livejournal.com]

YAY! I am so glad you're doing this. I like the idea of the collection, myself, because that's one of the reasons I enjoy your journal so much - I never know what crazy-ass tale you're going to get into next.

You kick ass!

[wickedflea.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that might be the direction I end up going in. This stuff is sooo random that it probably would work better that way. :)

[mipplet.livejournal.com]

When I started my LiveJournal, I intended for it to be more of a creative writing journal. It went in a completely different direction, and I'm cool with that. I love what I have here and I prefer to keep my creative writing to myself these days.

[wickedflea.livejournal.com]

Yeah. It's funny how it takes a while to find how it works for you. Some people post poetry, some every detail of their everyday lives, some political rants, some pictures of their schmocks--whatever works, you know? :)

[theodicy.livejournal.com]

:jumps up and down:

Goody! More memoirs! I love to read about people's pasts.

Bring it ONNNNN.