I also wanted to thank those of you who read my inane rambles and post replies, especially the regulars that offer so much insight into the writing biz.
Having conversations like yesterday's are really better than grad school (at least my experience in grad school). I've learned so much about the writing business in the past two years thanks to fellow travelers, and I am indebted to all of you.
Thanks.
Now get back to work.
9 comments:
I am with you, while I didn't go to grad school I did get a BFA in creative writing and I find many of the discussions we have here to be more insightful and helpful than those I paid for in class. (Plus there is no professor to tell us to get back on track when things go horribly askew)
Timecave sounds interesting. I might have to bookmark that.
I may be reading this post wrong - I'm very, very tired - so please ignore the below, probably obvious, suggestion.
Did you mean Time Cave is posting the 52 Stitches stories to blogger or reminding you to? Or nothing like that at all.
If I want to schedule a post on blogger ahead of time, I just put in the relevant date and time in the 'Post Options' section - that way you could put in all the stories (with mine in special sparkly font of course) now and let 52 Stitches run itself. And of course, if you already do that - fly over to England and hit me over the head with something soft.
Jamie - professors can be a drag. The worst English prof I had at Kansas State didn't allow discussion. WHAT? Yes, he didn't allow discussion in ENGLISH LITERATURE. Insane.
Cate - I was really just exploring my options, but you've shown me a new way to fish. I didn't know blogger had an autoposting feature (this is why blogging is better than grad school). When I searched for advice, the relevant link sent me to Time Cave. (shakes fist at the interweb)
PS-I would never fly over to England to hit you with anything. That would be silly.
What can I say I'm a genius? Either that, or I've wasted an awful lot of time playing about with blogger.
Oh, grad school. Don't EVEN get me started. But then, I got my M.Ed. with a bunch of people who actually wanted to be teachers (scoff). They didn't want to talk about books at all, even kids' books!
(I'm being silly, yes, but at the same time, it's sad and true. Many of my classmates were essentially non-readers, and they wanted to teach elementary school. Something wrong there.)
But I love the topics you bring up here and the interesting replies.
I couldn't agree more...I have learned more about writing by talking to all of you than I had in all of my previous years of passively doing it on my own and reading technical books combined.
Actually, for me, it was the instructors that made grad school worthwhile. Sometimes, when I get to feeling like I wasted my time there, I remind myself that I got to work with some writers who cared passionately about writing and reading, and who taught me how to examine both things with a precision that I might not have ever been able to achieve on my own.
My issue with grad school was with a lot of the students. So many of the people in my classes just wanted to slap on their writer badges and be interesting/famous. They didn't actually care about the craft. I think I may have had a minor stroke when, in a workshop, a guy said, "If a novel is more than 500 pages long, it needs an editor."
REALLY?! Anna Karenina needs an editor? Freaking Ulysses needs an editor? If you don't enjoy reading, why on earth do you want to be a writer?!
End grad school rant.
I can't believe I used the term "craft." What a dong.
Brady: "craft" is appropriate, and not dongish in the least...
from dictionary.com:
#1. art, trade, or occupation requiring special skill
I also think #3 is appropriate for some of us:
#3. skill or ability used for bad purposes; cunning; deceit; guile
...whereas, we make stuff up to make people uncomfortable.
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