Bird by Bird...

In my hiatus from blogging here, I've been spending my time doing all sorts of things like interviewing people with mixed results, working, wringing my hands as I ponder the future, and, oh yeah, reading. My friend, Matt, recommended that if I want to write it is probably a good idea to read some good books on the subject as well as just read in general. So, the holidays behind us, I've started to work on that.

The first book I picked up on the subject of writing was Anne Lamott's, Bird by Bird. This is a book I've been wanting to get for a long time but just never did. Lamott's Traveling Mercies changed and challenged the way I think about a lot and I was excited to see how she'd impact my thoughts on writing. Finally, I picked it up and here we are, finished and discussing it.

The book itself is great, offering solid advice accompanied by Lamott's signature wit and self-deprecation followed up with a big slice of poignancy here and there. She is one who truly loves the craft and wants to gift all who are willing to try with the tools and encouragement to take their pens in hand and put them to paper. If you're thinking about writing, if you are a writer, or if you're just curious about the whole process, this is a great book for you.

But that's not why I write this. In one of Lamott's chapters, she breaks out for just a moment, offering an example of how writers intrinsically have a message within their work. She's not advocating the world of "after school special" writing but rather the simple idea that we write to share our worldview and our thoughts. Inherent within are going to be value and moral judgements. It makes sense. As she shares this example, I was hit with the proverbial lightbulb going on. This was one of those things that just made me go, "YES! YES! YES!"

She writes:

"I'm not suggesting that you want to be an author who tells a story in order to teach a moral or deliver a message. If you have a message, as Samuel Goldwyn said, send a telegram. But we feel morally certain of some things, sure that we're right, even while we know how often we've been wrong, and we need to communicate these things. For instance, I used to think that paired opposites were a given, that love was the opposite of hate, right the opposite of wrong. But now I think we sometimes buy into these concepts because it is so much easier to embrace absolutes than to suffer reality. I don't think anything is the opposite of love. Reality is unforgivingly complex." (Note the italicized portion especially!)

Now, I'm going to leave you to think about that for a while. Stay tuned and I'll address my thoughts on it shortly!