AuthorsDen.com   Join | Login    
Where Authors and Readers come together!

SIGNED BOOKS    AUTHORS    BOOKS    SAMPLE CHAPTERS    AUDIOBOOKS    eBOOKS    STORIES    ARTICLES    POETRY    BLOGS    NEWS    VIDEOS    SUCCESS    TESTIMONIALS

Featured Authors:  Paul Lonardo, iLinda Alexander, iAlexander Shaumyan, iLalita Vasu, iJennifer Miller, iRobert Liu, iBetty Jo Tucker, iRiley Blake, iMel Hathorn, iTerry Vinson, i

  Home > Blogs Popular: Books, Stories, Articles, Poetry      Authors: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z     

Erik Hare

 Follow Me  

· Contact Me
· Success story
· Books
· Articles
· Poetry
· News
· Stories
· Blog
· 21 Titles
· 28 Reviews
· Share with Friends!
·
Member Since: Mar, 2007

Erik Hare, click here to update your pages on AuthorsDen.


 
Blogs by Erik Hare

Wurst Writing
6/7/2007 10:11:31 PM


"Laws are like sausages. It's better not to see them being made."

Otto von Bismark understood both well, being a German and a politician. What he could have included in this homily is writing.

I have had a terrible affliction lately. I cannot read anything because I find it all terribly inadequate. There is always a better way to say something, a better way to describe a mood or speak with a clear voice. Words alone are mere shadows, nothing more than blots of ink that blackly show where the light is not. I have the same problem with my own work as I do with everyone else's, so I do not see this as arrogance. But it is a problem with attitude.

I came across this illness honestly, as a natural result of teaching myself to edit. The first of the sniffling symptoms was a disdain for my use of clauses and phrases that run sentences on and on forever. I do it a lot. It grew into a mild migraine that made it impossible for me to edit a thing before a warming cup of tea. But that proved only a temporary solution.

Soon, I found that everyone's work has some similar tick or difficulty. I stopped reading entirely, convinced that language was a poor substitute for the subtlety of life. Newspapers somehow got a pass, since I have sympathy for writers with a tight deadline. But everyone else just sucked, myself included.

I tried to rationalize this as a Taoist view, since Lao Tzu teaches that language is only a representation of a thing no matter how hard we try. It works, but only so far. Language is also how we gregarious chimps keep ourselves sane.

Lately, I am trying out a new philosophy to see if it takes hold. Let's just say that you are a gourmet chef, and enjoy cooking and preparing the finest foods you can. Does that mean you can never have a hot dog at the ballpark? That would be a terrible loss, since food is more than something you must consume – it takes meaning from its context, and the pleasure is often in the moment. Writing is like that as well. We have to have it in order to survive, so it is important to overlook the inadequacies and savor the moment it comes to us.

So I have come to see writing more like sausages. Think of it as a wurst-case scenario. We have to eat, and we have to communicate. These are things our species is wired to need. What makes any of it special is the moment where it comes together. Try not to think about the bits and pieces that went into it being made.

With that thought, I'll give the ol' spitzhaube von Bismark the last word. He wasn't always down on his chosen profession, and sometimes even learned to revel in the moments that led to the creation of laws, and perhaps sausages. I think it applies to writing, too:

"Politics is the art of the possible."


Post a Comment

More Blogs by Erik Hare
• Let the Real Games Begin - Sunday, August 24, 2008
• Soul Mate - Friday, August 22, 2008
• Breaking the Code - Tuesday, August 19, 2008
• The Investment Express - Sunday, August 17, 2008
• The Verse of a Song - Friday, August 15, 2008
• Generic Politics - Tuesday, August 12, 2008
• Reductio ad Extremis - Sunday, August 10, 2008
• I'll Have it Bronzed - Thursday, August 7, 2008
• Lotsa Vacation - Tuesday, August 5, 2008
• Generations: Re-Invention - Sunday, August 3, 2008
• Happy as a Pig. Just a Pig. - Friday, August 1, 2008
• The D Word - Tuesday, July 29, 2008
• Writing Bubble - Monday, July 28, 2008
• Munchie - Friday, July 25, 2008
• Ode an die Freude - Wednesday, July 23, 2008
• Citizen Journalism - Monday, July 21, 2008
• Truth of the Cottonwoods - Monday, July 21, 2008
• Barking at the 'Net - Saturday, July 19, 2008
• Brasilian Way - Thursday, July 17, 2008
• Leadership - Tuesday, July 15, 2008
• No Safe Harbor - Sunday, July 13, 2008
• Open Yer Mouth - Thursday, July 10, 2008
• 15 Second Politics - Tuesday, July 8, 2008
• Nice Work if You Can Get It - Sunday, July 6, 2008
• Fly the Flag - Thursday, July 3, 2008
• Housing Bubble, Toil and Trouble - Tuesday, July 1, 2008
• Depressing Events - Monday, June 30, 2008
• Ein Kunstlerleben - Friday, June 27, 2008
• IRV - Wednesday, June 25, 2008
• Convention Wisdom - Monday, June 23, 2008
• 500 Year Floodplain - Thursday, June 19, 2008
• Desaparecidos - Tuesday, June 17, 2008
• Write on! - Monday, June 16, 2008
• Techno High School - Friday, June 13, 2008
• Urban Return - Wednesday, June 11, 2008
• Strategic Planning - Monday, June 9, 2008
• The Team - Thursday, June 5, 2008
• The Obvious - Tuesday, June 3, 2008
• Hung T-Bar Ceiling - Monday, June 2, 2008
• Brightest Bulbs - Thursday, May 29, 2008
• Regional - Wednesday, May 28, 2008
• Vaca - Accion - Monday, May 26, 2008
• Narrowing - Thursday, May 22, 2008
• Scale - Tuesday, May 20, 2008
• Invisible Hand on the Pump - Monday, May 19, 2008
• Ancient Music - Friday, May 16, 2008
• Electric Motion - Wednesday, May 14, 2008
• Comments? - Monday, May 12, 2008
• In the Translation - Monday, May 12, 2008
• Still Over - Very Over - Friday, May 9, 2008
• Hear the Quiet - Tuesday, May 6, 2008
• Enlightenment and Excess Sugar - Tuesday, May 6, 2008
• Cola Warriors - Monday, May 5, 2008
• Urban Core: Life - Friday, May 2, 2008
• Fantasy and Perspective - Tuesday, April 29, 2008
• Net-Work'd - Tuesday, April 29, 2008
• Urban Core: New Urbanism - Monday, April 28, 2008
• Urban Core: Lessons - Friday, April 25, 2008
• Urban Core - Wednesday, April 23, 2008
• But Fear Itself - Tuesday, April 22, 2008
• You've Got a Friend in Pennsylvania - Monday, April 21, 2008
• Cultural Catholic - Friday, April 18, 2008
• Taxing - Wednesday, April 16, 2008
• Light & Fluffy - Tuesday, April 15, 2008
• Work - Monday, April 14, 2008
• Human Barometer - Thursday, April 10, 2008
• Bad Girls - Tuesday, April 8, 2008
• A Good Meal on a Dreary Day - Tuesday, April 8, 2008
• One Year On - Sunday, April 6, 2008
• Not at Any Price - Friday, April 4, 2008
• Winning Through Acting Crazy - Wednesday, April 2, 2008
• More Press(ure) - Tuesday, April 1, 2008
• Message = Medium - Sunday, March 30, 2008
• Anything is Possible - Thursday, March 27, 2008
• Fit, Print, Whatever - Tuesday, March 25, 2008
• Ars Gratia Fructis - Monday, March 24, 2008
• Yes, Not Again - Sunday, March 23, 2008
• Generations: Empire - Thursday, March 20, 2008
• Generations: Do the Right Thing - Tuesday, March 18, 2008
• Brief Commercial Message - Monday, March 17, 2008
• Generations: Institutionalized - Sunday, March 16, 2008
• Generations - Thursday, March 13, 2008
• St. Patrick's Day - Tuesday, March 11, 2008
• Blinding Daylight - Monday, March 10, 2008
• It's Still Over - Sunday, March 9, 2008
• Pedestrian View - Thursday, March 6, 2008
• Straight Up Racist - Tuesday, March 4, 2008
• Stamp Them When They're Small - Monday, March 3, 2008
• Schooled - Sunday, March 2, 2008
• Free at Last - Friday, February 29, 2008
• Theo-Rhetorical - Tuesday, February 26, 2008
• Moral or Political? - Monday, February 25, 2008
• Flik Lit - Sunday, February 24, 2008
• Fit to Print ... and more! - Thursday, February 21, 2008
• Letter to Sen. Clinton - Tuesday, February 19, 2008
• Leading and Learning - Monday, February 18, 2008
• Dr. Carver - Sunday, February 17, 2008
• Primary Reader - Thursday, February 14, 2008
• Ordem e Progresso - Tuesday, February 12, 2008
• Class and Struggles - Monday, February 11, 2008
• Why Do We Write? - Sunday, February 10, 2008
• Streaming - Thursday, February 7, 2008
• Still About People - Wednesday, February 6, 2008
• A Fun Evening Ahead? - Tuesday, February 5, 2008
• Sick of It? Nah! - Monday, February 4, 2008
• Britney - Sunday, February 3, 2008
• Soooper Tooosday! - Friday, February 1, 2008
• Crazy Train - Tuesday, January 29, 2008
• Sacred and Profane - Monday, January 28, 2008
• Making Stuff - Monday, January 28, 2008
• Bill's World - Thursday, January 24, 2008
• Panic! - Wednesday, January 23, 2008
• Airballs and Airbending - Tuesday, January 22, 2008
• Cold - Sunday, January 20, 2008
• Spencer House - Friday, January 18, 2008
• Avatar - Wednesday, January 16, 2008
• Politics, Hopes, and Dreams - Tuesday, January 15, 2008
• Feast or Famine II: The Wrath of John (Zogby) - Monday, January 14, 2008
• Feast or Famine - Sunday, January 13, 2008
• For Madmen Only - Thursday, January 10, 2008
• Paul - Tuesday, January 8, 2008
• Horseraces and Horse Sense - Monday, January 7, 2008
• A New Start? - Monday, January 7, 2008
• Handicapping - Sunday, January 6, 2008
• Happy Talk - Friday, January 4, 2008
• Cold and Warm - Wednesday, January 2, 2008
• Happy, um, New Year - Monday, December 31, 2007
• Riot - Monday, December 31, 2007
• Bestsellers! - Thursday, December 27, 2007
• Why Do They Read? - Wednesday, December 26, 2007
• Christmas Morning - Tuesday, December 25, 2007
• S. Claus, C-14 - Monday, December 24, 2007
• Darkness and Light - Friday, December 21, 2007
• Memoir - Wednesday, December 19, 2007
• Eyes of a Child - Tuesday, December 18, 2007
• Solstice - Monday, December 17, 2007
• Glory and Promise - Thursday, December 13, 2007
• Desperate Cry for Attention - Wednesday, December 12, 2007
• Compound Interests - Monday, December 10, 2007
• The Game - Monday, December 10, 2007
• Got" Nuthin - Friday, December 7, 2007
• Snow Day - Tuesday, December 4, 2007
• Real Way, Way Real - Tuesday, December 4, 2007
• Snowstorm - Sunday, December 2, 2007
• Progress - Friday, November 30, 2007
• Tao Te Ching - Tuesday, November 27, 2007
• As You Like It - Monday, November 26, 2007
• Saint Paul - Sunday, November 25, 2007
• Travel - Friday, November 23, 2007
• Awareness - Wednesday, November 21, 2007
• Two Places Together - Tuesday, November 20, 2007
• Thanksgiving - Monday, November 19, 2007
• Mechanical PR - Friday, November 16, 2007
• Heavy and Light - Wednesday, November 14, 2007
• Rollin' and Scratchin' - Monday, November 12, 2007
• Lay Yer Dollar Down - Sunday, November 11, 2007
• Smarts - Friday, November 9, 2007
• Local - Wednesday, November 7, 2007
• Elections - Tuesday, November 6, 2007
• Platforms - Sunday, November 4, 2007
• Gutenburgistas - Thursday, November 1, 2007
• Shadows - Wednesday, October 31, 2007
• Saleable - Tuesday, October 30, 2007
• Tea - Monday, October 29, 2007
• Crispin, be Remembered - Thursday, October 25, 2007
• Faking It - Wednesday, October 24, 2007
• Post Dispatch - Tuesday, October 23, 2007
• Job Blob - Sunday, October 21, 2007
• MEA Weekend - Friday, October 19, 2007
• Mousketeer - Friday, October 19, 2007
• A Novel Solution - Wednesday, October 17, 2007
• Sunspots - Monday, October 15, 2007
• Ghosts - Sunday, October 14, 2007
• Voyages - Thursday, October 11, 2007
• Obsolete Houses - Tuesday, October 9, 2007
• Watching - Tuesday, October 9, 2007
• Distributed - Sunday, October 7, 2007
• Bright Light - Friday, October 5, 2007
• Soy Protein - Wednesday, October 3, 2007
• Making a Point - Monday, October 1, 2007
• Grace or Redemption - Sunday, September 30, 2007
• Widgets - Thursday, September 27, 2007
• Expectations - Wednesday, September 26, 2007
• My Point is? - Tuesday, September 25, 2007
• Access - Monday, September 24, 2007
• Housewife - Thursday, September 20, 2007
• Equinox - Wednesday, September 19, 2007
• Writing Back - Tuesday, September 18, 2007
• Street Life - Monday, September 17, 2007
• Cartoon - Friday, September 14, 2007
• The Greenback War - Wednesday, September 12, 2007
• A Fair Cop - Tuesday, September 11, 2007
• Small World - Monday, September 10, 2007
• Fairness - Thursday, September 6, 2007
• School Daze - Tuesday, September 4, 2007
• Publishing, Redux - Monday, September 3, 2007
• Labor Day - Sunday, September 2, 2007
• Ethnicity - Thursday, August 30, 2007
• Who Ya Know - Tuesday, August 28, 2007
• Repo Voting - Monday, August 27, 2007
• Sun - Friday, August 24, 2007
• Starving Artists - Tuesday, August 21, 2007
• Juanita Bartlett - Monday, August 20, 2007
• Stock Marks, not Market - Friday, August 17, 2007
• Novel Writing - Wednesday, August 15, 2007
• Stupid Money - Monday, August 13, 2007
• Crappy Cars - Friday, August 10, 2007
• snafu - Wednesday, August 8, 2007
• J.S. Bach - Monday, August 6, 2007
• I-35W Bridge - Friday, August 3, 2007
• Heat - Wednesday, August 1, 2007
• Illegal - Monday, July 30, 2007
• Prof. Powers - Thursday, July 26, 2007
• Harry Potter - Wednesday, July 25, 2007
• Cat President - Sunday, July 22, 2007
• MCS - Thursday, July 19, 2007
• Politics and People - Wednesday, July 18, 2007
• Authorial Omnipotence - Monday, July 16, 2007
• Conveyance - Thursday, July 12, 2007
• Univision - Wednesday, July 11, 2007
• Tropopause - Monday, July 9, 2007
• Big Ideas - Thursday, July 5, 2007
• Star Spangled Banner - Tuesday, July 3, 2007
• North America - Sunday, July 1, 2007
• ex Machina - Thursday, June 28, 2007
• Catalpa - Tuesday, June 26, 2007
• Blogosphere - Sunday, June 24, 2007
• Queuing - Thursday, June 21, 2007
• Make No Small Plans" - Tuesday, June 19, 2007
• Telling Stories - Monday, June 18, 2007
• Community - Thursday, June 14, 2007
• Minor Leagues - Tuesday, June 12, 2007
• For the Kids - Monday, June 11, 2007
•  Wurst Writing - Thursday, June 7, 2007  

• Progressive - Tuesday, June 5, 2007
• Credentials - Monday, June 4, 2007
• Band Concert - Thursday, May 31, 2007
• Institution - Wednesday, May 30, 2007
• Publiosity - Tuesday, May 29, 2007
• Honor and Sense - Monday, May 28, 2007
• King O'er the Water - Thursday, May 24, 2007
• Everything Counts - Wednesday, May 23, 2007
• Numbers Game - Monday, May 21, 2007
• Elected Attorney General - Friday, May 18, 2007
• Car Free - Thursday, May 17, 2007
• Cold Front - Tuesday, May 15, 2007
• Fortune Telling - Sunday, May 13, 2007
• Distant Voices - Friday, May 11, 2007
• Value - Wednesday, May 9, 2007
• Disposable Buildings - Monday, May 7, 2007
• Energy Alternatives - Friday, May 4, 2007
• Statuary - Thursday, May 3, 2007
• Voice - Tuesday, May 1, 2007
• McNews - Monday, April 30, 2007
• The Jebediah Effect - Thursday, April 26, 2007
• Public Realm - Wednesday, April 25, 2007
• Four Leaves - Tuesday, April 24, 2007
• Media Outlets - Monday, April 23, 2007
• A New Line of Thought - Saturday, April 21, 2007
• Pattern Taxonomy - Friday, April 20, 2007
• Politics, Interest, and Democracy - Thursday, April 19, 2007
• Making Sense - Tuesday, April 17, 2007
• Naked Emperor - Monday, April 16, 2007
• Barking in the Night - Saturday, April 14, 2007
• Kurt Vonnegut - Thursday, April 12, 2007
• All the News That Fits, Prints - Wednesday, April 11, 2007
• It was a dark and stormy night ... - Tuesday, April 10, 2007