My Writerly Angst, Let Me Show You It

Monday, June 21, 2010
I don't really have writerly angst. I'm just profoundly unmotivated today from a blogging perspective, and when I complained about it on Twitter, long time reader and occasional commenter @steve_buchheit suggested I write about how I can't write a post because I have "Writerly Angst." Which made me snicker, seeing as how I'm not exactly an "artiste." More like a member of a sarcastic peanut gallery in the balcony of life.

I guess I just have "angst," for reasons I choose not to go into. As we've noted here before, mental housecleaning is never fun, but often necessary.

So in lieu of coherent and lucid content, here are my angsty and cryptic thoughts for the day:
  • Worthwhile things require constant and diligent work, and to expect otherwise is unrealistic and sets me up for failure.
  • Getting hung up on things that irritate but don't pertain to the true value in a person or a relationship is not a virtue. But keeping things in perspective is.
  • Beware of inclinations toward sexism and expectations surrounding gender-based roles. That way lies hypocrisy.
  • I have the ability to learn new skills. Even those for which I may not have a natural gift. If I choose not to use that ability, I should not blame others for making the same choice. 
  • Assuming the worst about others may be satisfying to my tendency towards self-righteousness, but it's not fair. Or right.
  • While unprovoked rudeness is never really appropriate, I owe more courtesy to the people I love than to strangers. And I deserve the same in return.
  • Spending my entire life fixing what's broke about myself shouldn't be a chore, but a privilege. But either way, it's still work.
I hope to return to your regularly scheduled smart-assery tomorrow.

6 comments:

Anne C. said...

You need to have a glass of whiskey at your side for true writerly angst, but you've got a good start here.
And, though this is usually Eric's area of action, I'll say it anyway:
Do keep in mind that the observation and improvement of the self is a rare trait in itself, so while you're working hard, you can give yourself some credit for THAT.
(It is, actually, one of the main reasons I think you're dynamite.)

Steve Buchheit said...

Glad I could have been of service, Janiece. :)

As to point 1, Oh My YES! It's something our modern media tends to gloss over and the culture discusses "talent" (as in "God Given Talent") to turn what is actually hard work into something people should "just get." Nobody just gets it. Brittany Spears (kill me now, I'm using her as an example) didn't just start singing when she was 16 and "get discovered." She was doing amateur singing contests when she was like 6. Eddie Van Halen (not the greatest guitar player, but a convenient example) still practices, daily. My own profession, Graphic Design, is constantly changing and it's more than just keeping up to date with software (when I started, Desktop Publishing was just a good idea - and don't get me started about trend spotting).

And there's a level in everything that everybody reaches. It's that tipping point between "I like doing this, but don't need to be expert" and the "I'm going for the Olympics, Baby!" Yeah, there's a wall everywhere that keeps the mildly curious and the pros apart. If you make the commitment, that's usually all that's necessary. Not everybody can or will.

Tania said...

Good things to think on. Thank you. :)

vince said...

"Sarcastic Peanut Gallery" would make a good title for a book. Or a band name or CD title.

Eric said...

Brittany Spears (kill me now, I'm using her as an example) didn't just start singing when she was 16 and "get discovered." She was doing amateur singing contests when she was like 6.

And yet she has essentially no vocal range and limited capacity to carry a tune* and basically dances like she's waiting for somebody to put a five in her waistband. Proving, perhaps, the point: hard work can get you farther than talent.


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*And lacks the character to turn her limitations as a vocalist into assets, a la Nico or Tom Waits (the singer, not the songwriter).

Stacey said...

I think a pedi and a martini are in order