Re : Here's what you do ...
Camille Scaysbrook (verona_beach@geocities.com)
Mon, 20 Apr 1998 00:37:14 +0000
> Am I making sense here? Is my parallel too far-fetched? I can't
> see how learning your own craft could possibly hurt it. At the
> worst, we end up with a lot of technically good writing reads cold
> and hollow...and we have that in abundance. I still love to read.
Yes, this makes a lot of sense - it's a good analogy. For a long time
I got really worried about whether my writing followed the rules
enough. That totally drained my plays of personality and made it
machine like. Then I went the total opposite direction, rebelled
against learning anything about my craft and wrote totally rule-less,
directionless, unshaped plays. At the moment, I'm establishing a
middle ground somewhere in between. I think it's part of the learning
process, negotiating between content and emotion. I still do wish
sometimes that I knew nothing about writing - sometimes your
instincts are far more accurate than any textbook or writing class.
I think the best writing is `specifically universal' - i.e. we can
all identify with Holden's little observations whether we live in New
York or not. There's no real formula - I remember my father telling
me about when he learnt to play the guitar. He said `I could play the
notes perfectly. I just couldn't play *music*'. This is kind of how I
feel about writing - there's those who can play the notes in the
right order, and those who can effortlessly construct symphonies.
Camille Scaysbrook
verona_beach@geocities.com
THE ARTS HOLE
@ www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Theater/6442