over on luke's blog, words that remind me that this isn't just entertainment . . . .
“advice? i don’t have advice. stop aspiring and start writing. if you’re writing, you’re a writer. write like you’re a goddamn death row inmate and the governor is out of the country and there’s no chance for a pardon. write like you’re clinging to the edge of a cliff, white knuckles, on your last breath, and you’ve got just one last thing to say, like you’re a bird flying over us and you can see everything, and please, for God’s sake, tell us something that will save us from ourselves. take a deep breath and tell us your deepest, darkest secret, so we can wipe our brow and know that we’re not alone. write like you have a message from the king. or don’t. who knows, maybe you’re one of the lucky ones who doesn’t have to.”
- alan watts
6 comments:
Alan Watts was a wonderful writer and thinker. He introduced a whole generation to eastern religion and mysticism generally. Me included. I read and enjoyed a number of his books back in the sixties and seventies, books that started me down a path I'm still traveling. His advice for writing is sound.
hi dan - i love his forthright, compassionate, insightful writing. i first read him in high school - a looong time back - and like all good things, he resurfaced for me as a kind of sidebar to the main focus of my thoughtwork. the revisiting has been healthy. have a lovely day, steven
Hi Steven - I don't know this writer at all, but I do know that if you want to be a writer you have to write and write and write - and never say you have nothing to say! I find putting a blog on every day (almost) keeps me in trim.
hi weaver, this blog has become my most compelling reason to write. i've always had something to say!!!! i lke that this format helps me think about why and what i am going to say. have a lovely rest of your day. steven
I'm not familiar with Alan Watts, but, man, I loved this piece! Thanks for sharing it with us, Steven.
i like that it's straight up in your face honest truth with some obvious wit tucked away in there and best of all it makes me remember to write!! see you. steven
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