I was thinking of joining the Medium "Partnership Program" but have noticed that periodically, a group of people I read suddenly get "disappeared' from it, and forlornly post questions to those they assume know how things work there to try to figure out what they did wrong. I did that in high school with my friends about the boy who never called me after one date and it is still as lame as ever.
I have this horrible feeling that they save money on staff by having some hack bot scan for "AI writing" in some totally random fashion, and some work that is "too polished" get caught in the net. Of course, as there are almost no staff, no one has time to tell anyone (at least for a long time) WHY it happened. Some people have been "disappeared" more than once then suddenly have been reinstated Stalin used to do that to some of his more ornery dissidents in the format of multiple fake execution charades.
I am too ornery to ever depend on something like Medium for survival, but there are some poor souls who have gone in to "build their brand" there to become "financially independent" , invested oodles of time and emotions, only to be kicked off with no notice. If I want THAT, I can get it working for Colonial Parking inspecting old file boxes!
Write because there are things inside you that need to be written out. Maybe someone will like it. Maybe not, but it will be real. Maybe that is enough.
Anyone who writes is a writer if they want to call themselves that. As simple as. If someone defines themselves as writer who am I to argue they are not? I may not like or understand their writing style and I may not like what they write. But they are writing. Quality is another matter and I think many writers struggle with what they refer to as block because of criticism whether external or internal. It's a definition issue and so many people struggle with the imposter syndrome. An award winning athlete, an award winning chef, a top student, a top writer will find themselves saying I'm not an athlete, chef, great student... people blame each other for not being good parents, drivers etc. It's up to each person to decide what they are and most folk would think twice to call themselves anything in my opinion. We don't need to break them. But then again your piece is so full of intent and purpose but yet general. What is the specific part behind the story that's not disclosed? Are you trying to provoke to make a point? Is it frustration? I didn't understand the muffin analogy. But back to the semantics, I found this very interesting especially as I think that the act of writing is empowering.
If I intended to provoke, I would have left in the original concluding paragraph. The piece is general because specificity wasn't necessary to make my point. As I already mentioned, people can call themselves whatever they want, but it does not make it true. If no requirement exists other than to write your name, the title will become meaningless. You learn to play the piano to become a pianist. You don't tap a few keys and declare yourself a pianist. You're the second person to mention imposter syndrome, which I think is irrelevant here. People who legitimately suffer from it won't solve the issue simply by calling themselves a writer or chef or whatever. Deep mental work is required to climb out of that hole. I'm not frustrated, well, no more than my baseline, my usual. Perhaps I sound like a rambling lunatic. That's fine. I mean, why the hell do I even care what people call themselves? It's trivial, right? Or not. The English language has been diluted. It's reached a point where I often have to ask people what *their* definition of a word is because I know they're not using it correctly. Because of the Internet, words get overused and distorted. Some lose meaning; others take on new meanings. I'm digressing here, but it's all relevant. I'm not talking about how people view themselves: a writer, a basketball player, handsome, pretty, tall, etc. We tell ourselves lies all day every day. It's how we get out of bed each morning. What I am referring to is how people present themselves to the world. Don't tell me who you are—show me.
(This is what a rough draft looks like. I don't have the time to organize it and make it coherent. Sorry.)
Methinks the biggest misconceptions of English are when two parties have two different ideas of the same word, and misunderstanding ensues. Some are lucky, or perspicacious enough to realize the disparity between each other’s understanding, but a lot gets swept under the rug. Even so, the amount of effort it takes to ascertain the opposition’s definition is hardly worth it, for many cannot be convinced to assimilate to a unified definition with much ease. For some who make words their weapon, this is an essential pursuit, vis. To collect all these words under one roof and manipulate its effects thereof. The argument itself of whether not a writer is a writer based on one’s perception of the quality or quantity of writing on display is a testament to our ambiguous language, and the subjugation of it’s principle meaning, which is forever elusive and buried in antiquity. But if this discord of common meaning did not exist and everything was so black and white, what reason would poets have to get out of bed in the morning? Thank you for rattling the cages of a few fragile writers!
Ah jeez, I was writing on the crapper again. So I quite literally pulled that one out of my ass! Poets are just dung beatles anyhow… we roll shit up in a ball and stack it on other shits. Cheers!
Aha! Now you’re talking! I think everything you say here in response is relevant. The language is diluted, things, concepts and words change with time as do their meanings. I’m glad you sent the rough answer, it makes total sense. I apologise if I misjudged the initial post. Thank you for taking the time to respond!
You don’t need to justify. But I was keen to have your take on this. So thank you. You’re a writer, you say your piece and we respond, agree or don’t. You’re right how it reflects on other creative parts. When you wrote about music, I thought you are spot on. Some songs or lyrics are repeating a same pattern over and over again. The new generation call it music others not so much. Let’s just say there are many different types of writers, musicians, artists. Thank you for keeping the conversation open.
I get your point entirely. I’ve been surprised to see how prevalent imposter syndrome (am I? Aren’t I?) is on Substack. I’ve never considered the question of whether or not I was a writer as it just hasn’t seemed relevant. I write once in a while and I sometimes teach writing and that alone brings me satisfaction, which should be the point. It’s good advice to prompt people to think less about the job title and focus instead on the doing…otherwise you can talk yourself right out of doing altogether. The angst is not worth the attention.
Thank you. I'm delighted you understood my primary point, which I probably should have elaborated on more, though I thought as the conclusion, it would’ve carried some weight. Still, if people react emotionally to a piece, they often miss the premise.
I don't think every case is imposter syndrome. Some people, I believe, just want to know whether they’ve crossed the invisible threshold. They tie themselves in knots over a question whose answer changes nothing.
I've never given the question any headspace either. It’s irrelevant, as you mentioned.
If you have indeed written three novels, in what context are you not, objectively, a novelist? One can easily be an unpublished novelist, but the writing of three works is an amazing accomplishment and not one out of a million born can claim it. The "I am writing a novel" crowd is much bigger!
Second question. What does "never have I trusted pre-owned muffins stuffed with broken luck and masterful rust" mean? Are you having us on?
I don't see writing three shifty rough drafts as an accomplishment. Anybody could write 300 pages of garbage. Why would I call myself a novelist anyway? For what purpose? To whom would I say it? Why? Would my declaring myself a novelist change anything in my life? No. So why bother?
Regarding your second question: The beginning of this piece has no meaning. It was me goofing around, playing with words.
I hated law school every second I was there, but it killed in me for life the assumption that every scrap of observation, captured melody, momentary stomach ache, and verbal fart was a perfect jewel as it came burbling out.
I see! Law school is great for a lot of things, but maybe not realising that the creative journey is a different one, one where you let every scrap of observation be noted down as it comes and then decide later how to rework it and what to do with it.
At 24, I was much too screwed up to even "see" myself as someone who would ever be a writer or poet. We were so poor and dysfunctional that I wanted to use my intelligence for something "practical" like law. It made for a very miserable person though, and I basically went into a massive nervous breakdown at 40 and blew up my life!
In the first year of law school, had a brief, mad dream of "running away to Hollywood." I spent a lot of my time making up stories about the characters from our law school cases, and had my classmates waiting every Monday for the latest installment. I think it is just as well I did NOT go to Hollywood in the early 80's, I would likely have been shredded to bits and spit out.
To be more specific about my experience, before law school, in my private life, I wallowed in reading of all sorts, from Otto Rank's "Art and Artist" to a "scholarly" review at 14 of my father's massive canvas sack of truly nasty porn, hidden in the rafters of the attic (I already knew then how scared he was to throw it into the trash or even park it at the local dump). I just let it ALL wash over me. I was also filled with nightmares and rage from a violent childhood and unthinkingly blotted it out with more and more alcohol (the family example). There was a bizarre Celtic knot of chaos in my brain.
After that crucible of first year law, I had an image come to me that law school (particularly the case study analysis of decisions into various components) had created a structure for the molten material in my noggin. I visualized it flowing like metal into gossamer molds of titanium, spider webs both delicate and powerful. I still was mostly passive, reading books, watching an absurd number of movies , while I built an outwardly successful bureaucratic career. But the strain and cracks got worse and worse over time.
Have long enjoyed going to local readings and "performing" my stuff around town, but now at my seasoned age, am pulling things together in more disciplined fashion, but still sometimes shy from revealing my work publicly (I removed some "memoir" stuff from Medium this spring in a panic) but am getting stronger!
After that crucible of first year law, I had an image come to me that law school (particularly the case study analysis of decisions into various components) had created a structure for the molten material in my noggin. I visualized it flowing like metal into gossamer molds of titanium, spider webs both delicate and powerful. I still was mostly passive, reading books, watching an absurd number of movies , while I built an outwardly successful bureaucratic career. But the strain and cracks got worse and worse over time.
Have long enjoyed going to local readings and "performing" my stuff around town, but now at my seasoned age, am pulling things together in more disciplined fashion, but still sometimes shy from revealing my work publicly (I removed some "memoir" stuff from Medium this spring in a panic) but am getting stronger!
This is powerful stuff, beautifully written. That metal molten spiderweb a delicate segment of a powerful soul. Am sorry for what you’ve been experiencing but you have the discipline of a law education and the skills of a wordsmith! There’s nothing wrong writing your story down. You can edit it later and decide if you go fiction route or memoir route. Thank you for sharing Moe!
Hey, just on a whim, this is one of my fiction pieces I developed all the way out, as opposed to some of the more improvisational stuff I like to write on Medium (or less frequently now, on "Forever Twitter").
I have found this very insightful in pulling together some scattered pieces of my life! I tend not to stare too intently into people's eyes, as a terrific woman I know from Belfast, Northern Ireland (a scientist and musician) who is very intuitive said she got a sense that if I looked too deeply into her I would see all her secrets and rob her of her illusions if I bluntly told her what I saw. I've "triggered" a lot of male supervisors in my past, without thinking I was doing anything but sitting quietly, and have had issues sometimes with fitting in in trad offices. Last, as a younger kid I thought I was a bad person for my pretty merciless estimations of adults around me, which I tended to keep to myself given the violent environment, which I also assessed pretty accurately. : )
Cheers and have a good week. I am going off to test sandwich recipes for one series on Medium, and to write a new piece about a peas and chicken (not chicken and peas) soup, as seasonal "shell peas" are my preoccupation of the day. : )
I needed to have something to make me grin instead of scowl.
I write become it cleanses my soul and clears the jumble of emotions in my gut. It's for me, and perhaps someone will identify with a bit of it. Perhaps not, but who really cares?
Tell you what. I'm a storyteller—meaning I write, record and publish stories for kids. But apparently so are politicians, journalists, video game designers and branding consultants. When I say I'm a storyteller, people have no idea what I'm talking about because it is officially too vague. They look at me and wait because surely I am speaking metaphorically, like saying "I'm a lover" or "I'm in the appreciation business". But paid, ah - there's the rub.
Interesting, Corey. I'm trying to decide if what you've presented here is a paradox. You posit that writing words, even many words, does not make someone a writer. I can appreciate this, but it does leave me wondering how one earns the privilege. It feels like the underlying message is about the ability to meet a standard of quality, but it's hard for us to know when we're there.
At the end, you fling open the gate: Write, you counsel. Don't spend too much time in your head, and don't worry about labels, as if to say it's okay to write as long as you don't have the temerity to call yourself a writer. Is it the label that sends the whole thing over the edge?
Here in the comments, you write that language has been diluted. I'd offer that it's more a product of audience access. There was a time when a singer, writer, dancer, painter could only get themselves in front of an audience after having been "discovered." Now, thanks to digital media and e-books, anyone can put themselves out there in the hope of finding viewers. It's easy for most of us to agree that doctors, electricians, professional athletes, etc. must have certain levels of training before they can call themselves such. What is the creative to do? At what point are we permitted to use the noun, not the verb?
Interesting to think about all this. Thanks for opening it up.
Words like “OCD”, “trauma”, “narcissist”, “trigger”, “anxiety”, “safe”, and “toxic” have been watered down. Unless you’re familiar with the speaker, you rarely know whether somebody is being hyperbolic or sincere when using such words. That was what I meant when saying the English language has been (is being) diluted. The Internet has facilitated this deterioration, or “audience access” as you called it.
I don’t have answers, which is why I said in the piece that I don’t know what a writer is or isn’t. The meaning, in this sense, is broad and ambiguous, hence the ubiquitous confusion. But I don’t think lowering the bar to “Can you write your name? Yes? Voila, you’re a writer,” is the solution.
I didn’t intend or claim to give guidelines to help people determine whether they’ve earned the title. My only objective was to point and say, “I don’t think this makes sense.”
You claimed I provided a paradox. I don’t see it that way. After stating that I have no idea what the criteria are—only that I believe criteria should exist—I suggested that people should not worry about it and just write. Why? because the one thing I do know is that to become a writer, you must write.
I also did not intend to write this piece. Every piece I set out to write turns into something completely different. It’s always an adventure. I learn each time. Much of what I publish are insights that are new to me, thoughts I did not have prior to writing.
The concluding paragraph was not planned. It was a discovery. It was my realization of “Wait a minute—why the hell does any of this even matter? The writing matters. Just write.”
But it all matters, I think. When words lose their meanings, they become useless. People continue to say, “A writer is one who writes”: the first line in Merriam Webster’s definition of a writer—but not the entire definition. But when people call themselves writers, they typically are not calling themselves “one who writes.” They use the definition to claim the noun but use the noun as a title.
I don’t know when people can call themselves writers. My gripe is with “if you write, you’re a writer.”
You are not alone in that gripe. I appreciate your discovery process and meant to frame my comment similarly, hence all the questions. (Point of clarification: I didn't *claim* paradox. Like you, I wasn't sure and did a bit of wondering aloud here.) I think, in the absence of criteria, and lacking the conviction to be the one to decide what that is, "Just write" is probably the way.
I just want to know what I am so I can tell people when they ask me at parties. Fortunately I don't go to many parties. But still. I used to say "I'm a failed poet," which is more or less true, except for the poet part. (Loved the "essay" Corey!)
I don't socialize and keep no friends, so I don't run into that issue. But the last time I bumped into somebody I had not seen in a long time and was forced to play "catch-up", I told her I edit books and sometimes write them for other people. Then I ran. If I didn't do either of those things for a living, I wouldn't mention my writing. People ask too many questions, especially those unfamiliar with the writerly world.
I read this therefore I am a reader. When do I get paid? 🫶
—right after TV viewers collect their checks.
That will break the bank. Bar them from applying. Too damn many of them.
Haha
HA!! That’s a long line, though probably not as long as the line for getting paid for Medium article reads 😀
I think I’ve only read one or two articles on that platform. Am I missing anything? Should I hurry over and create an account?
Well…. I made 0.22 last month so… if that’s your idea of “f*ck you” money, run over there!!! … 😀
Yeah, I think I’ll pass.
I was thinking of joining the Medium "Partnership Program" but have noticed that periodically, a group of people I read suddenly get "disappeared' from it, and forlornly post questions to those they assume know how things work there to try to figure out what they did wrong. I did that in high school with my friends about the boy who never called me after one date and it is still as lame as ever.
I have this horrible feeling that they save money on staff by having some hack bot scan for "AI writing" in some totally random fashion, and some work that is "too polished" get caught in the net. Of course, as there are almost no staff, no one has time to tell anyone (at least for a long time) WHY it happened. Some people have been "disappeared" more than once then suddenly have been reinstated Stalin used to do that to some of his more ornery dissidents in the format of multiple fake execution charades.
I am too ornery to ever depend on something like Medium for survival, but there are some poor souls who have gone in to "build their brand" there to become "financially independent" , invested oodles of time and emotions, only to be kicked off with no notice. If I want THAT, I can get it working for Colonial Parking inspecting old file boxes!
Grumble grumble.
Maureen Murphy ("Moe") https://medium.com/@ma_murphy_58
.. it’s in the mail .. trust me .. 🦎🏴☠️🍁
Write because there are things inside you that need to be written out. Maybe someone will like it. Maybe not, but it will be real. Maybe that is enough.
Yes! Nicely said, Fred. Thank you.
Anyone who writes is a writer if they want to call themselves that. As simple as. If someone defines themselves as writer who am I to argue they are not? I may not like or understand their writing style and I may not like what they write. But they are writing. Quality is another matter and I think many writers struggle with what they refer to as block because of criticism whether external or internal. It's a definition issue and so many people struggle with the imposter syndrome. An award winning athlete, an award winning chef, a top student, a top writer will find themselves saying I'm not an athlete, chef, great student... people blame each other for not being good parents, drivers etc. It's up to each person to decide what they are and most folk would think twice to call themselves anything in my opinion. We don't need to break them. But then again your piece is so full of intent and purpose but yet general. What is the specific part behind the story that's not disclosed? Are you trying to provoke to make a point? Is it frustration? I didn't understand the muffin analogy. But back to the semantics, I found this very interesting especially as I think that the act of writing is empowering.
If I intended to provoke, I would have left in the original concluding paragraph. The piece is general because specificity wasn't necessary to make my point. As I already mentioned, people can call themselves whatever they want, but it does not make it true. If no requirement exists other than to write your name, the title will become meaningless. You learn to play the piano to become a pianist. You don't tap a few keys and declare yourself a pianist. You're the second person to mention imposter syndrome, which I think is irrelevant here. People who legitimately suffer from it won't solve the issue simply by calling themselves a writer or chef or whatever. Deep mental work is required to climb out of that hole. I'm not frustrated, well, no more than my baseline, my usual. Perhaps I sound like a rambling lunatic. That's fine. I mean, why the hell do I even care what people call themselves? It's trivial, right? Or not. The English language has been diluted. It's reached a point where I often have to ask people what *their* definition of a word is because I know they're not using it correctly. Because of the Internet, words get overused and distorted. Some lose meaning; others take on new meanings. I'm digressing here, but it's all relevant. I'm not talking about how people view themselves: a writer, a basketball player, handsome, pretty, tall, etc. We tell ourselves lies all day every day. It's how we get out of bed each morning. What I am referring to is how people present themselves to the world. Don't tell me who you are—show me.
(This is what a rough draft looks like. I don't have the time to organize it and make it coherent. Sorry.)
Methinks the biggest misconceptions of English are when two parties have two different ideas of the same word, and misunderstanding ensues. Some are lucky, or perspicacious enough to realize the disparity between each other’s understanding, but a lot gets swept under the rug. Even so, the amount of effort it takes to ascertain the opposition’s definition is hardly worth it, for many cannot be convinced to assimilate to a unified definition with much ease. For some who make words their weapon, this is an essential pursuit, vis. To collect all these words under one roof and manipulate its effects thereof. The argument itself of whether not a writer is a writer based on one’s perception of the quality or quantity of writing on display is a testament to our ambiguous language, and the subjugation of it’s principle meaning, which is forever elusive and buried in antiquity. But if this discord of common meaning did not exist and everything was so black and white, what reason would poets have to get out of bed in the morning? Thank you for rattling the cages of a few fragile writers!
Excellent analysis. I read it three times. Thank you.
Ah jeez, I was writing on the crapper again. So I quite literally pulled that one out of my ass! Poets are just dung beatles anyhow… we roll shit up in a ball and stack it on other shits. Cheers!
Haha
Aha! Now you’re talking! I think everything you say here in response is relevant. The language is diluted, things, concepts and words change with time as do their meanings. I’m glad you sent the rough answer, it makes total sense. I apologise if I misjudged the initial post. Thank you for taking the time to respond!
I may post a short follow-up, using some examples I've given in the comments to elaborate on this post.
You don’t need to justify. But I was keen to have your take on this. So thank you. You’re a writer, you say your piece and we respond, agree or don’t. You’re right how it reflects on other creative parts. When you wrote about music, I thought you are spot on. Some songs or lyrics are repeating a same pattern over and over again. The new generation call it music others not so much. Let’s just say there are many different types of writers, musicians, artists. Thank you for keeping the conversation open.
I'm an editor. I think editors are sexy.
As sexy as a clean page. That sounded better in my head. I was trying to make a compliment. I failed. It makes no sense. Whatever. I'm leaving it.
It's all good.
Definitely agree. Similar idea:
- Everybody likes eating food they like, but not everyone is a fan of cooking, the art form
- Everyone likes songs that they like, but not everyone is a fan of music, the art form
- Everybody likes laughing, but not everyone is a fan of comedy, the art form
- Repeat forever
Great examples, Arthur. Thank you.
I’m fukn starving now! Off for a spot of fridge staring. At least it’s not empty. I hope.
I don't trust muffins either. They're the mandarin of the baked goods world.
Although I've never come across a rust flavoured muffin.
Yeah, that bit was gibberish. It had no purpose other than to entertain me. I was just having fun with words. I like a good muffin.
I get your point entirely. I’ve been surprised to see how prevalent imposter syndrome (am I? Aren’t I?) is on Substack. I’ve never considered the question of whether or not I was a writer as it just hasn’t seemed relevant. I write once in a while and I sometimes teach writing and that alone brings me satisfaction, which should be the point. It’s good advice to prompt people to think less about the job title and focus instead on the doing…otherwise you can talk yourself right out of doing altogether. The angst is not worth the attention.
Thank you. I'm delighted you understood my primary point, which I probably should have elaborated on more, though I thought as the conclusion, it would’ve carried some weight. Still, if people react emotionally to a piece, they often miss the premise.
I don't think every case is imposter syndrome. Some people, I believe, just want to know whether they’ve crossed the invisible threshold. They tie themselves in knots over a question whose answer changes nothing.
I've never given the question any headspace either. It’s irrelevant, as you mentioned.
I smiled all the way through.
Thanks, Mike.
Me, too, Mike.
Just a couple of questions.
If you have indeed written three novels, in what context are you not, objectively, a novelist? One can easily be an unpublished novelist, but the writing of three works is an amazing accomplishment and not one out of a million born can claim it. The "I am writing a novel" crowd is much bigger!
Second question. What does "never have I trusted pre-owned muffins stuffed with broken luck and masterful rust" mean? Are you having us on?
Cheers,
Maureen M. ("Moe")
I don't see writing three shifty rough drafts as an accomplishment. Anybody could write 300 pages of garbage. Why would I call myself a novelist anyway? For what purpose? To whom would I say it? Why? Would my declaring myself a novelist change anything in my life? No. So why bother?
Regarding your second question: The beginning of this piece has no meaning. It was me goofing around, playing with words.
Ok, in this case you’ve written some drafts.
However, I did ghostwrite four novels last year. I forgot about that.
I didn't follow the muffin bit either.
There was nothing to follow. It was playful nonsense.
I hated law school every second I was there, but it killed in me for life the assumption that every scrap of observation, captured melody, momentary stomach ache, and verbal fart was a perfect jewel as it came burbling out.
I see! Law school is great for a lot of things, but maybe not realising that the creative journey is a different one, one where you let every scrap of observation be noted down as it comes and then decide later how to rework it and what to do with it.
At 24, I was much too screwed up to even "see" myself as someone who would ever be a writer or poet. We were so poor and dysfunctional that I wanted to use my intelligence for something "practical" like law. It made for a very miserable person though, and I basically went into a massive nervous breakdown at 40 and blew up my life!
In the first year of law school, had a brief, mad dream of "running away to Hollywood." I spent a lot of my time making up stories about the characters from our law school cases, and had my classmates waiting every Monday for the latest installment. I think it is just as well I did NOT go to Hollywood in the early 80's, I would likely have been shredded to bits and spit out.
To be more specific about my experience, before law school, in my private life, I wallowed in reading of all sorts, from Otto Rank's "Art and Artist" to a "scholarly" review at 14 of my father's massive canvas sack of truly nasty porn, hidden in the rafters of the attic (I already knew then how scared he was to throw it into the trash or even park it at the local dump). I just let it ALL wash over me. I was also filled with nightmares and rage from a violent childhood and unthinkingly blotted it out with more and more alcohol (the family example). There was a bizarre Celtic knot of chaos in my brain.
After that crucible of first year law, I had an image come to me that law school (particularly the case study analysis of decisions into various components) had created a structure for the molten material in my noggin. I visualized it flowing like metal into gossamer molds of titanium, spider webs both delicate and powerful. I still was mostly passive, reading books, watching an absurd number of movies , while I built an outwardly successful bureaucratic career. But the strain and cracks got worse and worse over time.
Have long enjoyed going to local readings and "performing" my stuff around town, but now at my seasoned age, am pulling things together in more disciplined fashion, but still sometimes shy from revealing my work publicly (I removed some "memoir" stuff from Medium this spring in a panic) but am getting stronger!
Cheers!
Maureen M. ("Moe")
(End - I think something disappeared!
After that crucible of first year law, I had an image come to me that law school (particularly the case study analysis of decisions into various components) had created a structure for the molten material in my noggin. I visualized it flowing like metal into gossamer molds of titanium, spider webs both delicate and powerful. I still was mostly passive, reading books, watching an absurd number of movies , while I built an outwardly successful bureaucratic career. But the strain and cracks got worse and worse over time.
Have long enjoyed going to local readings and "performing" my stuff around town, but now at my seasoned age, am pulling things together in more disciplined fashion, but still sometimes shy from revealing my work publicly (I removed some "memoir" stuff from Medium this spring in a panic) but am getting stronger!
Cheers!
Maureen M. ("Moe")
This is powerful stuff, beautifully written. That metal molten spiderweb a delicate segment of a powerful soul. Am sorry for what you’ve been experiencing but you have the discipline of a law education and the skills of a wordsmith! There’s nothing wrong writing your story down. You can edit it later and decide if you go fiction route or memoir route. Thank you for sharing Moe!
Hey, just on a whim, this is one of my fiction pieces I developed all the way out, as opposed to some of the more improvisational stuff I like to write on Medium (or less frequently now, on "Forever Twitter").
If you care to read, hope you find it diverting!
https://medium.com/@ma_murphy_58/the-lavender-room-short-story-by-maureen-murphy-e303d974c14a
Best regards,
Maureen ("Moe")
I have found this very insightful in pulling together some scattered pieces of my life! I tend not to stare too intently into people's eyes, as a terrific woman I know from Belfast, Northern Ireland (a scientist and musician) who is very intuitive said she got a sense that if I looked too deeply into her I would see all her secrets and rob her of her illusions if I bluntly told her what I saw. I've "triggered" a lot of male supervisors in my past, without thinking I was doing anything but sitting quietly, and have had issues sometimes with fitting in in trad offices. Last, as a younger kid I thought I was a bad person for my pretty merciless estimations of adults around me, which I tended to keep to myself given the violent environment, which I also assessed pretty accurately. : )
Cheers and have a good week. I am going off to test sandwich recipes for one series on Medium, and to write a new piece about a peas and chicken (not chicken and peas) soup, as seasonal "shell peas" are my preoccupation of the day. : )
Best regards, Maureen M. ("Moe"
Thank you so much for your support. It means a lot!
Best wishes,
Maureen M. ("Moe")
...I do read very fast))
I love your humor so much.
I needed to have something to make me grin instead of scowl.
I write become it cleanses my soul and clears the jumble of emotions in my gut. It's for me, and perhaps someone will identify with a bit of it. Perhaps not, but who really cares?
I like your outlook. Glad you enjoyed the piece. Thank you for taking the time to read it.
Tell you what. I'm a storyteller—meaning I write, record and publish stories for kids. But apparently so are politicians, journalists, video game designers and branding consultants. When I say I'm a storyteller, people have no idea what I'm talking about because it is officially too vague. They look at me and wait because surely I am speaking metaphorically, like saying "I'm a lover" or "I'm in the appreciation business". But paid, ah - there's the rub.
“I you’re not into poetry you just aren’t into life. Your have no skin in the game. That’s why never a single soul hasn’t been into poetry.”
Interesting, Corey. I'm trying to decide if what you've presented here is a paradox. You posit that writing words, even many words, does not make someone a writer. I can appreciate this, but it does leave me wondering how one earns the privilege. It feels like the underlying message is about the ability to meet a standard of quality, but it's hard for us to know when we're there.
At the end, you fling open the gate: Write, you counsel. Don't spend too much time in your head, and don't worry about labels, as if to say it's okay to write as long as you don't have the temerity to call yourself a writer. Is it the label that sends the whole thing over the edge?
Here in the comments, you write that language has been diluted. I'd offer that it's more a product of audience access. There was a time when a singer, writer, dancer, painter could only get themselves in front of an audience after having been "discovered." Now, thanks to digital media and e-books, anyone can put themselves out there in the hope of finding viewers. It's easy for most of us to agree that doctors, electricians, professional athletes, etc. must have certain levels of training before they can call themselves such. What is the creative to do? At what point are we permitted to use the noun, not the verb?
Interesting to think about all this. Thanks for opening it up.
Words like “OCD”, “trauma”, “narcissist”, “trigger”, “anxiety”, “safe”, and “toxic” have been watered down. Unless you’re familiar with the speaker, you rarely know whether somebody is being hyperbolic or sincere when using such words. That was what I meant when saying the English language has been (is being) diluted. The Internet has facilitated this deterioration, or “audience access” as you called it.
I don’t have answers, which is why I said in the piece that I don’t know what a writer is or isn’t. The meaning, in this sense, is broad and ambiguous, hence the ubiquitous confusion. But I don’t think lowering the bar to “Can you write your name? Yes? Voila, you’re a writer,” is the solution.
I didn’t intend or claim to give guidelines to help people determine whether they’ve earned the title. My only objective was to point and say, “I don’t think this makes sense.”
You claimed I provided a paradox. I don’t see it that way. After stating that I have no idea what the criteria are—only that I believe criteria should exist—I suggested that people should not worry about it and just write. Why? because the one thing I do know is that to become a writer, you must write.
I also did not intend to write this piece. Every piece I set out to write turns into something completely different. It’s always an adventure. I learn each time. Much of what I publish are insights that are new to me, thoughts I did not have prior to writing.
The concluding paragraph was not planned. It was a discovery. It was my realization of “Wait a minute—why the hell does any of this even matter? The writing matters. Just write.”
But it all matters, I think. When words lose their meanings, they become useless. People continue to say, “A writer is one who writes”: the first line in Merriam Webster’s definition of a writer—but not the entire definition. But when people call themselves writers, they typically are not calling themselves “one who writes.” They use the definition to claim the noun but use the noun as a title.
I don’t know when people can call themselves writers. My gripe is with “if you write, you’re a writer.”
You are not alone in that gripe. I appreciate your discovery process and meant to frame my comment similarly, hence all the questions. (Point of clarification: I didn't *claim* paradox. Like you, I wasn't sure and did a bit of wondering aloud here.) I think, in the absence of criteria, and lacking the conviction to be the one to decide what that is, "Just write" is probably the way.
I just want to know what I am so I can tell people when they ask me at parties. Fortunately I don't go to many parties. But still. I used to say "I'm a failed poet," which is more or less true, except for the poet part. (Loved the "essay" Corey!)
I don't socialize and keep no friends, so I don't run into that issue. But the last time I bumped into somebody I had not seen in a long time and was forced to play "catch-up", I told her I edit books and sometimes write them for other people. Then I ran. If I didn't do either of those things for a living, I wouldn't mention my writing. People ask too many questions, especially those unfamiliar with the writerly world.
wait a minute... do people fantasize about fucking writers?? If so, I have to re-think this.
I have no idea. I make shit up.
All the matters is the work.
A fun piece with a good point.
Thanks Corey :)
Thanks, Michael.