5. if you were able to take time off of work and sit down and write, barring all writer’s block possibilities and creative hindrances, what kind of literature would you produce? compare the style and content to that of a writer of which we are familiar. a autobiographical semi-fiction ala my husband dave eggers? a dark fiction much like christopher rice? light hearted chick lit? or perhaps a carrie bradshaw-esque column about life in chicago and boystown? something else? what would be your hook and how would you relate to the public at large? finally, tell me what you would title it…
professionally, i would love to have the skill and reliability to write a column. about life. about living. about love. and all the other stuff that gets lost in between. it's an exhilirating idea, but i don't think i have the creative wherewithal to routinely come up with good ideas for a column. i've always said i'd be a much better editor.
regardless, i have always somewhat secretly thought i would one day write a book. not a series of books. not two. just one.
i think the style would be very similar to adam haslett's. he wrote a book called "you are not a stranger here", and it really rang for me. he's very real. nothing in excess but incredibly descriptive. the words have a real bearing that goes beyond the plot. more familiarly, i'd say the book's style could be likened to that of molly's future husband dave eggers... but i think i'd be a little less... fantastical. a little more rooted. less likely to fly off the handle. toss in a bit of david sedaris' "it's funny because it's true" humor, and we may have arrived at me.
as for content, well, i'm a half-step ahead of you. it'd be a slightly to semi-autobiographical book, combining the humor, whimsy and light-heartedness of chick lit with the hearty realness of narrative exposition. the protagonist and i would have somewhat of a shared history... whether it be memories, likenesses, experiences, or simply perspective. i would want the writing to feel true to its audience, and i know i would accomplish that best by sharing what's true to me.
it would follow a boy, a man, through the trials of having two great loves in his life: the one that got away and the one he has. i'd want to explore how we know we love someone. how we know when love has left. how we respond when worlds collide. and how we handle looking for, missing, and affirming love when it's not around.
i think the hook, how i'd get the general public to be interested, would be getting my publisher to publicize it as "the greatest book of our time" ala "kafka's motorbike".
nah, i think i'd really rely on word of mouth. i wouldn't want to be part of oprah's book club. i wouldn't want a lot of hype. i'd want people to like it and to share it. of course, i suppose it's easy to say that when you don't have big fatty checks rolling in because ms. winfrey said, "it's one of my favorite things."
the title? easy.
"the other fish"
i often find myself thinking about this idea that "there are always other fish in the sea". well, what happens when you're not ready to fish again? or when you're with an "other fish"? or you are the "other fish"? what if the sea is empty? or has an odd number of fish? is life really just one big sunday morning on tnn? with that many lines in the water, what're we really fishing for?
i swear this isn't a lesbian blog.
red fish, blue fish...
only one question left... :(
posted by brett @ 2:59 PM
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