ElectricHobo

Writing for Noobs like me

The maddening changes happening all around us in the world in these unusual times have lots of people deeply thinking about what they are doing with their life, “what makes you happy?” “What are you passionate about?” and so on…. cliched they may be, but persistent none the less. Perhaps we are just too comfortable in the modern world when we are not spending as much time in the age-old sport of survival of the fittest. I am certainly no exception to this trend having wasted many hours on these types of thoughts. “Writer!” says that little voice in my head “Maybe you could be a writer!”. I should be going to sleep right now. Instead (and certainly not for the first time) I am searching the internet about how you can make money as a writer. It’s a real shame that “it would have to be a viable source of income” is the second thought that comes to mind and probably not indicative of the required free spirt of a real author, but hay, needs must. I find the Vocal site and have a good browse around; some things are my cup of tea, some not so much, mostly impressive none the less. “Their command of language is a lot better than yours anyway” says the little voice “You would need a lot of practice to be any good” he continues “yes, yes let me dream of it a little, I’m supposed to be going to sleep and that’s the time for dreams” “I” reply. It just occurs to me now that the little hypocrite was the one that suggested the whole thing in the first place, the same one now admonishing itself/myself in some sort of maddening fractal double bind, “Probably make a good Koan, but you don’t know anything about them anyway” he interrupts, “Shh” I reply. I remember as a young boy on family holidays gazing off into the distant mountains, a sea scape, horizons, or lochside depending on our destination (never a palm tree beach and coconuts for us, all tartan and haggis and within driving distance of home) and thinking just how cool it would be to wander around thinking of stories and ideas and writing them down as an actual Job. My little dissenter continues his secretion “stop spending time on this, you should think about raising an invoice for that TCP/IP work on the client’s new system” “Shh! it won’t take that long I think it’s only supposed to be a few hundred words” I reply.