bottledworder

Easy reading is damn hard writing Blogging since 2012

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Five observations on writing

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I often think of this Indian vegetarian "thali" I had in Journal Square in Jersey City when I think of perfect writing. The ingredients come together well in each item in its own bowl and then all the bowls come together in a beautiful arrangement making the eating experience fun.
When I think of perfect writing, I often think of this Indian vegetarian “thali” I had in Journal Square in Jersey City . All parts are well integrated. The ingredients come together in each item in its own bowl and then all the bowls come together in a beautiful arrangement making the eating experience fun.

Food is fun but this post is about writing. But I’m okay with calling it Cheesy Nuggets of Wisdom about Writing from Bottledworder if that makes us feel hungry for words:

  1. Writing is not just about the extraordinary moments. It’s about making the ordinary moments extraordinary.
  2. Writing is like cooking. You don’t want to become a recipe collector. You want to cook.
  3. Some writers win and some writers lose. But writing is never about the race.
  4. A boring life need not create a boring writer nor an interesting life a cool one.
  5. Nothing is good or bad but writing makes it so.

More nuggets as they strike me on my Facebook page!

30 responses to “Five observations on writing”

  1. GROSIR GAMIS MURAH BEKASI Avatar
    GROSIR GAMIS MURAH BEKASI

    i like

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  2. but writing makes it so | Francis James Franklin (Alina Meridon) Avatar
    but writing makes it so | Francis James Franklin (Alina Meridon)

    […] (‘Nothing is good or bad but writing makes it so.’ – funny observation by bottledworder: Five observations on writing.) […]

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  3. Blogs | Books: Publishing, Reading, Writing Avatar
    Blogs | Books: Publishing, Reading, Writing

    […] On Writing From Writer Unboxed: The Foolish Writer and the Wise by Jael McHenry From terribleminds: Fuck the Straight Line: How Story Rebels Against Expectation From bottleworder: Five observations on writing […]

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  4. jessicajhill Avatar
    jessicajhill

    Love this! (Especially the relation to Indian thali – my favorite.) Just found your blog. Looking forward to reading more…

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      Thanks Jessica!

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  5. Wanda S. Paryla Avatar
    Wanda S. Paryla

    Great observation! I love #2!

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  6. Katie Checkley Avatar
    Katie Checkley

    I like number four a lot. I’ve always been under the false pretense that all writers led wildly interesting lives. Good know I’ve been wrong all along! 🙂

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  7. Linda Joyce Avatar
    Linda Joyce

    Food for thought: I always include food in my novels. 🙂

    Smiles,

    Linda Joyce

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  8. alesiablogs Avatar
    alesiablogs

    I love this. I actually have in the title of my own blog–“A blog about ordinary life told in extraordinary fashion!” You nailed it!

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  9. AR Neal Avatar
    AR Neal

    Reblogged this on One Starving Activist and commented:
    As someone who likes food and wriiting, I concur wholeheartedly! Oh, and the nod to Indian food in Jersey City helped too 🙂

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      🙂

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  10. Mocha Avatar
    Mocha

    Reblogged this on liveuntil and commented:
    Awesome write up

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  11. jannatwrites Avatar
    jannatwrites

    I like your thoughts on writing. The second one really strikes me. It is more fun to cook/write than to sit on the sidelines watching someone else do it instead.

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  12. mcwoman Avatar
    mcwoman

    You are so right! I’m a cook and a writer and the analogy is perfect. I’m always excited when unlike things can be compared so perfectly. Thanks.

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  13. Mikael Avatar
    Mikael

    Reblogged this on The Northeast Post and commented:
    Number 1 is particularly true.

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  14. mrs fringe Avatar
    mrs fringe

    Yes, making the ordinary moments extraordinary–while keeping them believable 🙂

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  15. sarahlong00 Avatar
    sarahlong00

    The first point is so important, but also one of my personal biggest challenges with writing. It takes a certain flair to truly make the mundane something exceptional and entertaining.
    P.S. I’ve never been inspired to cook Indian food and write all at the same time 🙂

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      yes, making the mundane extraordinary is hard. and a 🙂 to the P.S.

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  16. Clayton from tales2apoint Avatar
    Clayton from tales2apoint

    So…in response to #1, writing really is about the extraordinary moments, since even the ordinary moments are to be extraordinary? 🙂 I totally get what you mean, but had to comment on your word choice. I love how using the same word twice can often lead in two different directions, depending both on reader and context.

    Also, to say “nothing” is good or bad, seems somewhat ignorant of reality. We all experience things daily that we would mark as good or bad, even without the need for them to be written (universally sometimes). Care to elaborate? I read this from a philosophy of life perspective. Were you stating it from a strictly philosophy of writing perspective?

    Fun post! Made me hungry too. I had to wait to read it AFTER lunch! 🙂

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      That last one is really my variation on Hamlet’s words about his perception of his situation in Denmark in Act 2, Sc 2: “for there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”

      I guess what I meant in that point has been better described by another witty dramatist: “”There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. Books are either well written or badly written. That is all.” Oscar Wilde.

      I don’t really believe that books have no relation to ethics all the way but Wilde’s wit fascinates me always. And I always enjoy reading books that are well written even though I may not agree with their ethics or ideology.

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  17. Frank Avatar
    Frank

    I love the Shakespeare misquote in #5.

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  18. jennymiller62 Avatar
    jennymiller62

    how appropriate is it to read this during lunch….

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  19. Lynette d'Arty-Cross Avatar
    Lynette d’Arty-Cross

    I agree with Dave Higgins! I kept thinking about food! But seriously, a good post!

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  20. Judy Avatar
    Judy

    This is so, so true. I love sifting through moments that I want to write about. It’s always for me about what is touching. If it gives me pause – a gasp, a clutch in my throat – then I want to write about it. My complete goal is to convey that in a way that touches other people. The hardest thing I ever wrote was the story about the death of my 5-year-old son. I am proud that I was able to do that, and at the same time it was so cathartic for me. Great post!

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      So sorry to hear about your loss.

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      1. Judy Avatar
        Judy

        Thank you for your reply. I have chosen to look at my loss at something that completely changed the direction of my life. As much as it was a dreadful horror to have lived through it, I have come out the other end with gifts to share my heart. My son has never left me!

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  21. pishnguyen Avatar
    pishnguyen

    “Writing is not just about the extraordinary moments. It’s about making the ordinary moments extraordinary.”

    Wow. This point, in particular, really hit home for me. I am a person who often thinks: “I have nothing to write about. I’m too boring.” I am going to try my best to keep this in mind from now on. 🙂

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  22. Author Charmaine Gordon Avatar
    Author Charmaine Gordon

    Delightful! Thanks so much for the analogy of cooking/writing.

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  23. Dave Higgins Avatar
    Dave Higgins

    You cannot open with a thali then expect people to read on; put it at the end so they can muse on your post while they seek out food.

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    1. bottledworder Avatar
      bottledworder

      That’s a good thought. Especially true right before lunch.

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Comments welcome

I’m, Bottledworder. Always inhabiting the half-streets, catching paradoxes, thinking in greys, trapping the world in words in my bottle.

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