Sunday, May 15, 2011

....Something Completely Different

So, apparently I'm a freak. This doesn't come as a complete surprise, as I already knew I was strange, but now I'm officially in uncharted territory.

My best friend is home from school for a few days. We got together yesterday, did a little shopping, went out to lunch, and caught up on all of the horrible things that have happened since we last spoke. We went back to her place around 7:30p and she invited another friend over, someone I went to high school with (though she was a few years ahead of me), but hadn't seen in quite some time.

It was a little awkward, but I can deal with that. My best friend had mentioned this person was working on a book (she's going to grad school so she can teach creative writing) and I thought, "Ooo! Common ground!" She had done a reading just the night before. Upon learning about this, I thought that maybe this reunion could open new doors for me. Perhaps she and I would get along and I might meet a few more creative people. She's always been into the art crowd. I figured this could be good.

Unfortunately, she and I are both writers, but that's where the similarities stop. I write fiction; she writes nonfiction. I've completed a decent number of manuscripts; she's still working on her first. I never really had formal training; she's getting her master's. The list goes on and on.

She spoke about how unmotivated she is to finish her project. How she keeps making deadlines that never pan out. She'd spent the entire day writing. And I tried to sympathize. But the problem is, I don't really have those issues. I don't make deadlines because I don't need to make deadlines. If I'm going to write, I'm going to write, and I'll produce several thousand words in a matter of hours, and have them edited before I close up shop. I have no problem coming up with story lines that span multiple books. And I'm fairly young, so I'm not all that worried about rushing to get published right now.

The more we talked, the more I realized that those great ideas I had weren't going to pan out. And that's okay. Everyone is different. I might not click with her, but I click with plenty of other people.

And then I had a few drinks and started commenting on comma splices in what my best friend was saying.

So, maybe not plenty of other people....


-Liz

2 comments:

  1. Well, sorry it didn't work out, though it is fascinating to encounter all the different types of people who fall under the general heading of "writer."

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  2. Saying you're a 'writer' is rather a general term and finding one to click with is a special thing. I hang out in person with lots of writers during NaNo but we're all so diverse, its rare to find that ah-ha!, common ground, you-so-get-where-I'm-coming-from connection.

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