WHOA! Three years, and it’s the first time this has happened.
If you subscribe to my feed, or visited my blog here this morning, you might have seen a post called, “Five E-Z Steps to Making it Rich as a Creative Genius.”
The text of that post read as follows:
1. In the process of creating truly viable art, the role of anger is:
a. absolutely crucial, because anger is caused by and creates drive and friction, and art uninformed by drive and friction stands a much better chance of being pablum than it does of being in any significant way compelling.
b. an outstanding place to begin, but ultimately must be subsumed by the larger need to manifest one’s entire vision, not just the “angry” part of it.
c. to make sure people don’t forget that you’re deeply cynical and therefore cool.
d. to make you realize that you’re not allowing yourself enough to fully enough access the spiritual balm of God’s love–which, if you were, would dissolve any enduring drive to “express” yourself.
2. For the good of his work, one of the most important personality characteristics an artist can have is:
a. unadulterated arrogance. Be arrogant
3. Pick a discipline
4. Work
5. Ignore input
Okay, so no one was supposed to see any of that! (Though, actually, the first question-and-answer is pretty finished.) This is the blog I’m working on for today. But this is as far as I got on it before I had to stop to make my wife her breakfast and lunch. (That’s right. We roll like that. I wear an apron. I look good in it, too.) But I guess before I jumped up to start cutting up peaches and so on, instead of the “Save Draft” button, I hit the “PUBLISH” button!
I wouldn’t even have known I’d done that if someone hadn’t commented on the Majorly Unfinished Post.
How bizarre.
Anyway, after I drive Cat to work, go to the post office to mail off some recently purchased books o’ mine, and get back here and actually finish the Prematurely Announced Post, you’ll see what it was you were supposed to see before anyone saw the above.
Now you guys are all Joes Behind-the-Scene of my blog.
See, “Five E-Z Steps to Making it Rich as a Creative Genius” isn’t even the title anymore, man. I’m past that. That’s history. I’ve got this whole idea, see, where I … whoa. Where I leave to drive my wife to work right now.
Blogging. It’s like life, but … well, no, it’s pretty much just like life. You’re always being surprised by how much of it happens before you’re actually ready for it.
Just out: UNFAIR: Why the “Christian” View of Gays Doesn’t Work (softcover edition; Kindle edition; NookBook edition). Like/join my Facebook page. Join the Unfundamentalist Christians.
![John Shore on The Huffington Post](http://johnshore.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/huffpost.jpg?w=120 "John Shore on The Huffington Post\")
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Stopped by again because I was bored.
I am still a nobody. I enjoy writing non-traditional fantasy novels to entertain myself but have a large box full of rejection slips (as well as the "sorry, not right for us" notices in my email inbox). This is a cute post that I find disturbingly true.
Most of my "deeper" or more dramatic ideas are born, in some way, becuase of anger. And I have a lot of anger. I think I must have some berzerker rage in my blood from my ancient Viking ancestors. I either swing a pen or swing a sword. I want people to wake up about some of the stupidity in the world, so I write, hoping someday, someone will read it and think there's something to what I'm trying to say.
Cynicism! I don't think that I'm "cool," but man, am I angsty. I recently wrote in a novel-project that needs editing characters having a conversation about how there will be no true and lasting peace in the world until Humanity is extinct. The sad thing is, I really believe that.
Forgot to say that I am aware it was a mistaken post, but I still find truth in it!
Funny. I hate it when that happens.
Ah, but now you've gone and blown your load of creative genius before it was finished and ready to wow us.
In other words, premature elaboration.
Groan!
Groan?!
Redlefty, I now dub ye, Attilla the Pun!
I just had my second vasectomy three days ago (long, bizarre and freaky story), so I think I've earned the right to deliver some genital humor!
Second vasectomy? Geez! Sounds like you're destined to shoot live rounds. Like Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) says in Jurassic Park, "life, uh… finds a way". Nonetheless, I always enjoy any humorous wordplay, genitally inclined or otherwise.
I had six titanium clips put on me, and still had a sperm count over 8 million. But the pride of that statement is dwarfed by the discomfort of procedure #2.
I’d have preferred to give up my bragging rights and just let the first one work the way it was supposed to.
Oh and now I have ELEVEN titanium clips in there. Looking forward to setting off metal detectors and destroying MRI machines in the future. Lucky for John that my current state leaves me unwilling to talk much about sex, or else I’d be comment-bombing his more recent post about men/women.
HAH! Love it, Redlefty!!
All humor actually comes from pain, if you think about it. Anger and fear are kissing cousins.
"Ah, blogging. It’s like life, but … well, no, it’s pretty much just like life. You’re always being surprised by how much of it happens before you’re actually ready for it."–Yeah! True, dat. And Diana, I say there's nothing hotter than a man who does dishes!!
You guys have peaches already out there? I'm sooo jel!
Maybe, but well, it's the rare things in life that are the most awe-inspiring….
1) I wondered what happened to that post.
2) All men look good in aprons. Almost as good as they look standing at the sink doing the dishes.
3) Gee, that was a sexist remark I just made, wasn't it?
*sigh*. Fine. Can I at least get credit if you use my idea?
As Fred from Megatokyo would say, without angst there is no art.