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ZAUM Sonoma State University's Literary Magazine | |
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Return to current zaum Blog post True Life: Fear and Loathing the Creative Writing Major A Response to Howard Junker May 12, 2010 A few of us felt a little thrown last month after meeting with ZYZZAVA's Howard Junker. During the talk, an eager near-graduate asked, "How can an aspiring Editor make a name for themselves in the industry?" Howard answered, "There is no industry. We're fucked." Although we would usually expect a guest speaker to come with some inspiring tale about and around their success, Junker didn't want to waste our time – and I couldn't have asked for anything more, except for maybe a job… The one thing he said that stuck with me (maybe the only somewhat hopeful insight he shared) is that if we want to find work in the (non)industry, we have to create a place for ourselves. Wait, what? Like make up a job? YEAH, EXACTLY. As students of English Lit and Creative Writing, we don't expect gangs of job offers as soon as we graduate – even if we did before the economic meltdown (which we didn't), then we don't now. The good news is that we don't have to wait around for a position to open up. No way Jose. We can do whatever the #?%@ we want. Think I'm joking? As if! Not when it comes to the prospects afforded by my education, anyway. Our transcripts say it all: We are writers who are also creative. Oi vey. We use our creative little minds to express anything and everything we can think to get our heads around, and soon (if we haven't already) we will have to figure out how to make a living doing it. Well, that's intimidating! But why, what's our deal? It's that writing is personal and emotional and it ends up feeling like your guts are spilling out onto innocent and purely white printer paper. This kind of thing makes it hard to keep up! We can't stop here, this is bat country! No really, we can't stop. We have to keep writing. If it's no good it'll get good. Let it develop. Yeah, you're probably nuts. But who cares, KEEP WRITING. Even if it sounds absurd, especially if it sounds absurd, exhaust it. Maybe you find out it's better unexhausted but you won't know that until you've given it everything you've got. Like sex, just think of it like sex. Some people are better than others, but it just takes practice. No one is that good without practice. Interesting stuff happens when done under the influence. Moral of the story? Keep it up! "He who makes a beast out of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man." – Hunter S. Thompson for Dr. Johnson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas We've got to let ourselves go – and go and go and go and go – before anything really sensational comes out. I know it's so taboo, but lose control (or take control, whatever you're into) and let your oh-so-creative mind go crazy, even if your nosy neighbor doesn't like the sound of it. "There he goes. One of God's own prototypes. A high-powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die." – Hunter S. Thompson for Raoul Duke, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Embrace it. Enjoy it. Own it. IT'S ALL YOURS. That's the beauty and the beast about it… It's like DUH nobody wants to just lose their marbles and commit to the story of it. But we have to – because, let's get real, it's what we're good at! So commit to whatever "it" is knowing full well that the thought of commitment is stupid scary for every one of us fragile young artists. We're at that age where our future is our responsibility. There's no one left to blame for our bad decisions and poor judgments. And we can't point the finger at anyone else if/when our idea of "creative expression" isn't particularly well received. So there we are, cold and alone, feeling like it's us against the world, damning the work that we thought was straight brilliance. But then why didn't ZYZZYVA print my poem? And then why didn't my prose piece make zaum 14? Well, for one of two reasons: A) it wasn't very good, or B) it didn't meet their needs. Either way, it's called rejection. Ouch, it stings! And the burn can make for a lot of second guesses – don't let it. What do they know?! Well what they don't know is what you're trying to tell them, otherwise they wouldn't have rejected your work. But we can't let the Fear stop us! Umm HULLO, everybody gets rejected… That doesn't mean your idea isn't super groovy. All it means is try again later. "I hate to say this, but this place is getting to me. I think I'm getting the Fear." – Dr. Gonzo, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Now it's true that not all writing is good writing, and in fact most of it isn't. So here's your chance. You're creative, and that's a gift, so figure out how to make it better. Only you know how to make write it right but you can't just drag your feet about it. You'll trip yourself up and it'll get in the way of all the great things to come. Selling yourself short is mega-deadly and I know 'cause I do it all the time. Take this blog for instance. I started a month ago on a piece about transmedia storytelling and its effects on the narrative and blahblahblah. That's what was supposed to be in place of what you're reading now. However, after a zillion hours of writing and reading and watching Revolutionary Road, I said to myself, #?%@ it. This is a book, not a blog, and belongs either in a hardcover or on the big screen – NOT blog appropriate. New concept. So I scrapped it (for now) because I didn't think anyone would want to read an ump-teen page thesis on Kate Winslet for a blog post. **For the record, it's substantially more engaging than a review of Kate Winslet. But if you're interested, which you should be because it's crazy interesting, my whatever-it-is drops Fall 2012. Tell all your friends.** I can't NOT share my work – it's work that's all mine, other people don't just know this stuff! So what's a writer who's also creative supposed to do, hoard all their super cool nonsense and deprive the world of such spirited writing? Hell No. We've got to enlighten people! Offer up our creative genius; share it with those who don't have such a thing! No matter how daringly creative it may be. And chances are, if I dare to make you as passionate as I am about something, it'll sell. And I'll be a writer who's also creative who's also gainfully employed. So live it up, write it down, send it out, and see what happens. Bottom Line: You want it, go get it. Why? Because Howard Junker said so. ;) "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." – Hunter S. Thompson, Kingdom of Fear Mariel Tagg and Caroline Raffanti Questions for the author? Want to comment on the blog? Email us at nicolais@sonoma.edu and we'll post your questions and comments. | |
