tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post4338173762756609938..comments2023-12-14T10:28:43.397+00:00Comments on Declan Burke: On The Perils Of Not Being A Genius: A Grand Vizier WritesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-7002861052821353822008-07-15T14:44:00.000+01:002008-07-15T14:44:00.000+01:00Great post, great conversation. Thanks for the can...Great post, great conversation. Thanks for the candor, Dec.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-76410640593343728352008-07-13T21:24:00.000+01:002008-07-13T21:24:00.000+01:00Ms Witch - Being an evil genius and a writing geni...Ms Witch - Being an evil genius and a writing genius are, sadly, two very different things. Although 'Colin' Bateman seems to combine the two nicely ... All shoes gladly accepted, by the way. Adrian - Is it all really just fashion, though? Even Shakespeare fell out of fashion, it's true ... but form is temporary, class is permanent. And good is good ... Cheers, DecDeclan Burkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14322645323239292406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-28183562350663781922008-07-13T12:47:00.000+01:002008-07-13T12:47:00.000+01:00And another thing - what makes you think you are n...And another thing - what makes you think you are not a genius? Can you prove it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-72917319001736295242008-07-13T09:42:00.000+01:002008-07-13T09:42:00.000+01:00I have no interest in Durrell, however many Ls he ...I have no interest in Durrell, however many Ls he has. Some of us quite like reading books on your level, which is rather higher up than you think. And you simply can't abandon us now!<BR/><BR/>We can take turns coming over and change Lily's nappies while you write, and if things get too desperate I'll put some shoes in the post.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-46792621790782035592008-07-13T05:00:00.000+01:002008-07-13T05:00:00.000+01:00Don't you think a lot of it is just fashion though...Don't you think a lot of it is just fashion though? When he died Herman Melville was considered a failed travel writer- the New York Times even got his name wrong in its short obituary. Philip K Dick was seen as a hack until the day he died. Raymond Chandler got no respect and neither did Hammett until near the end. Hemingway spent his final fifteen years feeling like a failure (he won the Nobel Prize during this period.) Its not like science where we know that Einstein was a genius because he discovered new things. Writing is basically show biz, one day you're it, the next, mysteriously, you're not. One person's bad book...etc. One of my favourite books is JG Ballard's Crash, of which one reader's report called it "unpublishable rubbish." 100 years from now they'll probably think Cormac McCarthy and Rushie were mannered and baroque and - God save us - Dan Brown a prose master. You really cant predict the future. For example: <BR/><BR/>Kirk: (discussing colourful metaphors on the bus) You find it in all the contemporary literature of the period. The collective works of Jacqueline Suzanne, the novels of Harold Robbins...<BR/><BR/>Spock: Ah, the giants!adrian mckintyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03349942973907386269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-29072108087840986672008-07-12T18:53:00.000+01:002008-07-12T18:53:00.000+01:00Colin - That 'constant state of dissatisfaction' i...Colin - That 'constant state of dissatisfaction' is about right ... probably a very healthy thing, apart from that sneaky self-delusion it fosters, that you might actually get it 'right' next time. When there is, of course, no 'right' ... Stuart - 'If writing was easy, it wouldn't be worth doing.' I don't know about that, squire ... I wouldn't mind it coming easy once in a while. Or once, even. Lawrence Durrell used to write in blocks of 10,000 words, and if it wasn't working for him, he'd scrap the whole 10,000 and start again. But then, he was one of those instinctively elegant writers ... I'm more of a grub-it-out-one-word-at-a-time hacks. Still, it can't be Mills & Boon every day, right? Salman? This stalking will have to stop, sir. Any more of it and I'll hire a sky-writing plane to blaze your address above Teheran. You have been warned ... Oh, and ta for the big-up. The cheque's in the post. Cheers, DecAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-52915322636867825452008-07-12T16:23:00.000+01:002008-07-12T16:23:00.000+01:00Salman here Dec. OK you blew my cover! You are a g...Salman here Dec. OK you blew my cover! <BR/>You are a good writer not as good as me I admit I still think Midnight Cowboy was my best book, but The Big O was great fun and I will enjoy the free review copy of the sequel.<BR/>I have expenses you know security and alimony to pay but I might even buy a copy that is how good you are!<BR/><BR/>;0)Uriah Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02046023583067265187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-51734644330270064132008-07-12T12:54:00.000+01:002008-07-12T12:54:00.000+01:00To pick up on Mr Bateman's point, discontent is a ...To pick up on Mr Bateman's point, discontent is a vital part of human nature. If we didn't have that predisposition to be dissatisfied with our lot, no matter how good it is, we would have no motivation to better ourselves. If it wasn't for discontent, we'd still be living in caves. Probably looking smug.<BR/><BR/>My favourite quote of all time is from the jazz guitarist, John McLaughlin. He said, "Anguish is the salt of my life. Without it, how would I know anything?"<BR/><BR/>If writing was easy, it wouldn't be worth doing. It's the sheer force of will required to write a novel that makes the achievement so much more significant, regardless of what happens to it afterwards.Stuart Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03883631620345577504noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-238345193801870892008-07-12T10:41:00.000+01:002008-07-12T10:41:00.000+01:00I'm probably one of the few writers who doesn't re...I'm probably one of the few writers who doesn't read other fiction a great deal. For one, if I've spent all day writing I don't want to read someone who's going to be better than me, or for that matter,worse than me; I'd much rather watch the footie. But mostly because if I am exposed to other writing, be it fiction, or film, or drama, I know I'm going to end up writing in that style, sometimes consciously, sometimes not.And also there's Gore Vidal's quote, which I pretty much apply to all other writers which goes something like - 'Every time a friend succeeds, a little piece of me dies' Which means that even though I'm doing fine, there's always someone I perceive to be hugely less talented selling cartloads more and winning acclaim. It's all very well being a cult, but it doesn't always pay the bills. At least I think they said cult. I'm 22 books into this stupid career, I hope they're getting better, but I think when I finally say to myself that's a really good book and I'm happy now is the time to hang up my spurs because I'll know I'm lying to myself. I suspect that being a writer is all about living in a constant state of disatisfaction. And then we put it all down on a page. Because very few writers have ever gone postal, they take it out on their readers. <BR/>'Bateman'Colinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08433332584935362768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-44103101760510940502008-07-12T10:24:00.000+01:002008-07-12T10:24:00.000+01:00Cheers for the feedback, folks. Gerard? I'm not go...Cheers for the feedback, folks. Gerard? I'm not going to argue with your arse ... but I'm talking good-good, worth-a-rainforest good. Kerrie - that is indeed strange. In fact, it's one 'L' of mistake for the publishers to make. And thank you for offering me the opportunity to use that line. Dana - reading shit for motivation is indeed a valid way of wasting your time. I hear what you're saying ... Keith - interesting point about whether or not I've started anything new since Lily arrived ... I've redrafted some stuff, but not tried anything new. Maybe something new will exert its own gravity and make all the whiny stuff in the post redundant. We shall see ... Cheers, DecAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-36222091331822260822008-07-12T01:38:00.000+01:002008-07-12T01:38:00.000+01:00Dec,I have a similar set of circumstances surround...Dec,<BR/><BR/>I have a similar set of circumstances surrounding my life (However, I don't get to review books or movies for a living.) I have a wife, a two year old daughter-whose very soul the sun rises and sets behind-a house, a dog, friends, and not to mention a job that takes up 9 hours of my life every day, but I still make time to write. Yeah, sometimes it's only 200 or 300 words a day, but I still write, and guess what, I know I'm no Durrel, or Vonnegut, or Rushdie . I'm just some working class slob who likes writing about bed people doing bad things to other equally bad people. Do I financially benefit from any of this? not really. Does it take away time from my family? Same answer. You just need to find a balance between the book writing, the review writing, and the family. Besides, you'll never be able to quit. You might say you're going to like your average 3 pack a day smoker, but everyone around you knows that's it's just about impossible for you to give it up.<BR/>And another thing, Dec, when was the last time you started up a new book? I mean, you finished the sequel to the Big O before your darling daughter was born. So maybe you should start thinking about putting something serious down on paper. Maybe start plotting a stand alone? <BR/>But, whatever you decide is a decision for you and your family alone, and no matter what, best of luck.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-71487559756525456742008-07-12T00:10:00.000+01:002008-07-12T00:10:00.000+01:00Interesting - did you notice that book cover for L...Interesting - did you notice that book cover for Laurence Durrell has only one final l?Kerriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581470363339796352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-9437506847730985192008-07-11T20:21:00.000+01:002008-07-11T20:21:00.000+01:00You're not reading enough crap. I do a lot of revi...You're not reading enough crap. I do a lot of reviews, and, even though a poorly written, unexceptional book may irritate for having cost several hours from my non-replenishable pool of Time left on Earth, it also tends to recharge the writing batteries. "This dreck got published; my WIP is not nearly so drecky." <BR/><BR/>Read Chandler, Leonard, mcBain, Connolly, and McCarthy for inspiration; read shit for motivation.Dana Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4938060587020568315.post-49451817765497525242008-07-11T19:41:00.000+01:002008-07-11T19:41:00.000+01:00*slap*Don't talk crazy!Not good enough, my arse.gb...<A HREF="http://crimesceneni.blogspot.com/2008/05/wee-review-big-o-by-declan-burke.html" REL="nofollow">*slap*</A><BR/><BR/>Don't talk crazy!<BR/><BR/>Not good enough, my arse.<BR/><BR/>gbGerard Brennanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18301381067485712366noreply@blogger.com