The Moment Writers Live For: Attraction Becomes Passion

As regular readers have noticed, the blogging is slooooow at the moment. Slow. Because I’m deep into the new book and it’s hard to work on it and muster the creative energy necessary for the blog.

Truth be told, I’ve finally landed in the place I always know I’ll find (and that I’m guessing every writer lives for): The moment when frustration and confusion give way to clarity; when interest and attraction become . . . passion.

This is my fourth book and it’s always like this. I come up with the book idea. Think it through. Decide it’s viable. Spend months and months and months (and yes, it takes that long) wading through (literally) millions of words of primary and secondary materials, teaching myself the basics of the topic.

Next comes the getting-off-the-ground process: An even longer slog in which I gather unto myself my newly accumlated knowledge and begin writing.

Or try to. “Slog” hardly describes it. Trying to match that research to words is, at first, like wandering through the murkiest, most pestilential, swampiest swamp imaginable. The journey makes the hobbits’ trek in Lord of the Rings seem like a backyard romp. I wonder if I’ll ever find the other side. Wonder if I’ll ever make sense of the material.

And then . . .  Finally!

The moment I long for (and, truth be told, know will come eventually): I reach the edge of the swamp. I understand the research. I’ve found my “characters” (because although it’s non-fiction, I’m dealing with human beings). I know my theme and my argument.

What had been a getting-to-know-you series of dates turns into all-consuming passion and I’m hooked. No. I’m intoxicated and all I want to do is write so that I can tell the rest of the world about this amazing piece of human history.

So. At the moment, I’m . . . in love. Devoured by my “work.” And blogging is slow.

Wait. “Work”? This is . . . work? Give me more!

You Didn't Think He'd "Lose" the Election, Did You?

No one seriously thought Ahmadinejad would allow Moussavi to "win," right? I mean --- Moussavi was never going to be allowed to win. Never.

This is one of the moments when imagination fails. "Imagination" as in: It's impossible for me to imagine the misery of living in a repressive society, one where I would have no rights, at least not as we Americans know them, and could only express opposition at the risk of death.

So --- am spending this particular Sunday feeling particularly grateful that I am who I am, living where I do, and praying, in my atheistic way, for the millions of human beings who may never know the extraordinary pleasure of personal and intellectual freedom.

"Beer Wars" Is Now Available On DVD

The inimitable Anat Baron does it again. Months ahead of schedule, the dvd of "Beer Wars" is now on sale. (I don't think the woman ever sleeps.) To avoid the high cost of the middleman, she's distributing it herself, so it's only available for purchase at the "Beer Wars" website. Avoid the rush! Do your holiday shopping now.

Gone Fishing (Sort Of)

Obviously I should have, um, toned down my previous rant. Apologies. (I'd delete it, but hey, it is what it is.)

I was annoyed that the upgrade demolished so much of the blog itself, but I was even more annoyed that I lost three hours of my life trying to deal with it (including trying to figure out how to back up the blog before I upgraded, an effort which, ultimately got me nowhere.

Anyway, again I will attempt to repair the damage this weekend. Today, however, I've got to be away from the desk for most of the day and night. A

nd The Husband comes home tonight, and I'd rather spend the weekend with him than with a broken blog. So: the damage will get repaired.

Soon. Soon as I can work up the energy to tackle something I'd really rather not have to mess with.

Because I'd MUCH rather expend that energy finishing Chapter Three, which is on the verge of morphing into Chapter Four. Which means, hey!, I've written about a third of the new book. So at least something cheery is afoot.

Hmmmm. Election of Obama = New Life for Extremists?

Okay, that sounds obvious: Americans elect a partially black man as president and that event brings the extremists out of the woodwork? (Referring here to the murder of Dr. Tiller and today's shooting at the Holocaust Museum by, apparently, an avowed white supremacist.) (For the record, in case anyone is wondering, I support the right to choose, and I loathe white supremacists.)

Or is it that Obama is a Democrat, and the extremists dozed for a few years, resting easy while Cheney was in office?

Probably the only way to know is by statistics: How many "extremist" events took place during, say, the Clinton administrations? And how many during the Bush years?

Not sure if those statistics would prove a correlation one way or the other, but I'm guessing that chattering TV heads will latch on to the "Obama is black" connection, rather than the political party connection.

What the Heck Is It?

Today's "What's It Wednesday" from Dawn Farmer has me stumped! Take a look and see if you can figure it out.