Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Writing Sentences: The Process

Analyze the nature of what the writer does in just writing a sentence. A sentence is a problem in lexicon, syntax, and idea which must be solved simultaneously for all three, word by word, in order to build a linguistic construct that moves plot and develops character or perhaps is a bon mot. It has to 'fit' into the sentences before it while defining the creative space of the ones that follow.
And it has to make sense in itself and to a larger reality. I once did an independent exercise in writing iambic pentameter. I can write rhyming verse in that meter. I can make sense within each line and to the whole of the piece. I cannot do both simultaneously and consistently. Being able to do that, being Shakespeare, is what we call writing talent. It is what separates the interesting scribble from Art.
 I am not amazed at the complexity of the writing process but I am amazed that any human can do it.
Do Well and Be Well.

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