Dear writer friends and reader friends, and all friends really (warning: this is a long one!): I made a throwaway comment on Claire Suzanne Elizabeth Cooneys FB page a few days ago, and she responded with a fantastical image of a tree taking a 1,000 journey of growth to become a dragon (or thats how I interpreted it). Its exactly the flavor of mythopoetic mind-candy I dig most. That kicked off a multiday collaborative writing project between us that ended this morning. She went first. Id already heard her read her fiction at Readercon, perform original poetry, and sing with the The Banjo Apocalypse Crinoline Troubadours. Tl;dr--I already knew she was a talented writer (and a talented singer and performer). But when I opened that first e-mail... The most powerful writing Ive read has never felt like its there solely to deliver a message. It feels like a ball of force. Thats my it factor for writing: when, beyond anything it has to say, it goes boom. My e-mail went boom. You can read her thoughtful and thorough account of our process on her blog, linked below. The things I would add or emphasize: 1. Claires generosity is what made our collaboration possible. She suggested it, she got us started, and throughout the process she was as encouraging and accommodating a collaborator as anyone could want. I think her theater background gives her a ton of inherent insight into what makes for successful group art. I tried very hard to keep up, but she set a high bar. 2. One of the best reasons to work with someone else on art is it breaks you out of your neophobia. Rats are neophobic. If you stick them in a maze to get food, then remove the maze, leaving a clear path to the food, for a long time afterwards they will follow the no-longer-relevant path of the maze to the food--because they resist newness. Newness is dangerous, after all. But whats evolutionarily bad for rats is the soul of art. 3. This is the start. Both Claire and I are dedicated revisers. To me, that means were no longer naively in love with first drafts, even when the process of creation has been so joyous and enriching. The joy of creation does not always immediately translate into readerly joy. Weve already gotten the pleasure from the creation process; if we want to be writers, though, now we need to put in the work so that our readers can enjoy a share of the esprit we felt over the last few days. Ive had great fortune with collaboration in the past with my good friend Davis Schneiderman. Im a little still in awe that lightning could strike twice.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 00:41:28 +0000
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