In the Dark

September 21st, 2008Blog0 comments

I’m almost finished with Oscar Wao. It’s one of my favorite books this year.

As I get toward the end of a book I really like, a sort of two-headed anxiety comes on: 1) I wish this could go on a little longer, and 2) What am I going to read next?

Fortunately, I know the answer to #2:

Man in the Dark by Paul Auster. I’ve read everything Auster has written. Literally, everything. I was even thinking of playing the baseball card game he invented (“Action Baseball”) with other Austernerds, but I decided that would be going too far. Like trespassing on Bill Shatner’s horse ranch.

I’ve got a day off today. I’m going to spend the time thinking. Floating things on paper, see how they look. Read about pandas. Leisurely finish Oscar Wao. Enjoy the sunlight. Drink Diet Coke outside.

The execution phase of writing uses a completely different sort of thinking than the outlining/”brainstorming” phase. When you’re executing, it’s like you’re in the shop hammering and welding stuff together. You’re a technician.

When you’re outlining and brainstorming, it’s like you’re a hippie-dippy beardo frolicking through a meadow while high on goofballs, drawing make-believe pictures with your magical crayons.

I don’t know which mode I like better.