On Permission (w12-24)
No one is going to give you permission.
The parting gift from Richard Skinner’s How to write session back at the end of January.
I’ve been thinking about this alot in the month or so since. Of course no one is going to give me permission to write. So why does it feel like that I’m waiting for it? I have three ‘projects’ in early stages of development and yet, they continue to live in some sort of development hell. Why don’t I just start.
Partly there is a fear of feedback. Writing’s natural conclusion is reading. And whilst I write mainly for my own benefit - as a means of reducing the noise in my head, as a means at arriving at a point of view, as means of occupying my hands in the best way I know possible - you can’t divorce the output from the end user, the act from the audience. I need to stop focussing on what people might think. Without enough thought and effort, the words will be as good as they can be. But what if people don’t like my thinking? What if it exposes me in some way?
Then there is time. Or perhaps, my unwillingness to dedicate time to the projects. This would mean less time doing other, less risky things - like reading the words of other bona fide writers or watching TV. A pastime which comes with no existential risk to the participant. But, we all know this is a cop out. Paraphrasing Gladwell, talent is the willingness to practice. This blog is an exercise in practice. In developing a process. In habit. Maybe now, it’s time to take it more seriously. The novel I have sketched an outline for will not write itself.
There are far too many areas of my life where permission is inescapable. Writing need not be one of those things.
Links and Noteable Things
I have been writing a presentation for the University of Birmingham’s MSc Marketing students entitled ‘Developing a Critical Approach to Marketing Metrics’. I’m due to deliver this tomorrow. Am looking forward to going and meeting some students and discussing some practical approaches to important topics. I don’t have a formal research or analytics background, but instead have observed how their use and abuse can impact the process of markerting.
Parked The Unconsoled for a while. It’s brilliant and infuriating and boring and baffling and exciting all at the same time. I just need a rest. Read George Orwell’s Coming Up for Air as a stopgap. Surely one of the all time great opening lines: “The idea really came to me the day I got my new false teeth”. As memorable as Burgess’ opener to Earthly Powers. Not only a great opening line, but could have been written for today.
Coffee with Neil. Discussed the challenge of ‘being useful enough’.
Saw Dune Part 2. Twice. It’s very good. Most of the criticism about the gallop through the third act is fair. But still, very good indeed. Villeneuve is a master. Per all good auteurs, you can tell his work a mile off. He’s all texture and scale and colour.
Finished Kin on iPlayer. Finished The Gentlemen on Netflix. Enjoying, but not loving the latest series of Curb.
Newsletter project with Matt (which has taken up a reasonable amount of ‘disposal writing’ time - often at the expense of blogging or developing the other projects listed above) continues to develop nicely. Good feedback. Good engagement. The ‘rules’ of the project are developing quite organically between the two of us, as is the process…. So far, only two mandatories - we both have to be supremely jealous that we didn’t do it ourselves - and the tone has to be one of unreserved positivity. There’s too much negativity and deconstructive criticism online (especially in trade press and linkedin).
Postscript
A brief hiatus on the week note front. It was my birthday. I’ve been busy and ill and parenting. A bit of time to think about the format too. As a result this one might feel a little different. My aim is that each edition will now lead with a thought and present a mini-essay or explore a topic of interest. Links of interest and a run down of other stimulus from the week will come and the end now in a slightly condensed format vs. previous editions. The point of these is to practice my writing. To get the steps and the reps in. As per Russell Davies’ dictat: Notice, Collect, Share.
These should be an exercise in unearthing the things I think are interesting enough to warrant further exploration. Not just a list of stuff that I’ve read or what I’ve eaten for lunch or who i’ve had coffee with. The synthesis of the stimulus into new thought is what is important to me.
