There is something about human nature that makes people want to tell you all of the reasons why something can’t be done. And I just don’t get it. Because all we need is for one person to tell us that it can be done. And then suddenly it is possible.
I have to be honest and say that I have not read very many books about the craft of writing. I know there are many good ones out there and I even looked up a few lists before I wrote this post to jog my memory but for better or worse I have not taken the time to read most of them. To tell you the truth, I don’t think you need to read books about writing in order to become a good writer. I just think that you need to write. But I do have one book like this that I keep close.
A few years ago on a trip to Barnes and Noble I picked up The Modern Library Writer’s Workshop by Stephen Koch. Right away I started marking up the copy with a highlighter because I thought there were so many good ideas in it. But a part of the book that really stuck out for me was a story he told about his early teaching career. He that felt he needed to be honest with his students and so once a semester he would give a speech about how hard it was going to be to become a writer and how much they would struggle. Then after one of those speeches a student came up to him and said that they already knew how hard it was going to be. Everybody had been telling them their whole lives that failure was the most likely outcome. Their mothers or their fathers. Their aunts or uncles or friends. Everyone. But all they needed to hear was that one person who said it was possible.
And it is possible. The proof is all around us. Everything that has been created by mankind was created by someone just like you and I. Someone was willing to do what someone else said was not possible. But it was possible. It is possible. And it will always be possible.
And now the reason for the title of the post. Josh Ritter. Animal Years is my favorite record of his but the lines below are from the song Lantern on the So the World Runs Away record. What has always stuck with me from this song is the line: “If there’s a book of jubilations, We’ll have to write it for ourselves”.
“So throw away those lamentations
We both know them all too well
If there’s a book of jubilations
We’ll have to write it for ourselves
So come and lie beside me darling
And let’s write it while we still got time”– Josh Ritter