Truth

Last Night at the debate, I met a very interesting individual. We began by talking about the event, but somehow managed to get into the discussion of career paths. I told him I wanted to be a writer, and explained why, without realizing this man was a published writer himself.  He let me speak for about thirty minutes before telling me he was in the process of writing his first book. After he told me that, I completely forgot about the debate and spent the whole event outside talking with him. I asked about the writing process and he answered, “There is no writing process. You just sit down and write about the truth, but keep in mind that there’s a truth behind that truth.” In the moment I had no idea what he meant, and  actually spent half the night thinking about it. In fact, I’m still thinking about it as I write this.

Who is this man? What’s his deal? Why is he telling me this? These are a few things that ran through my head as we spoke. We’d talked for over an hour and I was completely lost at what he was trying to tell me. Then I thought back to a book I’d read a few years back. In Triggering Town, Richard Hugo talks about the writing process. Hugo addresses the big issue of individuality in the opening page when he says, “You'll never be a poet until you realize that everything I say today and this quarter is wrong. It may be right for me, but it is wrong for you.” A lot of what the strange man told me last night mirrored this line. I came to realize that he was trying to tell me that everyone has their own truth. There are no lies, but solely truths relative to specific individuals. This got me reflecting on my personal writing process.

A key step of the writing process Hugo talks about is focusing on words rather than the subject. The writing process should be triggered by words and ideas. Hugo uses a town for example. When writing, we should visualize a town outside of our own. The town should be one we are familiar with, but different enough so that we have room to imagine new things. In chapter 2 Hugo gives an example of a gas station clerk with a drinking problem. He says that setting the story outside of his personal town allowed him to describe the clerk because the one in his home town actually had a drinking problem. It does not matter what triggers the writing process because it varies between people, the only thing that matters is that there is some kind of trigger that allows the imagination to run wild and do its job.

In order to write a creative piece, I first have to get an idea of what resonates with me and why. Then, after finding out what weighs with me, I begin thinking of past experiences that may or may not have influenced my beliefs. With past experiences in mind, I then begin to word vomit to get all of my ideas on paper. Word vomit is when you write over the specified word count, and focus on getting rid of a lot of it when the argument has been made. For example, is the word count is 315, I may write for 400 words just to make sure I say everything that needs to be said. And after you know what you want to say, then you can start to cut down on a lot of articles and unnecessary lines.

Another key aspect of my process is late night writing. Throughout the day I will brainstorm the topic in my head, but I can’t actually begin writing. I’m not a day-time writer, so instead of forcing ideas, I just wait until the middle of the night until I’ve had a chance to process it. Working in the middle of the night under last minute pressure gives me an incentive to get the work done. Working at night is also more relaxing and easier to concentrate because there are less people awake in my house. I don’t have to worry about people crumpling bags, starting conversation with me, asking me do things for them, etc. Time spent working at night is always productive because there is no one to prevent you from doing work. Throughout freshman year I always thought this was weird, but now I’ve come to accept. No two people write the same, and if people do attempt to mirror someone else’s style, it’s because they haven’t come to realize that they won’t be successful operating under the scope of another individual’s truth.