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April 9, 2004
TT: Found objects
James Tata recently posted a list of "the last twenty books of fiction or literary essays I have read." I enjoy reading this kind of list, in much the same way that I like looking at other people's bookshelves. When the listkeepers in question also happen to be famous, of course, the results are interesting for a different reason. Justice Holmes, for example, kept a written record of every book he read as an adult, and I find it both amusing and illuminating to know that he read (among many other things) both Swann's Way and Rex Stout. Yet I take equal pleasure in knowing what my fellow bloggers are reading, looking at, or listening to, not only because I'm interested in them as personalities but also because such knowledge can lift me out of my own preoccupations and preconceptions. Though I own a wide variety of books and CDs, I have a tendency to run the plow through the same old furrows when left to my own devices. Sometimes a passing mention by a fellow blogger reminds me of a book I love but haven't reread for years, or makes me want to click through to amazon.com and buy one I have yet to read.I also like the fugitive nature of reading lists, which I find wholly compatible with the fugitive nature of blogging itself. One of the things I missed while I was working on All in the Dances was the welter of discussion set off by the posting in which Return of the Reluctant suggested that bloggers ought to set their sights higher: "This whole ‘link plus commentary' business is about as difficult as microwaving a burrito. I think blogs can do better. I know I can do better. There's something extant in the form that has made us all lazy." I'm for that (up to a point, Lord Copper!), but I'd also be sad if my favorite blogs were to lose the informality that is, at least to my way of thinking, a major part of the medium's appeal. I also find that I'm disinclined to read looooong quasi-essays on line (though that may well change over time as I become more habituated to the practice). For my part, I think of "About Last Night" as a kind of public notebook, one in which there is room for both considered reflection and fleeting fancy.
In any case, there's plenty of room on the Web for people to do whatever they want. The trick, as always, is to make yourself do it. I'm a great fan of features like Shaken and Stirred's "worms," in which she mentions a song that happened to invade her ear that day--but do I do anything like that? Nope. The only thing that appears on this blog each day is my almanac entry, in which I occasionally (but not usually) hint at my current reading. Perhaps I'll try experimenting with a daily posting in which I simply mention some work of art consumed by me in the preceding twenty-four hours. In fact, I'm definitely going to do that, and you'll let me know what you think of the results.
James Tata's reading list was prefaced by this sober reflection:
I find myself writing here about the books I have been reading much less often than I thought I would when I started this blog. Some of the reasons are because I'm a very slow reader, I select the books I read much more haphazardly than I wish I did, and I find that my opinions of books are not easily summarized in the time I am able to devote to this blog. The bulk of my writing time is given over either to writing I get paid for or writing I hope I will eventually get paid for. I don't think I am the only blogger for whom this is true. Despite the hopes of many, blogs will not become the primary forum for literary journalism so long as the writing in them is done for free. We might hope that blogs will fill the void left as the NY Times and other paying venues reduce their commitment to reviews of fiction and poetry, but work of the highest quality will never be done as a hobby, whether it be literary criticism, teaching, computer programming, or basketball.
About that, I'm not so sure. While we have it on the very best authority that no man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money, the fact remains that neither Our Girl nor I make a cent off this blog. (Perhaps someday we will, but that's not why we're doing it now.) Is what we post on "About Last Night" of the "highest quality"? That's for you to judge, though my inclination would be to say that the difference is one not so much of quality as of kind. If you're looking for my Definitive Thoughts on a given subject, order a copy of A Terry Teachout Reader or follow the links in the right-hand column to my published pieces. What I post here, by contrast, is strictly provisional--a peep into the workshop.
That doesn't mean I take it less seriously. I was sitting next to a wealthy businessman at a dinner party a couple of weeks ago, and he asked me, out of the blue, what I'd do if I didn't have any "financial concerns." Had I been a bit quicker on the uptake, I might have said a few choice words about how a poor writer like me would be inspired to unforeseen heights of brilliance were a Morandi etching to be hung over his desk. Instead, I blurted out the first thing that popped into my mind. "I'd be tempted," I told him, "to take a year off and do nothing but blog." Not that I'd ever really do such a thing--I'm too firmly committed to my print-media gigs, and I enjoy them too much to give them up--but I'd be powerfully tempted to spend a whole year experimenting with the seemingly infinite possibilities of blogging.
Which brings me back to something James said: "Despite the hopes of many, blogs will not become the primary forum for literary journalism so long as the writing in them is done for free." Probably not. But blogging offers other possibilities, both to professionals and (especially) amateurs. We don't have to replace the Times Book Review. For that matter, we don't need to replace the Times Book Review, or any other existing print-media publication. What draws me to the blogosphere is the fact that it lets me do something new. Time will tell whether or not it's worth doing, but I'm already sure of one thing, which is that I'm having fun doing it--and no man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for fun.
UPDATE: Says Bookslut:This blog works the same way as my shelves. It's arranged specifically by what I am interested in....I refuse to change my posting habits. I fear my blog would be less boring if I couldn't enjoy a book about Bobby Fischer, a wonderful A. L. Kennedy novel, and rereading a classic all at the same time.
I think something went slightly askew in that last sentence, but my guess is that Bookslut and I are on the same page here.
Posted April 9, 2004 11:34 AM
