Write something good, for God's sake

I am doing my bit for posterity.

By not writing, or rather publishing (lately), I'm conserving and collecting sublime reflection (hopefully) to write something grander than the amounts of awful poetry and fiction that have been written in our time. By myself included.

It is my favour to the world. In exchange for some other things, which will remain unnamed.

When I do resurface, it will likely not be with any grand splendour or pomp. It will just be. As it should. (I'm still writing; but my own little secret stash.)

In other news, I am delighted to read an account written by James Kelman, Booker prize winner, and at the same time discouraged, for the poor state of the Scottish artist and what little they seem to be doing to resolve. Favorite quotes from the article: Read this.

"A fundamental distinction between artists and bureaucrats is the will to judge. Artists make judgements constantly; many are intuitive. Bureaucrats avoid judgements, particularly the intuitive kind. They prefer a decision-procedure similar to that created by Wittgenstein where an end statement is obtained from a series of statements, arrived at by logical inference. This mental peregrination has more to do with “recognition” than “judgement”. Arts bureaucrats rely on the judgement of art experts."

"Originality of vision is required to acknowledge artistic merit in any new work; besides boldness and imagination the critic must take a risk. Scotland is in dire need of good critics, especially those unafraid to go public. Their absence leaves the way clear for third-rate commentary. I come across the literary side more than any other. Consistent in recent attacks on contemporary literature is a general lack of understanding on the nature of art and its creation, and a peculiar naivety. Few show a genuine grasp of the formal problems that have faced Scottish writers during the past two-and-a-half centuries."