Inside the Brain of E.C. Henry

Jerry Maguire and One's Own Romantic Angular Trajectory; Exploring Issues in Rom-Com Movies: Volume 58

Ever noticed how after rewatching some movies you can think about the deeper issues in life?  Stragely enought that's I found happening to me earlier last week when I got home late from work and found a cable station replaying "Jerry Maguire" (1996: Tom Cruise, Renee Zellweger).  Now it had been nearly 20 years since I've seen this movie.  O yeah, I remember some of it's iconic lines that definatley made an impression on mainstream society.  "Show me the money!"  And to a lesser extent the romatic line of, "You complete me" or "You had me at hello."

Though I would not classify "Jerry McGuirre" as a romantic comedy, this is clearly a movie that has a main romantic component to it; the buddind romance between a down-on-his-luck sports agent and the girl from his office that has a cruch on him.  I would classify this Cameron Crowe classic as a drama with a central romantic storyline.  Not a romantic comedy because not enough emphasis is placed on comedy, but rather this movie takes itself rather seriously.  

But getting back to the crux of this post, and why I was moved to write it.  Upon rewatching "Jerry McGuire" I was struck by the the romantic angular trajectory of its leads: the Tom Cruise title character, and of course the girl-in-wating, Renee Zellwegger's charachter.

Let's start out by looking at the title charachter, Jerry McGuire as played by Tom Cruise.  He starts out as a fashionable, trendy sports agent.  On top of the world with a gorgeous, but very worldy girlfriend as played by Kelly Preston.  Jerry's quite happy with his life untill a fellow top agent informs Jerry that he's being fired from the sports agency that he originally founded.  This prideful agent then makes an attempt at saving face by seeing if he can sweep other fellow employees as he attempts to breakout on his own and make a name for himself all over again.  This doesn't set well with his worldly girlfirend, and they end up fighting and breaking up.  

The girl-in-waiting, Renee Zellweger's character, is a one parent mother of a boy who is secretly in love with the flamboyant sports agent.  She sees the man he could be, and is sold on that vision.  To me, Renee's character was VERY BORING.  She's merely a romantic hopeful, a girl wanting to get swept off her feet.

But though this movie really isn't a romantic comedy I did glean something off it that is very romantic comedy in nature: one's own , unique romantic trjectory.  What I mean by saying "one's own, unique romantic trajectory" is how open or how closed you are to the romantic prospects around you.  In this movie, Jerry McGuirre starts off as being oblivious to the girl in the office who has a crush on him, BUT over the course of the movie his fondness towards her grows.  THIS is the heart of the movie, and what really draws you in.  It's Jerry's character arc from a worldly, career-driven sports agent to a more grounded guy who falls in love with the girl the audience ultimately wants him to end up with.  

Jerry Mcguirre's romantic traectory changes in this movie.  He starts out closed to the prospect of going after the girl in waiting, but after he gets to know her, and loses his own worldly girlfriend his romantic trajectory changes.  

Renee Zellweger's romantic trajectory remains pretty constanst thoughout this movie.  She wants some spice to her life, and sees promice in Jerry McGuirre.

Anyway this movie got me to thinking about how open or closed can be towards the prospect of a potentially life-changing romance.  If a worldy guy like Tom Cruise's Jerry Mcguirre can wake up and smell the roses, maybe some of us romantic dolts out there can do the same.  

Hope.  One of the keys things romantic movies do is give hope to the hopeless.  

I guess I really responds to such messages because I view myself as relatively hopeless.  Hey, when you reach the age of 46 and are STILL single looking for the someone special trust me, you lose hope.  The cool thing about movies like "Jerry Mcguirre" is that theu open your mind to the possiblitiy that good-looking-as-all-fuck people have problems to--or theoritically CAN have such problems as the rest of us.  We all have issues, problems and uncertainty that enters into our lives, BUT if we're open to it, love can enter in and biring us to a higher, more fullfilled place.

So hats off to Cameron Crowe for crafting this masterpiece.  I hope after reading this post you'll re-watch Jerry Mcguirre and maybe even contemplate the same thoughts I did concerning "romantic trajectory".  See if I'm off my rocker or not, and if any of the deeper themes of this classic movie, "Jerry Mcguirre", could possibly apply to you, and maybe even help you become a more self-aware, and contented person.  Rom-coms and romantic drama movies shouldn't make you feel worse.  They should make you feel better about yourself.  So let the deeper themes and takeaways of GREAT movies like "Jerry Mcguire" take you away and to a place of higher self-awareness and enlightenment.

- E.C. Henry from Bonney Lake, WA

Constant Search for Better; Challenges in Writing a Novel: Volume VI

I call it the constant search for better.  It's a writers abiltiy to face the same prose day after day with the express goal of approaching the kind of writing that stands out and passes the test of being iconic.  

But repleated exposure to the same thing day after day is a grind.  There's no way around that.  People who are non-writers often miss all the hard work that goes into a writer writing something that stands the test of time, and proves to be great.  

And I, E.C. Henry endeavor and risk to be great.

Okay so that all sounds nice and high falutin, kinda like Matthew McConahuey on Oscar night.  Remember when he told the world that, "He was his own hero"?  Well, it did happen, and when I think back about it, it always makes me laugh.  HUGE fran of Matthew  McConahuey's acting skill.  NOT a fan of his overt bravado.  

Writing will always humble you--apparantly so will Matthew McConahuey!

THAT'S an original E.C. Henry quote on writing.  And it's something that I deal with on a daily basis.  It's when you re-read your writing and find out it's not as great as you want it to be.  So what do you do when its obvious what you've written isn't as good as you ultimately want it to be?  

You go over it!  Re-write it.  Change what doensn't work.  I guess you end up, "being your own hero" and rescuing flat writing with a higher level of wrting.  But I do so with a great deal of humility.  Realizing that I didn't get there overnight.  I took work.  It took rework.  It took patience.  And it took not settling for inferior writing.  

Great writers challenge themslelves.  They challenge what they've already writen to see if they can make it better.

O, yes, I am on the constant search for better.  That's how I roll folks.  Am I just this elevated being who everything comes easy for?  No.  I'm a grinder.  A guy who CONSTANTLY challenges himself, pushes himself to evevate his writing to the highest level I'm capable of delivering.  

So how do you know when you've pushed your writing to the highest level your capable of writing?  That's easy.  When you burnout to the point where you feel yourself actually wanting to harm the writing, it's time to step away from the keyboard.  You've gone as far as your going to go.  

R emember, rewriting is always about getting to a high state of better.  

All you can ever do is your honest best.  So what is your honest best?

Your honest best is the highest state of writng that you've managed to achieve as a product of considerable time and thought vested in given peice of writing.  

Writing is rewriting.  A lot of writing isn't coming up with new stuff off the top of your head, it's maximising the affect of the story your working on.  Rewriting is the constant search for better.  Wanna be great?  Well, if you do you hafta explore the possibilty of taking your writing and elevating it to a higher level.  

Aspects of higher level writing (a.k.a how to know when your re-writting efforts are paying off)

1. Your descriptions become more vivid, destinctine and enjoable by the reader.
2. Your characters become more complex and interesting.  
3. Your story's pacing becomes more steamline.
4. Paragraphs build to an emotional creshendo and do not repeat themselves.
5. Everything sounds better and fells like it "pops" off the page.

Negative feedback can be a real killer.  A couple weeks ago I was listening to something I had labored on extensively, and my dad made the off-handed comment that he got it already.  Now, I was trying to write something funny, but I had made the classic mistake of overwriting.  Overwriting can kill comedy.  

When searching for better realize that in wring more you may reach the point where you write too much.  Sometimes that's where feedback from other people can be the most beficial.  

Remember, writing will always humble you.  Even when you think you've nailed it, its feedback from others who will show you where your flaws remains.  When this happens it can be devistating.  I know it has for me in the past.

Writing will always humble you.  The truth is you're not Matthew McConahuey.  So stop trying be your own hero and just give writing the time and place it deserves, and maintain the humility to realize the ultimate goal is just reaching a high level.  Kinda like a video game.  

So what are some tricks to put off burn-out as long as possible so you can achieve the highest state of writing that you're cabable of:

1. Write everyday.  Continuety of the mind is a necessity for acheiving higher states of writing.  Keep trying to build off what you wrote the previous day.  You cannont afford to take too many days off.  Do so and your writing will suffer.
2. Have the discipline to work a couple of hours at something, especially if that's line editing, then stop and focus a seperate are of your story.  Line editiing a grind.  If you find yourself spending like 2-3 hours trying to improve a page, you need to have the discipline to stop.  You've made some progress, now stop before you totally burnout and your mind changes to the point where it wants to destroy the writing because mentally you've allowed yourself to reach the point of burnout.  
3. Develop corollaries/simiar linked things other that just prose.  Draw maps.  Do characher bios, and detail scenes.  All of which are seperate from your novel or screenplay.  Sure a lot of these extras aren't what the reader sees, BUT they are guides of emmense value to writers with a work in progress.
4. Give greater emphasis to red-line editing as opposed to on-the-fly readback of your material and changes made there.  I really think that you can accomplish more by red-line edits then tying in the changes, then listening to your material and trying to improve right then and there.  YES, there is no way around detailed, line-editing.  But that's really the last step of a finallized work.  Just TRY to take more grounded approach and try to see your writing in levels as opposed to achieving a final draft.  Remember, that even after you've spent countless hours on something, someone with a fresh perspective may come up with something out of the blue that improves your writing and helps you get ot a higher level of excellence.  Writing will always humble you.

It's your writing, but it's not all about you.  It's also about the reader and how your writing is precieved in the hearts and mind of those who read your work.  

One key point to remember when having someone else read your work.  They are not as invested in your writing as you are.  And they expect you to entertain them, and for your writing to be at a high level BEFORE you ever send it to them.  So work your ass off and at least listen to what you're sending them before its in their hands.  Don't just type it in, trust in your greatness and expect it to be well-recieved.  

Writing will always humble you.  But greatness IS acheivable.  It just requires writers who are willing to stick out, and CONTSTANTLY be vigalent and on the search for better.

 

P.S Sorry for not having an in-week post last week.  I had intended to have this post be that post, I just didn't get around to finishing it up in time.  

Voice of an Angel: Christine Dente from Out of the Grey

Back in the early 90s, after I had given my heart to the Lord and started listening to Christian Contemporary Music, I ran across a budding new group called,Out of the Grey. They were just one of many groupd I discoved that replaced the likes of: Deff Leopard, Motley Crue, and Janet Jackson; that I LA-OVED in my pre-saved days.

To be 100% honest with you, I was never a big fan of Out of the Grey.  Their contemporary Christian sound was o-kay, but it was never like, great can't miss songs that resonatted with me.  Not like say Rich Mullins, whose music really provokes strong feelings from me.  Sometimes when I'm in my car and I'm listening to some of Rich Mullins' classic songs I feel myself going deeper into the things of God. YES, Rich Mullins music has that power in it.  If you've never listened to him, give him a try, and get ready to worship the Lord!  

Out of the Grey's music is not overly evangelical.  If I had to put a label on it as whole I would say their music is for Christians who want a fuller life.  BUT over the years I've totally fallen in love with the voice of Out of the Grey's lead singer, Christine Dente.  

O, how to describe Christine's voice to someone who's never heard her before.  Angelic and femine.  Yeah, that's a good strating point.  But I really wanna gush at how good Christine Dente's voice is.  I just love.  She could sing to me the telephone book and when she was done, I'd say, "Chirstine, sing it again."  Her voice is just sooo good.  It's like being up in Heaven for a moment and being greated by a female angel.    

There in no woman on the face of planet Earth who can sing as well as Christine Dente.  She's the best there has ever been.  No, she's not oprahretic.  But she's GREAT.  There's no equal to her voice amongt mortal woman.  Christine Dente is the best.  The best there ever was.  

As you already know Steve Perry of Journey is my favorite male singer of all-time, with Kevin Max of DC Talk a close 2nd.  But on the women's side of the ledger, there is Christine Dente from Out of the Grey, and their is no other woman even close to her. Sorry Amy Grant.  To a lot of Christians out there you will always be the belle of the ball.  But for  my money, honey, you can't hold a candle to what Christine Dente's voice is capable of doing.  Now recently I've fallen in love with Taylor Swift.  But even she can't hold a candle to what Christine Dente is capable of delivering when she sings.  Don't feel bad about that Taylor, you're a lot closer than a lot of other performers are.  

Out of the Grey broke onto the Christian music scene back in the early 1990s , but by the end of the decade they were pretty much done and not putting out any new music--at least not any that I was hearing on the radio.  I'm assuming that's because Christine and her husband Scott (who's a guitar player and background vocalistst) were busy raising a family of their own.  Not sure why the faded away, but they did.  Too bad.  I did like Out of the Grey's music, but I was never a huge, huge fan.  Why?  Well, first let's go over some of their most memorable singles that they put out in the 1990s, which I'll rank on a 1-10 score, 10 being highest.  As a contrast I'll site a couple songs I think are 10s: "Love Runs Out" by One Republic is a 10.  "Escapade" by Janet Jackson is a 10.  "I Can't Stop Loving You" by Van Hallen (released in 1997 when Sammy Hagar was still with the band is a 10, "God Part II" by U2 is a 10.  Yes, I have very eccletic tastes in music.  But for now let's get back to JUST looking at some of Out of the Grey's more memorable music.

• "Steady Me": I fast paced song, that TOTALLY would be in the Diamond Mine, Christian dance outreach ministry IF I could ever get that to fly.  Great job by Scott Dente in the music of this song, Christine's fine voice doensn't really stand out in the this song.  7.5 out of 10
• "The One I've Been Waiting For".  Romance bridges to how our focus should be on God to be the great love in our life.  This song actually made my spec. script soundtrack for "Revenge of the Fat Chicks" which I wrote like 10 years ago.  Chritine Dente's angelic, feminine voice shines in this one.  7.0 out of 10.
• "All We Need".  Upbeat elevator style music.  GREAT soothing vocals by Christine.  Good guitar work by her husband Scott.  6. 5 out of 10.
• "Remember This".  A call for Christians to remember the great love of God amidst things that distract us in life.  6.5 out of 10.
• "Feels Like Real Life".  Upbeat song, another one that would make the dance ministry.  6.5 out of 10.
• "Write My Life".  Different style beat.  Almoast like a haunted house or horror beat.  6.0 out of 10.  
• "Hope in Sight".  Very upbeat song, inspires faith.  Christine's vocals here are contagous and you find yourself wanting to sing along with her.  Good job by Scott in the musical accompanyment.  6.0 out of 10.

Now let's breakdown the group as a whole.  Here's how I rank Out of the Grey on individual levels:

• Vocals: 10 out of 10.  Christine Dente IS the best.  Whenever she sings, I coo.  
• Music Quality: 8.5 out of 10.  Out of the Grey's music is clear, usually has a good guitar in it.  There is some range to the music in their song.  "Write my Life" is very different.  
• Lyrics: 5 out of 10.  Outside of "The One I've Been Waiting For" none of their song lyrics really stand out.  And some of their songs have boring lyrics.  

So as you can see I am quite familiar with Out of the Grey's work. I think I still have like 5 of the CDs on a spinner.  There are lots of Christian groups that I like more than Out of Grey: Carmen, DC Talk, Cadmon's Call, Chis Tomlin, Rich Mullins, DC Talk, Kathy Trocolli, Margret Becker... the list goes on and on.  BUT nobody on the female side of the ledger sings even close to as good as Christine Dente does.  She's got IT.

Christine Dente is the best female singer of all-time!

- E.C. Henry from Bonney Lake, WA   

A Very Hot Summer

How has your 2015 summer gone so far?  Been having as good a time as Amy Schumer has recently?  A movie that she stared in and wrote, "Trainwreck" was a BIG HIT, ($81 milliion and growing), and then last week she's on vaccation and guess who's with her--Jennifer Lawrence!!!  How cool is that to JET SKI with Jennifer Lawrence.  Amy Schumer knows how to have a good time--and she has impecable taste in friends.  (We should all be so lucky)

O-kay, so I haven't even come close to having the summer that Amy Schumer has.  Doesn't mean I can't have fun in my own way right?  Well, THAT can get me into some real trouble.  Because when you don't have friends, and you drink by yourself to add some "spice" to what's lacking in your life, you're playing with dynomite.  Hey, at least I realize the risk, AND readily admit I need to change.

But it's been a very hot summer.  And let's keep things positive.  Like speculating what Amy Schumer' next move will be...  Hmmm...  Wonder if she's going back to Comedy Central?  IMBD sites two more projects "in development" that Amy's name is attached too...  Maybe she's going to be a regular performer on "Saturday Night Live", that seams like a natural fit for her right now.  Of cource I DON'T have inside information on what Amy would like to do next, but it fun, light stuff to speculate on.  You have one big hit and the world opens up to you.  This is her time, and she needs to make the most of it.  If I was in her shoes I sure would.

Like I said, it's been a long, hot summer.  The temperatures up here in the Pacific Northwest has steadily been in the 80s and 90s for about 2 1/2 months now.  Can't ever remember a sustained period of prolonged sunshine and hot weather.  Gives a lot of credance to the global warming theory.  Up here in the state of Washington the newspapers are reporting fears of a massive salmon die off as a direct result of water temperature being too hot for these prized fish.  Hoping that doesn't come to pass.  Salmon rock.  Losing them would be huge hit.

On a personal level I'm pissed off a litle Obo, my 7-year-old nephew who staunchly refuses to go to the lake with me so I can help him learn how to hold his breath underwater.  He can be so obstinate.  All he wants to do is play "Star Wars" with me, which consists of pretending to be a Star Wars character and "shoot bad guys".  I found the easist to piss Obo off is to say I'll play--but he has to be R2D2 because he's short, like R2 is.  Brycen doesn't like that at all.  Brings out that red head's anger.  I know, I'm an asshole!

Still working... I guess that's a good thing.  But my heart isn't into it.  It's just a day job, something I have to do to survive.  To eat. To go on paying bills and shit like that.  

No plans for any vaccations.  Maybe I'll in for some time off to do some work around the house around Labor Day.

Movie-wise this summer has been the strongest I can remember in years.  Top movies:

1. "Inside Out" rating 9.0 out of 10.
2. "Trainwreck" rating 8.0 out of 10.
3. "Jurasic World" rating 7.5 out of 10
4. "Fury Road" rating 7.5 out of 10
5. "Ted 2" rating 6.0 out of 10
6. "Avengers: Age of Ultron" rating 4.0 out of 10

Okay, so Avengers movie withstanding, I have been very impressed with the movie and range out there with quality to see.  What comes next?  Well, their is "Star Wars: Episode VII" to look forward to in December, and sometime over the winter Quentin Tarantino has another movie comming out.  Besides that, I can't think of anything else I'm excited to say.

Anything Amy Schumer is always a draw for me.  I frequent Comedy Central JUST for the hopes that they're playing back episodes of Amy's 1/2 hour comedy show, "Inside Amy Schumer", but alas they aren't playing too much of that which makes me think they're not showcasing her because they don't think she'll be back for a 4th season, so they're shinning their promotional spotlight on other shows that they're actively producting and broadcasting.  

Besides promoting Amy myself their is another product I'd like to show some love to, Portillo's' Italian beef sandwiches. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago (I lived there untill I was 10) me and my family fell in love with this restaurant.  One thing that Chicago does well is food: pizza and Italian beef especially.  Remembering this my aunt bought a pack of this Midwest restaurant chains Italian beef for my dad's 70th birthday that we celebrated last weekend.  I, being the asshole that I am worked on editing my novel untill I consumed to many Budweisers to think clearly anymore.  Hey, I forewarned ya about the whole asshole thing ahead of time.  Forewarned is forearmed.  Just kidding.  Just a little attempt at some self depricating humor.  Maybe the only thing I'm good at: a ready willingness to make fun of myself.  

Working with the express goal of becoming less and less of an asshole everyday I actually took proactive steps to spread the Portillos love to a coworker and bought him the $87 dollar ship pack of Portillos Italian beef to try with his wife.  No, Amy this is no sex thing, its a food thing--and a delicious food thing at that.  You should try it.  I gaurantee you'd like it.

Fuck, I'm doing it again.  First it was Jennifer Love Hewitt.  Then it was Taylor Swift.  Now it's Amy Schumer.  Good thing none of these women would be able to recognize in a police line-up.  Joking!  

But for me I think the last impression of 2015 will be Amy Schumer's emergance onto the national scene.  Maybe that's a reflection of where my heart is these days.  But heck I daydream about what my breaktrhough moment will happen.  And who knows, not that Judd Apatow is done with "Trainwreck" maybe he's on the prowl for his next project to get into.  NOW I'm truely being delusional, because I checked out Judd's projects in developement on IMBD and the dude's got a list as long as Speilberg's.  FUCK!!  Guess I'll just hafta suck it up, and continue on with the day job thing untill the Lord pulls the plug on my life.  Kind of a downbeat way of thinking about it, but then again, I am an asshole.

Just keepin' it real folks.  Love and well wishes from a marginally buzzed, E.C. Henry from Bonney Lake, WA

Great Art

Great art.

What is it?  And what does it mean to you?

For me, the term "great art" refers to something that someone has made that is specical and stands out against the other things around it.  Being a writer and avid movie lover I tend to be drawn into compellings concepts than maveling over their artistic brilliance, AFTER I've proven to myself in my head that what I like is deserving of being labled, "great art."

I don't throw that term around all willey-nilly, nor do I use that term for political placing, career game.  Great art is earned.  It is earned by excellence.  Wanna be called "great art" by someone like E.C. Henry, be exceptional and I will take notice without prejudice.

To me Mt. Rushmore IS NOT great art.  I remember as a kid going across the country as seeing the the sights to the west of the state of Illisnois.  During this trip we visited Mt. Rushmore.  Wasn't impressed.  

This may or maynot suprise you, but for me I didn't really start to appreciate art untill I started ready epic fantasy books.  Most notablely "The Conan the Barbarian" series.  I always loved the artists who drew pictures of Conan battling monsters while there was some scantily dressed, femme fetal wrapped arround his leg.  Guess I was arround 12 years old at time, just starting to get interested in girls, and the Conan series was a "safe place" to begin my world mindset about women and very simplistic romance: guy beats up bad guys, ends up having a romance or a tryst with a barbarian hottie.  

Now, hopefully I've matured some mentally since those days.  But I'll let you be judge of that...

Great art stands alone in the mind of its beholder.  It's only reasonable justifcation is the rationale of the one who loves it.

Why say something like that?  Because beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  When you love something there are a million ways to justify those feelings, eventhough your fellow man or woman may not go allong with you on that.

Straight up.  I don't get abstract art.  From MY WAY of thinking this is people with substandard drawing skills fusing bullshit fanstasy stories in vain attempts at coveringu pt their own subpar drawing skills to make sales to the people that are easily dupible.    Sorry Picasso.  Sorry Van Gough.  Might wanna your wares somewhere else down the street because from my perspectivie, You guys SUCK and give art a bad name!  O-kay, so you drew something different than the norm, doesn't make it good.  I like artistist who can can draw stuff that looks realistic, and makes me marvel over the drawing and coloring skills they have.  To me, Picasso and Van Gough pictures look lazy.  Look like something made by 1st or 2nd graders who haven't mastered the skill with the brush yet.

Writing wise I endevor to make great art.  I don't subscibe to "fast writing"/only give a script a month or two because you probably won't be able to sell it anyway.  No.  Think like that I think you're selling yourself and your idea short.  Writing a great story takes time.  You hafta be willing to challege your previous writing, and TRY to bring it up to a higher level.  This is a very hard concpet for first time writers to stomache and embrace.  I know it was for me.  It's like such an accomplishment when you first complete a story that you think that's it.  But it's not.  There is so much to be gained by rewriting, I can't even begin to tell you.  

I think their are steps and layers to writing.  There's laying down the base coat, a.k.a. the first draft, then there's rearragement and replacing of that which is weak and difficent, and then their polishing for maximum impact.  

Sometimes I can't believe I've been rewriting this novel for a year and half now.  It makes me think I'm not much of a writer.  That if I was a truely gifted writer I would have this knocked out by now, sell it, and be on to other things.  BUT I'm slowly coming around to the acceptance that if you want to be great, you have to give yourself the time to be great.

Yes, there is some God-given skill.  Like with those who can draw and make iconinc portrait pictures.   But there are also other skills which are earned over the course of time. Like a greater mastery of the English language, become a better speller, and understanding pacing.  

If you wanna be great.  Be hard on yourself and your writing espcially when it's bad.  Shoot am I ever mad at myself for how I wrote chapter 16 back some 17 years ago.  GREAT action at the head and plot level.  Absolute crap in tems of execution, and especially over-talkative dialog.  

And then there's the Prolog.  You wouldn't belive what I just put into it today and yesterday. Totally iconic, moving, will make you think stuff.  But guess what, I've been working on it for MONTHS!!  Why now?  Why didn't I make this quatum leap earlier?  

My point is, sometimes you just can't write fast.  Sometime the quantum leap in quality and substace comes later.  At least that's what I find.  Wish I was smarter.  Thought clearer.  Could choke the fuck of the muse and save myself MONTHS of heartache.  But sometimes you can't.  Maybe if I was naturally brilliant.  But I'm not.  All I've got is tenacity, and that burning fire deep inside that knows not to settle for less, but to earn the gold that I feel is still there to be had a little deeper below the surface.  

I guess the biggest issue I wrangle with eveyday is how descriptive to be.  When I was ready Steven King's "The Stand" I was so bored with his descriptions that I read fast just keying on the plot points and what was going on.  I wanna be better than that.  I want people to like my prose.  I want people to like the way I write a story.  I've already got a very good and solid framework with enough plot points to entertain skimmers.  But I want more than that.  I want iconic descriptions.  I want to create things with great excellence.  

Will I ever get there?  Most days I have my doubts.  But every once in a while I'll put down a sentence that when I go back over it, it sticks.  I can't think of a better way to write or say it.  That's the sentence I stick with--but it took me 20 passes to get there!!

Fuck!

Still, I rather be considered a slow working Michelangelo, than a fast working Pablo Picasso cranking out piece of shit after piece of shit.  

So lookout C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and Frank Paretti, 'cuz I'm gunna for ya boyz.  I'm going to put in the time and someday, God willing, my story is going to be compared to yours.  Hopefully in favorable light.  To me that's all that matters, create a piece of art so well that it compares favorable to something you already condsider to be great art.