tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post7600597681566054125..comments2023-10-30T07:26:34.007-05:00Comments on In Dodd We Trust: Weary of WackyMichael Doddhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00942287172727040371noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post-41955390722984104072016-05-01T14:28:01.285-05:002016-05-01T14:28:01.285-05:00I very much liked this entry; it captures the writ...I very much liked this entry; it captures the writer's dilemma. Ur-spohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04237644452200889946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post-50597299814547182742016-05-01T12:46:36.931-05:002016-05-01T12:46:36.931-05:00You wrote "a hundred years after my death&quo...You wrote "a hundred years after my death" but since that event is still well into the future, my "hundred and fifty years" is not far off. Even a delay of one hundred years as from today would be pointless.<br /><br /> For me, romans a` clef have a certain thrill factor ("who is the author getting at?") but they lack originality of invention and imagination.<br /><br /> W. F.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post-76385755404221592992016-05-01T12:37:38.990-05:002016-05-01T12:37:38.990-05:00Dear Michael,
Your response reminded me of th...Dear Michael,<br /><br /> Your response reminded me of the opening of an old-time radio program: "What evil lurks in the hearts of men? Michael Dodd knows." How can that innocent face (now removed - alas! - from the blog) recount anything that would "harm others"? The revolution in recent years in attitudes toward sex, above all sexual orientation, has removed one barrier and I doubt if anything you write about the Catholic Church would come as a surprise or a shock to anyone. My own experience (as author of two well received biographies) shows that, when writing, one can be both candid and discreet at the same time. A hundred and fifty years? What is the utility of that? Remember: Magna est veritas et prevaelebit (no need to translate for you.) WE NEED YOUR MEMOIRS. W. F.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post-73642307197502786842016-05-01T09:30:01.579-05:002016-05-01T09:30:01.579-05:00W.F.,
My first instinct was to respond, "Didn...W.F.,<br />My first instinct was to respond, "Didn't I just say I was <b>tired</b> of Wacky?"<br /><br />Actually the first time I did the National Novel Writing Month thing, I used the process to write memoirs. They were frank and even embarrassingly candid. Three trusted friends read them and thought I should publish. I could not figure out how to do so without radical editing in order "to protect the innocent" and the guilty, as they say. <br /><br />So I tried to revise them and turn them into a novel. Two trusted friends read them and said, "No, publish the memoirs." (Interestingly their criticisms of the novel were almost opposites, which means either it was okay and in the middle or that it was totally useless.) <br /><br />So I put that all aside. If I can figure out a way to tell the story without harming others and at the same time, tell enough of the story to get the important parts out there, maybe, maybe. I would be tempted to do the Mark Twain thing and leave a manuscript to be published a hundred years after my death, but I don't know who would care at that point.Michael Doddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00942287172727040371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7567424288052948259.post-30699578393139076722016-05-01T09:19:00.645-05:002016-05-01T09:19:00.645-05:00Michael,
If you have run out of inspiration ...Michael,<br /><br /> If you have run out of inspiration for fictional writing, why not turn to reality? And write your memoirs? Although you will probably not agree, yours has been a fascinating and unusual life, one which deserves recording. I am not suggesting revelations (no, not the Bible sort), but rather a contemplation of the twists and turns of existence and the motivation for them. Your blog has over the years included lots of excellent posts on various aspects of your life. You could use these to construct your narrative. Just a suggestion.<br /><br /> W. F.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com