just write, right?

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Ilya Kaminsky, Dancing in Odessa

The Early Diary of Anaïs Nin, 1920–1923

"youve already written that trope" yesss. i like it a lots. i will be writing it again. 1000 stories of the same trope over and over again for ten million years

”youve already drawn that character” yesss. i like them a lots. i will be drawing them again. 1000 drawings of the same character over and over again for ten million years

Usually it’s video games instead of music but this is pretty much accurate hehe

if i could get away with it, all my characters would wear black shirts and jeans and maybe a dress sometimes but that’s it !!!

Saudade, Traci Brimhall

Ladan Osman, “Sun to God (Gaza 2021)”

thinking about how orpheus turning to look back at eurydice isn’t a sign of mortal frailness but a sign of love

“Eurydice, dying now a second time, uttered no complaint against her husband. What was there to complain of, but that she had been loved?” ― Ovid, Metamorphoses

This is true no matter the version you're reading.

1. Eurydice trips and Orpheus turns to help her because he loves her.

2. Orpheus cannot hear Eurydice behind him, and fearing that he's been tricked, turns to make sure she's there.

3. Orpheus makes it out of the Underworld, and so full of love and excitement to be with Eurydice, turns to embrace her, forgetting that they both need to be out of the Underworld.

No matter what happens in the story, Orpheus loses Eurydice because his love for her compels him to look.

The Descent, by Tyler King

Don’t forget Gluck’s opera, where Eurydice doesn’t know Orpheus is forbidden to look back, Orpheus is also forbidden to tell her, she assumes he must not love her anymore, and Orpheus finally looks back to reassure her of his love because he can’t bear her anguish.

In that version in particular, but possibly in all retellings, a part of us wants Orpheus to look back, because his failure proves his love.

someone: hey I noticed this thing you did in your writing!

me, kicking my feet up flirtatiously: oh??? do you want to hear my thoughts on why I did that? do you want a play-by-play of the language choices in every related sentence? do you want an exhaustive breakdown of The Themes???

I find there is a 50/50 chance of this situation being:

a) Wow, I'm really glad you noticed that! I spent ages considering the implications and how it ties into the themes. Please let me talk to you for three hours straight about my thought process.

or

b) Erm... that thing... yeah... that was definitely a deliberate thing... I absolutely meant for that thing to be there honest

this is quite random but i must say there is something so wonderful about non-physical things described with physical terms. giving emotions tastes and concepts textures and maybe you can even grab at them and wind your fingers through them or chew on them or maybe they chew on you. et-cetera. lovely stuff.

Hanif Abdurraqib, A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance

Cathy Park Hong, from "Spring and All"

When I was a (unmedicated, undiagnosed ADHD) kid, like, under 12, my room was a mess all the time. Not shocking.

I struggled keeping it clean.

I struggled getting it clean.

I would sincerely put in quite a bit of effort and be really proud of the progress I made. Then one of my parents would come check and see how I was doing.

"Well, you've still got a long way to go."

That sentence. I was like, 11 when my parents were saying that to me. It was crushing. All my pride and satisfaction with my work was completely gone. All my effort was worthless to them. All they saw what everything I didn't do.

At the age of ELEVEN, I knew that wasn't right. That wasn't fair. I swore to myself I would never invalidate someone's work like that.

Now, at 30, I catch myself thinking 'I cleaned up, but my apartment is still so messy.' and I flashback to standing in my bedroom as a child, hearing those fucking words from my parents.

'No. I wouldn't invalidate someone else's work. I'm not going to invalidate my own. I did good. I made progress.' and I'll list the things that I DID get done to myself.

You deserve credit for all the progress you make.

You deserve credit for all the work you do.

It doesn't matter how much work you have left.

What you accomplish, no matter how small, counts. Even when what you accomplished was taking a day to rest and recharge and give yourself a break.

Never let anyone invalidate your work. Not even you.