Writer’s block is a damn funny thing. It is a few hours away from my special Nancy-approved deadline (Nancy Greco is the Features Editor), and I really have not come up with something I have the same passion for as my last two articles. As a lit student, my love affair with the English language is no secret, and as a music fan I appreciate Zappa as the Greeks did Zeus. (If you don’t know what I am talking about, read my previous articles) I have a very strong zeal for both English and music; my 800 word quota was easily reached. Today is different though, today I grope for topics.
How does one combat the uninspired? I started by taking a slight walk around my house to get the blood flowing. Maybe a quick change of scenery will perk up my attention enough to draw an article out. Staring blankly into my Disreali Gears computer desktop only makes me think of the tickets I bought to the Cream concert in October. Immediately, writing about the British acid-jazz-jammers comes to mind. In fact, everybody should listen to Cream. I quickly opted against this as I wrote a musically elitist “you should get into this stuff” article last week. So what else?
Glancing at the clock, I know that the next game in the Yankee/Red Sox series is but minutes away. Would an article about the bitter rivalry between these two legendary teams suffice? It seemed like a good idea at the time but my biases were just too tangible. As a fervid Yankee fan, that article would have seemed like unadulterated propaganda. So unfortunately, I had to dismiss the baseball column. Perhaps I’ll revisit my love for our national pastime sometime during the off-season
At this point, options are limited. I have three bulky paragraphs and still nothing. Where else to turn? When nothing springs to mind, suggestions are always welcome. I turn to their expertise.
Happily obliging me, the clever dames quickly racked their brains and spouted out some possible ideas. The first lady recently got a job that requires her to commute from Queens to Manhattan via the subway. As of Friday, the MTA decided to ban all drinking and open containers on the trains. Being a frequent subway rider, she wanted this atrocity publicized. Plainly, some people need their morning coffee.
Next, another friend suggested that I write something completely opposite from my true religious, political and social views. Theoretically, this was a good idea. She almost had me convinced that a satirical piece would slake both my quota and my readers.
After a brief rundown of serious subjects to possibly ridicule, I opted against it. Most of my articles are barely printable already. The red editing pencil would be worn down to a nub.
All of these didn’t work. What subject could I lengthily emote upon? Seeing as we’re nearing the end of this particular composition, the joke is probably getting stale. It is relatively corny to write specifically about writer’s block, but it’s something we all go through. Read Al Silvestri’s article from last week. He was sitting at the computer in the Torch office, similarly wondering where his article was heading. He sat down, stared out the window, saw the mural painted across the way, made fun of it a bit and out came a funny and poignant article. I guess it doesn’t matter where the ideas come from so long as they fill up enough space on the page.
