Mooreover / Blog

I’m sitting an open house, which is usually my best opportunity to write a blog post. It’s taken me two hours to talk myself into it, but I’m typing away, listening to “The News from Lake Wobegon” podcast for inspiration.

I’m frustrated by people that write well and people that write often. And for those that might ask, yes - those are quite often two different species. Occasionally there are hybrids, but that might be more of the exception than the rule. Without disparaging one group or the other, just know that I’m jealous of both groups.

Still, I’m encouraged by two writers that preceeded me: James Joyce and Frank McCourt. James Joyce would often slave over one sentence a day, and despite his snail’s pace is considered one of the best writers of the 20th century (for those that want to say that they’ve read James Joyce, don’t start with Ulysses - go for A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man). My second advocate is Frank McCourt, who was 66 years old before his first book was published. That book, Angela’s Ashes, went on to become a best-seller and win him the Pulitzer Prize.

It’s not too late to make something of myself, right? In the meantime I labor over my listings. Tonight I wrote:

Built in 2002, this one-owner, 5 bedroom home is lavish in luxuries. The gracious entry welcomes with gleaming hardwoods, arching windows and cathedral ceilings…

I have to rein myself in on my listings. The first thing that I write would probably be quite effective in selling designer fragrances or luxury cars - where disingenuous clichés are the norm. So then I reduce the adjectives by about 70% - and eventually by another 15% before the final draft is set to paper. In the end I’m generally happy about what I’ve written, and as long as the reader doesn’t feel like they’re reading the inventory list on the side of a car window, I feel as though I’ve been successful.

I do want to write more. And read more. But I know that it’s going to take the same discipline it takes to lose weight - to sacrifice time and pleasure for some unattained attribute. Right now I’m committed - to time with my wife and daughter, two bible studies, three listings, one business partnership, working out three times a week, two blogs, and one card night with friends.

Which means that I’ll be writing more often from a coffee shop. No music, no 20-month old distractions, no cell phone. Hopefully I’m not 66 years-old before you see the fruit.