Spring Break
New Years resolutions gone wild
Sanjai Tripathi
Issue date: 1/7/09 Section: Forum
One of my resolutions this year is to be a better, more original columnist.
Let me tell you, it's not so easy to crap one of these things out each week. Writing is a skilled craft, and to do it well takes time and effort, in any format.
Being a columnist is a special challenge, because you are supposed to come up with a unique idea, worthy of public consumption, every week.
It's easy to fall into the traps of either writing something that is fairly obvious and predictable, or of just regurgitating some novel point another writer has made.
I feel like lately I've just been producing columns that are a weak combination of ideas from Paul Krugman, the staff of writers at slate.com, in the tone of George Will, and with my only novel twist being a strange penchant for writing about gay rights, for an allegedly straight guy.
I want to be more original. To accomplish that, I'm going to do three things. First, I will refrain from writing columns with obvious points that many others have made (e.g. Vote for Obama!). Second, because translating English to English adds little value, I will avoid copying other people's original ideas, without adding something of my own.
Third, if I'm thinking of writing something, and the little censor in my head tells me it's inappropriate, I'll ignore it. If I feel like a phrase, comment or idea isn't appropriate for the column, then it is probably funny or interesting and I should put it in the column.
That's the plan. To start, if you want to keep a New Year's resolution, you have to have a plan with concrete action items.
I have other resolutions this year as well. I would like to go to all my classes, get straight As, lose 10 pounds, start a business and have lots more sex. Was it appropriate for me to say that out loud?
Maybe you also have resolutions. Common ones include resolving to: lose weight, quit the white drugs, go to church every week, stop having unprotected sex with strangers and not telling them about your STD or call mom more often. These are all noble goals indeed.
Let me tell you, it's not so easy to crap one of these things out each week. Writing is a skilled craft, and to do it well takes time and effort, in any format.
Being a columnist is a special challenge, because you are supposed to come up with a unique idea, worthy of public consumption, every week.
It's easy to fall into the traps of either writing something that is fairly obvious and predictable, or of just regurgitating some novel point another writer has made.
I feel like lately I've just been producing columns that are a weak combination of ideas from Paul Krugman, the staff of writers at slate.com, in the tone of George Will, and with my only novel twist being a strange penchant for writing about gay rights, for an allegedly straight guy.
I want to be more original. To accomplish that, I'm going to do three things. First, I will refrain from writing columns with obvious points that many others have made (e.g. Vote for Obama!). Second, because translating English to English adds little value, I will avoid copying other people's original ideas, without adding something of my own.
Third, if I'm thinking of writing something, and the little censor in my head tells me it's inappropriate, I'll ignore it. If I feel like a phrase, comment or idea isn't appropriate for the column, then it is probably funny or interesting and I should put it in the column.
That's the plan. To start, if you want to keep a New Year's resolution, you have to have a plan with concrete action items.
I have other resolutions this year as well. I would like to go to all my classes, get straight As, lose 10 pounds, start a business and have lots more sex. Was it appropriate for me to say that out loud?
Maybe you also have resolutions. Common ones include resolving to: lose weight, quit the white drugs, go to church every week, stop having unprotected sex with strangers and not telling them about your STD or call mom more often. These are all noble goals indeed.
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