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George Orwell: 'Never use a long word where a short one will do.'

I just came across, in the course of my day's work, the fact that an article published in 2001 in a teachers' journal carried the heading, 'Communal constructivist theory: information and communications technology pedagogy and internationalisation of the curriculum.'

My first reaction was this: I need a new job.

The article was written by teachers for other teachers. Heaven help us. If any of these people get within two time zones of my daughter's primary school English class, I'm charging them with assault.

Thank you for listening. I feel much better. I'll go back to work now.

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Posted By: Chris Champion - Category: Writing

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My 10 favourite reasons for writing

July 18th 2008 04:24

Gustave Flaubert, who said, 'Language is a cracked kettle on which we beat out tunes for bears to dance to, while all the time we long to move the stars to pity.'

Jeanne Dininni's Writer's Notes blog has a post on writing motivation which you can read here and it motivated me to write the following. It proved one of the most fun things to write in a long time, so thanks Jeanne!

My 10 favourite reasons for writing are:

1. If I didn't sit at home writing, amidst the comfort of my books, my dogs and my favourite coffee, I'd have to go to work.

2. Writing is my favourite way of expressing myself.

3. Writing offers the thrill of confronting a fear. In this case, it's the fear of failure. What if I'm not as good a writer as I think I am?

4. I can't draw, sing or play a musical instrument. Although I once knitted half a scarf - with cables - I generally have no craft skills. But I can put words together quite well.

5. Writing is a community. I read the literary pages of the weekend papers to see what the current generation of successful authors is writing. I read blogs to see what my fellow part-time authors are writing, and what the next generation of successful authors is writing.

6. I live in hope that I will, one day, create a great writing quote. Wouldn't it be an achievement to have one's name on something like this, "Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead" (Gene Fowler), or this, "Language is a cracked kettle on which we beat out tunes for bears to dance to, while all the time we long to move the stars to pity" (Gustave Flaubert).

7. It's a legacy. My name will go down in the annals of Hong Kong as the winner of the 8th national correspondence chess championship. But as legacies go, this isn't a big one. My writing may or may not receive recognition, but it is a record of me, and it's a record I'm comfortable with.

8. It's cathartic. Sometimes I need to sit down and give myself a damn good writing to.

9.It's humbling. While I have a reasonable opinion of my own ability, I am under no illusion that I can "move the stars to pity".

10. It's mine, all mine. What I write is a speck in the consciousness of the universe, but it is fabulously, grandly unique. And I did it.