Diary of a Mad Editor

Yesterday, while watching the NFL Playoffs and seeing Brett Farve and Tom Brady handily win their respective games, I was reminded of that very cool Owen Wilson catchphrase from that otherwise lame movie You Me & Dupree. You know the one: “Throwing seven different kinds of smoke.” Brett Farve and Tom Brady were magic yesterday as they have been all season. They were definitely throwing some serious smoke. But look at how their opponents struggled! This reminded me of yet another, better movie, Any Given Sunday, in which Al Pacino delivered another famous line that “football is a game of inches.” I couldn’t help thinking how being a writer is not unlike being a quarterback. Some days, you have to fight with the empty page, inch by inch until you grind the fucker out. Then there are those magic times when you are throwing seven different kinds of smoke, when the words just gracefully flow out of you and you are unstoppable.

I don’t know why this is. I haven’t the faintest clue why some things come easy and some things you have to dig in and fight for. Maybe its just like football — perhaps, as writers, we sometimes bite off more than we can chew. Maybe we are trying too hard or overthinking the creative process. Whatever the reason for this unfortunate struggle with the word, I tell you this: when you do find your groove, your sweet spot, and the words fly out of you, it is fun. Writing doesn’t feel like hard work. It doesn’t feel like work at all. It is one of the most fun things to do in the world. Tom Brady and Brett Favre certainly looked like they were having fun yesterday and I know I’ve often felt that same sensation of euphoria and satisfaction while writing.

So, dear writers, when the blank page has got you down, take a lesson from two great football players and remember that it’s all just a game and like all games, it’s all about having a good time while you’re moving down the field.