I am talking about the human intellect with a capital H and capital I… the larger existing oneness of human intellectual ability… to exult it is to profoundly revere the power of what we are capable of, as human beings, if we delve into this parameter called the intellect. And what does that mean? It means that we profoundly revere the complexity, the nuance, the illuminating admixture of clarity and obscurity—the wonderful reaching towards the edges of explanation. It means we appreciate and believe in the power of what human beings do when they are working intellectually.

Some ideas considered: The infinity symbol as a way to understand the question In what ways do figurative communication and explanation share features and approaches? Why do we have language at all? Is language precise? The role of opposition and dichotomy The confluence of duality

Why do we need fiction?

What is the purpose of speculative fiction?

What does it mean when a writer creates a character?

A poetic-essayistic exploration of the idea of what if no one listens, reads, sees the art? And its opposing notion: what if audiences truly listen?

What do you write about when you have nothing to say?

From Scrooge to George Bailey, to the modern comedic and heroic stories (including Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas, and Die Hard), a consideration of the lessons that Christmas stories can teach us about the creative process.

Is generational affinity good for the artist? Is it good for creative work to have some sense of an affinity towards one’s generation? The disparate cohort and a sense of connection to various creatives from various times. The milestone occurrences and crossovers of concentric aspects of life, these might be valid as commonalities.   A sense of grouping together of periods, works, and individuals as from a time and a context.

Notes on a dream, pulling a spaceship out of a swamp
Powerful dream. How do we bring a creative work into existence? Sleep dream. Dream come true… You know the whole thing… You’re trying to catch it. Will the notes look like the thing?   Explains an aspect of the creative process.   We are walking in the woods and we see what looks like a half-sunk spaceship in a swamp. The strategies we use to get it out…   Writing: improvisational or planning? Improvisers use pre-planned things. Outliners have to improvise while making the outline… is there an outline for an outline?   Whatever process we use is the way we make sure the spaceship doesn’t sink… And the perception of complete control…. That’s even a way… that perception is a way, that’s the yarn, the magnet…   compared to music theory and grammar: maybe grammar could be called language theory? What is style? Is it the culmination of the how and the what?  Descriptive vs. Prescriptive grammar. Style is our own vocabulary developed as we get the spaceship out of the swamp.