WRITING & REALITY?: Reality and Writing

I’m learning that if you listen really well to either, you’ll discover things that can enhance the other.

In the past year, I’ve met with lawyers and the thing I really wanted to say to concisely describe the situation and what should be done about it was: Shit or get off the pot.

But I’m no dummy; I learned early on that in dealing with the suits and amid a total lack of any form of sense of humor, I needed to adjust my image to suit the suits.  I was taken much more seriously if I shed my jeans and plaid flannel shirts in favor of a more matronly appearance.  I cracked no jokes.  And I didn’t say shit.

Adages, sayings, trendy phases all become cliches in writing.  But one must admit that they became famous (and overused) because of their very condensed relativity.  Creative writing, however, needs to be that:  creative.  The writer must come up with a new image that says exactly what he means without depending upon a tired but tried and true cliche.  With any luck, your highly imaginative and perfect phrase will rank among those perfect words to rise into a cliche.

In the meantime, I’ve settled upon "Fish or cut bait" as acceptable in court.