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/lit/ - Literature

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11329640 No.11329640 [Reply] [Original]

>be me
>have an idea for an interesting fictional setting that might make for a decent story
>jot it down on paper
>do some research on plausibility and edit accordingly
>conceptualize a few characters to explore the setting and see if there's any plot there
>hit on something that i feel as though i can work with
>slowly draft one chapter, then a second
>in the mean time, start reading Infinite Jest
>quickly realize that I could write a hundred-thousand page novel and it wouldn't contain even a quarter of the artistry and literary brilliance packed into the first ten pages of IJ
>shelve it all and never look back

i can't be the only one, right?

>> No.11329646

>>11329640
Holy shit imagine being stumped by fucking IJ

>> No.11329649

You don't need to be the best. You simply need to be good enough for yourself.

>> No.11329932

>>11329640
Haven't read Infinite Jest because I'm not that into foreign literature, but you're definitely not the only one. We're just bad and self-aware.

>> No.11331179

This happens all the time to me too, anon. Whenever I read Dostoyevsky or Sábato I get completely bummed out by their brilliance. I guess it's just about reading all you possibly can and improve yourself in that aspect. Two years ago(before I read classics and 'serious' works of literature) my writting was honestly unreadable. Now, after reading about ~50 classics I feel better about the quality of my short stories/poems. I hope someday I can feel confident enough to write an entire novel.
I think it's all about finding a way of expressing your ideas in a manner that is both beautiful and sincere. I also think a good writer is really just someone able to understand himself and humanity in a deep and personal way. To me, it is necessary to not think about the fame and status you'd earn for your writings, and to be honest about it to yourself. Right now, I'd say there's still a part of me that does it for those reasons, but as I develop myself and evolve, that corner of my soul shrinks to the point of(hopefully) inexisntence.

>> No.11331201

just remember anon: more or less every artist ever has wondered if they would be able to live up to the old masters. i'm sure there was a time when wallace looked at shakespeare or pynchon or some other author who influenced him and asked himself if he could ever do it. you can. infinite jest took somewhere around 10 years to write if I remember correctly, and wallace was constantly working with an editor for two or three years of that i think. start. you can do it. promising right now that i'll read your book if i can.

>> No.11331210

>>11331201
Infinite Jest is pretentious dreck you pathetic faggot