The question - from the publicity department of my first
publisher; Robert Hale Books - was: "...Why do you consider
yourself a writer with hobbies, rather than an artist or a
musician with hobbies?..." (Slight paraphrasing there, but
not enough to cloud or otherwise obscure the issue)
"...The question actually omits a significant word:
"currently" A significant omission. But I'll give it my
best shot anyway.
Best answer: Well, it certainly isn't the money!
Not that I'm in any way snobbish about money. Quite the
reverse. I quite like the stuff. Its possession - or, at
the very least, the prospect of its possession - enables me
to do things I couldn't do with a permanently empty pocket.
But that applies to us all, doesn't it?
I have been paid telephone numbers to blow jazz at
thousands of people, and have then slid off to some dingy
jazz club and blown exactly the same repertoire for
nothing. Plus I've had to buy my own beer. And it's a toss
up which I enjoyed most! The next day I'd spend an hour
throwing paint at a canvas, receiving what most people
would consider an exorbitant amount for an hour's work.
Work? Sometimes it's not work at all! And when the
commission is sat there drying and with some paint left on
the palette, I'd lift another canvas and throw the leftover
paint at it. Quite literally in some cases! Very few people
in the world have ever paid me for those canvasses! But I
probably enjoyed that little exercise more than the former.
For various reasons I ended up being able to paint a
reasonable seascape. And I am not too proud to admit that
the reason for that had a great deal to do with money! At
other times, painting, plus blowing a few jazz choruses,
has to be dragged out of me kicking and screaming. At such
times I leave my instruments in their cases, and the studio
to get cobwebs, and I sit at the computer and write.
I guess it's all creation of some kind.
I hope that about now you are realising just how
significant an omission the word "currently" was.
What it boils down to is that I live, not for the
money, but for the moment.
But that's now, well after I found a way through all
the hoops. I've had empty pockets and I didn't like the
experience one bit!
So, at the moment I am a writer who plays a bit, and
paints less.
Tomorrow I might be a jazz muso who writes a bit and
doesn't mind getting paint on his clothes.
The day after I could well be a painter who blows a
bit, whilst frantically searching for a good plot.
Mind you, without the slight financial safety net,
either real or expected, plus a really positive attitude,
next week I could well be throwing Big Macs at people who
think they are hungry!
You just never know..."
And that's what I sent them.
I don't think the person who received it was in the slightest bit amuzed.
They certainly didn't use it.
Then again, as now, I had very probably missed the point of the "Blog".
I'm still not certain what should go in one, and I do not have a blog site
per se.
I do have a site that reflects my current thoughts on various topics. Interactive,
it works fine on a PC, and I think it's currently "mobile-friendly". Take a look
HERE if you have time on your hands.
