A whole lot of times, what is written today has been written before. In some cases, not once, but a number of times. What seems like an original thought when witnessing a birth, a death, while suffering pain, while falling in love or suffering betrayal, is in fact often a thought that has occurred before to countless men and women.
But what is exciting is the difference in perspective, the fresh way of looking at the human condition. It is all about making an observation that strikes a chord with your audience, an observation that people identify with, but something that is in no way hackneyed.
Which is why Shakespeare, who wrote hundreds of years ago still touches the modern man, why so many versions of his plays find a modern audience through plays, through movies, through debates, classrooms and discussions. Reams and reams of creative writing hits the world’s bookshops every day, but how much of it is truly original, or even work that comes from a fresh perspective, is open to question.
Writing original stuff
Thanks for stopping by, Cliff, and I look forward to reading some of your work when you publish it on your blog!
Each person’s perspective is unique and therefore there really is no such thing as a twice-told tale. I suppose some might say I’ve written about mummies, zombies, vampires–and yet those words rarely appear in my prose. My “take” on them is very personal, their source material derived from my life experiences, readings and my very clever (and perverse) muse. Good post, it raises some interesting points…