Blotters near and far
My current Writers on the Range column -- running in today's Casper Star-Tribune -- covers small-town police blotters. Reading the story, one editor asked if I knew about the nation's most legendary police blotter.
In fact I did. It's something of a cult among journalists. Though when I set out to write, I'd temporarily forgotten. So in toying with lots of different police blotters (I was wondering if I should cover lots of different areas, even places I hadn't been), I hopped on the Internet and came across it again.
Gave me writer's block for weeks.
The Eye turns the blotter itself into literature. It represents masterful use of language. The only way I could get past my block was to ignore it, to realize that I was writing about blotters elsewhere, that are not literature, but fodder for a different type of musing.
But if you like both blotters and haiku, check out this one.
Join the discussion at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/johnclaytonoutreach/, or let me know your thoughts via info at johnclaytonbooks (and you can fill in the rest).
In fact I did. It's something of a cult among journalists. Though when I set out to write, I'd temporarily forgotten. So in toying with lots of different police blotters (I was wondering if I should cover lots of different areas, even places I hadn't been), I hopped on the Internet and came across it again.
Gave me writer's block for weeks.
The Eye turns the blotter itself into literature. It represents masterful use of language. The only way I could get past my block was to ignore it, to realize that I was writing about blotters elsewhere, that are not literature, but fodder for a different type of musing.
But if you like both blotters and haiku, check out this one.
Join the discussion at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/johnclaytonoutreach/, or let me know your thoughts via info at johnclaytonbooks (and you can fill in the rest).
