Monday, May 26, 2014

Self-Deprecation

If we're honest, we have a treasure trove of self-deprecation.  You know your foibles better than anyone else. Rodney Dangerfield's "I don't get no respect" attitude is fodder for writing. Mine your own insecurities once in a while; laugh at yourself and encourage your reader to laugh at those qualities in them.  It's part of the human condition.

Anne Lamont is a good example.  She describes a reading where she had jet lag, the self-esteem of a prawn, and to top it off, she stopped breathing. She said she sounded like the English patient.

Understatement and hyperbole work in writing.  Exploit them both.

2 comments:

  1. I had forgotten this one. Thanks for the reminder.

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    1. Hope you're having a pleasant Memorial Day. Remember when we called it "Decoration Day?"

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