Wednesday 18 March 2009

Dipping a toe into the existential water

OK, so your first response to the title was that this would be a blog devoted to pretentious crap. I hope it's not. Life's too short. All those millions of words on top of all the books that must be read. All the twittering and the frantic desire to answer the question 'What are you doing?' So that everything (as it should be) is experienced as the constant present. No duration, no sequence to things, just the perpetually renewing now. Hence the 'existential' tag. Not only are we always poised on this shifting point between past and present, but we throw out isolated thoughts and opinions, fragments of moments which give 'les autres' plenty of ammunition for their judgements of us. So we add to the 'enfer' which they represent and deliver. Hmmm, I thought I said this wasn't going to be pretentious crap - well, it's not. I actually believe this stuff. It's great. Those who despair at Sisyphus's acceptance that as soon as he gets to the top he'll have to start all over again should buy him a drink instead, and admire his balls for persevering. Laugh at - or, rather, with - life as much as possible. Godot will never come but it's great to have the chance just to wait.

But anyway, why am I adding to all those words I was complaining about? Well, I was tagged to give a list of the 25 authors who've most influenced me and I needed a place to do it. I have a website (www.bill-kirton.co.uk) but prefer to keep that just for specifics about my books. So I'm inflicting this on an already over-worded world.

The list is: Flaubert, Stendhal, Molière, Thomas Hardy, Beckett, Victor Hugo, Byron, Zola, Ruth Rendell,Stephen King, Tom Sharpe, Terry Pratchett, Joseph Heller, Edgar Allan Poe, Harold Pinter, Baudelaire, Sartre, Camus, Ionesco, Peter Cook, Spike Milligan, William MacIlvenny, Racine, David Mitchell, Michel Faber

12 comments:

  1. If you hadn't included Spike Milligan and a couple of the others, I would have been seriously worried.

    If you want to be properly existential you probably should include yourself.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Welcome to the Blogoshere, my friend. I look forward to more unpretentious posts from Aberdeen. :)

    Jean
    http://mysteriouspeople.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  3. Gary, Gary, Gary - how could I possibly include myself? I depend on others to define my essence. I only know who I am when you and others tell me.

    And thank you, Jean. You know I'm only here because of you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bill, I think every novelist needs a blog site so that we can connect with our readers. I'm glad you established this lovely site. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Although there are five here I'd agree with, there are also three of the most annoying, mannered and over rated writers of the 20th century. In my, lower than humble opinion. Mind you I was wrong about Lucy Mangan.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Fascinating. Knowing your tastes, I've tried to work out which ones you mean but I can't. You'll have to enlighten me in a less public forum.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I plead guity to annoying, mannered and under rated writer of the 21st century. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think you may find you have competition for that particular prize, Jean.

    ReplyDelete
  10. As soon as you post your next article, I'll add you to my blog rolls on my various blog sites. In the meantime, you need to add a book cover or two to your site. That's what blogs are all about: promoting our books as well as advising, forecasting, recycling our knowledge, etc. :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Ah Jean, once again you challenge my technological competence. Thanks for pointing that out. I'll get to work on it at once.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Very nice, Bill. I knew you could do it. :)

    ReplyDelete