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by emtel 3291 days ago
It's kind of sad that PG couldn't get anything more than that out of the short stories he read in high school english. Sure, a lot of them are forgettable, but if I think think of the stories I read that stuck with me, they all had a heck of a lot more going on than just being a random slice of mundane unhappiness. A few that really stuck with me: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (James Thurber), The Open Boat (Stephen Crane), The Long Sheet (William Sansom). If PG couldn't find anything funny, gripping, or worthwhile in stories like these, well, his loss.

It wouldn't even be worth making this comment, except that PG seems to consider himself some sort of authority on writing (http://www.paulgraham.com/talk.html) - and for him, the one and only rule of style seems to be simplicity. I'll agree, simple beats overwrought, but c'mon. Great writers have a style that makes you want to copy it, which is something that PG doesn't seem aware of even as an aspiration.
2 comments
hashhar 3291 days ago
I agree with you. I have been reading Stephen King's "The Body" which is a short story/novella and there he describes the journey of 4 friends to see a dead body somewhere in the middle of the desert out of town. There's a section where the kids are walking on a railway bridge and a train comes up and they have nowhere to go but to jump to a 50 feet drop into a river. That scene is so beautifully written that I could feel myself watching the events right in front of me.

He also talks about how his feelings towards storytelling changed after he started doing it as his primary income source instead of a hobby he had during childhood. Very interesting stuff.

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lemonberry 3291 days ago
A movie was made 1986 based on this called "Stand by Me". It was a favorite when I was young. River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Wil Wheaton are in it. It may seem dated and shallow compared to the story, but it's worth watching.
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terminalcommand 3291 days ago
IMHO PG still states that written and spoken language are different. I think the lesson to be drawn from the essay is simple: be honest.

Don't try to trick your readers by trying to use fancy words and then fail.

Brutal honesty written in an understandable manner has a real weight not to be underestimated.

You don't need to write like you're talking to a child at all, but you shouldn't reach out for words and expressions just because they sound fancier.

This may be my personal opinion, but I have no stomach for literature that is written with dishonest intentions.

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