All writing has meaning, but it may not go quite as deep as you think, and only resonate with a few.
During my college career, I wound up President of the Drama Club that was not associated with the Theatre Department. In part, this was because I didn’t decide on my theatre major until the end of my freshman year, and in part, because the department was hyper-competitive.
During my time with the Drama Club, I produced and directed half a dozen plays. I even acted in one of them as well. The reason I had chosen my theatre degree program was that I wanted to be a director.
Senior year you took a directing class, both semesters. I was looking very forward to this class, because I had already been a director, and figured this would refine and improve the work I was doing.
That was not the case. The professor and I had almost diametrically opposed views of what a director is (I think traffic cop, keeping the other pieces like actors and stage crafters in motion – he thinks the director is God), and we butted heads constantly.
Frankly, I felt the professor was a rather arrogant asshole.
I mean, he did take one of my favorite plays and cut one of the best roles down to meet HIS view of how it should have been written. So he knew better than the playwright. See why I say he was an asshole? But I digress.
In the first semester, we broke down a play (I cannot recall what play, it was not a well-known piece). This professor told us that every single name has meaning – and had us combing this play for its’ untold depths.
I could have told you then what I am telling you now. This is, frankly, untrue.
Meaning is not always so deep
We analyzed this play ad nauseam, finding deep meaning in every single act, among all the names, and just about every bit of dialogue. However, I am not so sure this play was quite as deep as the professor thought it to be.
He insisted that every name has a deep meaning to it. That no author creates utterly random names. From personal experience, however, I can tell you that’s bullshit.
Yes, I have created names that had a specific meaning, but more often than not it was for ME. I didn’t hide significant clues about a character (i.e. someone who’s name was John Callahan – JC – ergo, Jesus Christ) nor put much meaning behind a name in any single piece I have written.
I have hundreds of characters in The Source Chronicles. Most, if not all of their names, were pulled out of my ass along the way. To be fair, I did keep certain naming conventions similar in order to identify where people came from (surnames with similar builds, for example). I did this later in the sci-fi series I am working on now, The Void Incursion series. Most of those conventions tell you what alien race a character is a part of.
The point here is that while there is SOME meaning in these things, it is not so deep that you can analyze it to the point of creating a nuanced layer that likely doesn’t truly exist.
To be fair, there are plenty of writers who LOVE to add that nuanced depth into their stories. But for every one of them, I am pretty sure there are a dozen of us who don’t.
Depth exists in many places
In The Source Chronicles, my main character is on a journey of discovery. Frankly, it is probably very much along the lines of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey concept. But my sorcerer’s self-discoveries could also be taken to heart, I think, by readers.
My non-fiction is all about conscious reality creation and finding yourself. I also write about positivity and mindfulness and generally doing more to be empowered and live the best life you can. More than one of my characters in my fiction works are doing the same thing.
This, however, I believe reflects many many people in the world at large. You might be striving to live the best life you can.
Paulo Coelho is a master at this. The Alchemist, probably my very favorite book (and the audiobook is read superbly by Jeremy Irons), is all about finding your truest, best self. As the main character goes in search of his “personal legend,” that thing that will illuminate and excite his life the most, he goes through trials and tribulations I know I have experienced, too. It is not, in my mind, just a work of fiction – but a notion for how to seek out my best life, too.
I write both fiction and non-fiction to inspire. Yes, I want to feel inspired, and I write because I feel drawn to be a writer. It is my hope that my readers will also be inspired, perhaps to take on new adventures, do their own art, seek their own consciously created reality, or just dream.
The world is a scary place. I seek hope against the hopeless, to be one of Paulo Coelho’s Warriors of the Light, and do whatever I can to keep up the good fight to stop the self-destruction of the human race.
What it means to me it may not mean to you
Finally, it is important to acknowledge that any meaning and depth you find in someone’s writing is going to be variable. That’s because you and I are different.
Mindful or not, how you think is not how I think. You perceive your illusion of reality based on your environment, life experience, upbringing, general positivity or negativity, what you think and how and what you feel. Your experience varies from mine, so your perception does, too.
Ergo, the meaning I may find in The Alchemist you might not. And that’s ok because you might find meaning somewhere I do not.
All writing has meaning, but it is going to be variable from person to person. Keep reading, fiction and non-fiction, and enjoy the words, ideas, concepts, worlds, and perspectives other people decided they needed to share. If you are also a writer, keep writing.
Thank you for reading these words I have written for me and for you, as well as for taking part in my ongoing journey. Thank you for joining me.
Please take a moment to explore the rest of the website, which I am working to evolve and change for the better…much like I am doing for myself. Also, visit Awareness for Everyone to check out my bi-weekly podcasts.
This is the thirty-first entry of my personal writing blog. Please take a moment to check out the collection of my published writing, which can be found here.
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