Zinsser’s “Writing About Your Life,” Part 2
Here’s a quote from pp. 101-102 of this William Zinsser book, which argues for my exploring my squirrel obsession.
“If you’re writing about some special interest of yours… let us know at the outset how the fever first struck you and how it continues to rule your life. We are all odd ducks in our hobbies and our obsessions, and human oddity is not interesting. What’s interesting is not necessarily the hobby itself. If you were to write a purely factual book about ‘fishing’ we would soon be nodding off; that’s what encyclopedias are for. Your subject is the transaction between yourself and fishing — as a sport, as a pastime, as therapy, as buddy experience, as a solitary experience, as a nature experience, as a spiritual experience, as a food-gathering experience, or whatever drew you to it. Trust your obsession to be your best calling card. Tell us about it.”