Francis Berger
  • Home
  • Blog
  • My Work
  • Contact

Gradually And Then Suddenly . . . 

4/14/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
"How did you go bankrupt?" Bill asked.

"Two ways," Mike said. "Gradually and then suddenly."


I have been mulling over this little gem from Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises for the better part of two days now.  Humorous and ironic, the profundity of Mike's sullen description of how he lost his money lies in the realization that gradually, then suddenly
is not just a clever quip, but a recognizable pattern of life that can be extended to any aspect of human existence. 

Take your health, for example.  Imagine you are out-of-shape and begin an intense exercise regimen in an effort to get fit.  During the first week all you feel is pain, but slowly and gradually your fitness level improves until one fine morning - ta-dah!  You are suddenly in shape! 

Writing follows a similar pattern, in my opinion.  You type and type and type and revise and rethink and rip up and throw out and rewrite and then one day you suddenly realize you are finished. 

The idea can also be applied to success.  Though instant success happens, it is rare and dangerous.  The more common path to success also follows the gradually then suddenly pattern. 

Of course, gradually then suddenly is not always positive, as Mike so gloomily reveals when describing his state of financial misfortune.  Going back to the example of health.  If you are in shape and stop exercising and taking care of yourself, you gradually, then very suddenly realize you are no longer fit.  In writing, if you no longer imagine, write, and create, you gradually, then very suddenly stop being a writer. 

In terms of success, I have noticed that my novel is gradually catching the attention of more readers.  More ratings and reviews are popping up on Goodreads and Amazon.  Whether or not this gradual increase in interest and awareness will translate into anything in the suddenly portion of the equation described above remains to be seen.

Regardless, it is nice to see a few more people take notice of the novel. 



0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    RSS Feed

    Blog and Comments

    Blog posts tend to be spontaneous, unpolished, first draft entries ranging from the insightful and periodically profound to the poorly-argued and occasionally disparaging.
     

    Comments are moderated. Anonymous comments are never published (please use your name or a pseudonym). 

    Emails welcome:

    f er en c ber g er (at) h otm   ail (dot) co m
    Blogs/Sites I Read
    Bruce Charlton's Notions
    Meeting the Masters
    From The Narrow Desert
    Brief Outlines

    No Longer Reading

    ​Steeple Tea
    Berdyaev.com
    Junior Ganymede
    ​
    Deep Britain and Europe
    ​
    The Orthosphere
    ​
    Fourth Gospel Blog
    Picture

    Archives

    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    June 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    April 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012

Proudly powered by Weebly