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Original poster

Writing: sexy? not sexy?

35 replies

UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 11:55

Just spotted on Grauniad CiF and shamelessly pinched for here:

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Me, once, dating a journalist: "How come 'writer' was voted, by women, one of the LEAST sexy jobs a man can do?"

Journalist: "Probably a reputation for writers being alcoholic and depressed."

Me: "But men voted it one of the MOST sexy jobs a woman can do."

Journalist: "Same again. Alcoholic and depressed. Men think 'She'll be rat-arsed AND desperate.'"

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OP posts:
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Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 21:32

She is former singer with Eternal, married to a footballer, and once came in at no.2 in FHM's Top Babes list. But I have no idea about the second part of the question!

OP posts:
Kathyis6incheshigh · 15/08/2007 17:29

Am confused. Who is Louise Redknapp and why is she following your friend around?

zippitippitoes · 15/08/2007 17:03

what do you write then satyricon? literary stuff?

satyricon · 15/08/2007 16:58

Speaking from experience, I've never found it to be a particularly successful way of reeling the opposite sex in. Maybe I'm just not meeting very literary women.

It does, however, pale in comparison with a good friend of mine. After finding out what he does, he averages between 30 and 120 seconds of further conversation before she points over his shoulder, says "Oh, look, it's Louise Redknapp", then vanishes.

He's a stockbroker.

Kathyis6incheshigh · 15/08/2007 16:55

LOL Zippi. So are they seeing you as not only rat-arsed and desperate (as per the OP) but also naked and covered in paint?

zippitippitoes · 15/08/2007 16:51

kathy that's interesting I've been trying to work out just which bit of my internet dating profile says sex mad and up for it so come on lads..

I think I mention both writing and art

Lorayn · 15/08/2007 16:46

Poetry is definitely sexy, especially Don Paterson.

expatinscotland · 15/08/2007 16:43

Poetry is very sexy.

casbie · 15/08/2007 16:38

my hubby read lord of the rings to me (the first book) and gave golem a welsh accent - very creepy, but nice that he read out all the difficult names (he's mildly dyslexic).

i think there are some things that are best read aloud - like poetry.

is poetry sexy?

expatinscotland · 15/08/2007 16:31

He also stammered and had a good deal of speech and language therapy.

Kathyis6incheshigh · 15/08/2007 16:29

Yeah, he was in the Special Needs class at school.
I think sometimes when people appear to be boasting about not having read books what they are actually proud of is being successful in spite of not being any good at schoolwork and reading. Like, if you spend years being looked down on for not being capable of reading it would be quite satisfying to turn round and say 'ha ha, I might not be able to read but that didn't stop me becoming a millionaire, did it?'

Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 16:05

Is he really? I didn't know that. I don't think he said that in the "Parkinson" interview where he sounded proud of not having read a book!

OP posts:
Kathyis6incheshigh · 15/08/2007 15:48

Jamie Oliver is dyslexic. I read a biography of him .

There are always going to be people who don't read - I can't get too wound up about that. It's the sleb culture that gets to me though - when the bookshops are full of 'bestsellers' that are decreed to be so because they have been written 'by' a sleb or have a tv series associated with them. If good writing is to flourish it needs a reasonably level playing field, so people are choosing what they buy according to quality not prettiness of author.

Doesn't Jordan have a series of pony books out? And then there are those unspeakable things Madonna wrote, which I suspect she actually did write (because of course it's so easy to write a children's book if you're as brilliant as Madonna ).

expatinscotland · 15/08/2007 14:51

All she has to do is turn sideways to disappear.

Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 14:51

"written"

GUFFAW!

If anything kills reading in this country it'll be bloody sleb culture.

Whenever you read an article about the death of the novel, people always seem to worry unduly about the internet - whereas most of the net-savvy people I know are keen readers of paper as well.

But the whole sleb thing - their "books" are written by illiterates, for illiterates. People in other countries just cannot understand why we are so obsessed with them.

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Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 14:48

Maybe if Posh gets any thinner she will actually dwindle to a line and then pop out of existence. And nobody will notice.

OP posts:
doggiesayswoof · 15/08/2007 14:48

Posh Spice has written a book though - surely she read that one?

And don't say she had help, I'm sure it was all her own work

Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 14:47

Kathy - the answer, I think, is to do away with such arbitrary distinctions! It is much, much harder to write successfully for children than for adults, though.

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HappyDaddy · 15/08/2007 14:47

Jamie Oliver is clearly no fool and loves what he does.

Posh Spice does nothing and doesn't seem too keen on it either. She represents all that I don't like about our society, her ambition is merely to exist and be photographed. Then has the cheek to talk about role models.

Tsk.

Original poster
UnquietDad · 15/08/2007 14:45

Two people in the media have said, with pride, not shame, that they have never read a book. Jamie Oliver and Posh Spice.

I have no evidence that Posh is anything other than thick as the thickest of thick pigshit, from a pig called Thicke in rural Thickania. But I think Jamie Oliver puts on a bit of an act with all his lovely-jubbly shtick. And he plainly isn't stupid - anyone see the Italian series, where he was obviously not only speaking quite a bit of the language but thinking his way round things he couldn't say and using the words he knew? DW would kill for some of her Y11s to think like that.

OP posts:
BandofMothers · 15/08/2007 14:40

Writing is sexy as long as they're not alcoholic or depressed

Kathyis6incheshigh · 15/08/2007 14:38

Agree with what HappyDaddy says about creativity being sexy. When my dh is getting really carried away by an exciting calculation (!!!!) I find that hugely attractive. Unfortunately, of course, if I were to attempt to seduce him during one of those phases I'd get rather short shrift, I fear.

HappyDaddy · 15/08/2007 14:37

I meant folk who think it's boring and would rather watch Big Brother, not folk who have a medical reason.

I love reading, always have. Both my dds do too, as does DW.

We have a friend who "doesn't do the news", except local rag to see if anyone she knows is in it. She's lovely but has some very strange ideas on the world.

expatinscotland · 15/08/2007 14:37

No, doggie. The idea doesn't appeal to either of us, but if it works for you, brilliant!

doggiesayswoof · 15/08/2007 14:36

weirdy

I don't know what a "werdy" couple is tbh.