Dear all

Thanks for the responses, both public and private, to my despair at the
growing (?) gap between writing and publishing: I especially enjoyed being
flamed by the fire man.

Anyway, there are two further things that I should have added, both of
which crystallize around Judith's and others' comment about 'quality,'
rather than speed, and tie in with some of the comments about the
increasing commodification of knowledge production, which is exemplified so
well by the ESRC's Junkie logic: knowledge is worth exactly as much as its
users are prepared to invest in it...

First, knowledge may take time to 'mature,' but it's not like wine: left
for ages in a dark vault, with the occasional overturning to dislodge the
sediment. (And once matured, it is definitely best to consume it asap!) Be
that as it may, I really believe that thought is as quick as a flash. It
either happens, or it doesn't. A new image of thought changes everything,
or else it doesn't. And no matter how long you leave a dud idea, it won't
go off. (You can tell that bonfire night is fast approaching here in the
UK: never return to a lit firework... But actually, I have Damien Hirst in
mind: I often feel as though once vibrant and explosive ideas have become
suspended in printerly formaldehyde). The most important thing is for ideas
to spark. And for that to happen, they have to clash with others... This is
why by far the best stuff is created in heated discussion, although by the
cold light of print it has invariably turned stale. Worse still, if it
takes years for flashes to be seen by others, the event will have long ago
faded...

So, no I don't believe in quality over and against quantity: just ideas.

Second, loads of people have loads of ideas. That goes without saying. But
the quality of those ideas comes down to the effects they have: are they to
your taste? (For me, refereeing and other such scholarly filtration systems
have little to do with quality and significance, and much more to do with
flavour and taste: we like, we don't like... [but maybe that's because I
write on a Big Mac]). So, what worries me is that this mutiplicity of ideas
and happenings disipates by the time of publication. How much is lost in
the long trek from flashes of thought to the 10K essay splattered on the
page? Roger is right to insist on editing. But personally speaking, I would
rather give myself the snip, than give myself over to the uncertain
competence of Thing One and/or Thing Two.

Meanwhile, a friend once told me of the incomplete ideas, papers, chapters,
etcetera that were in his/her possession. S/he had so much to do and so
much 'in progress'... I jokingly suggested that s/he should sell, lend, or
give them away. On reflection, a secondary market in ideas might be quite
nice (not for money or recognition, of course--just for kicks): perhaps our
esteemed journals could include a 'For Sale' or 'Wanted' section at the
back of each issue. Between 'Rope: 3ft, vgc' and 'Occasional bed: never
used,' it would be nice to see something like: 'Critique of fuzzy logic: in
need of repair'...

Actually, I love this image of thought. I have an idea, a nice idea... but
not the time to 'mature' it or make it spark with others... nor the right
journal to hang it in/on... So here it is, left by the wayside. Pick it up
if you want--or don't. On that Deleuzean note I'll end, except to say that
Roger's concern about the resultant chaos could be overcome: (1) it's nice
to browse and be surprised (Walt Benjamin at the monster car boot
sale...)--unexpected sparks might fly; and (2) the telephone book simply
lists things by alpha or by category.

Anyway, time for playschool and the teletubbies...


marcus d

(PS. As you can probably tell, I haven't a clue what 'critical' means. It
seems to be used as shorthand for: 'It tastes good...' as opposed to 'It
smells bad...' At least that is what my Big Mac tells me.)

________________________________________

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Dr Marcus A. Doel
Department of Geography
Loughborough University
Loughborough
Leicestershire
LE11 3TU

Teletubby:      +44 (0) 1509 228191

Telefaxing:     +44 (0) 1509 223931
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