Creation vs Evolution

It is no surprise that a writer cannot take a really good book, make a couple of minute changes, then publish it under their own name with a new illustration on the cover. It just isn't done. There are laws against it and no-one in their right mind would consider it anything other than theft. We (Joe Public), would not tolerate it or waste our money on it.

Then why do we happily accept sloppy seconds in other areas.

In recent years, the vogue to produce remakes or "based on the tv series" movies has left us with the impression that there are no original ideas left. Movie makers have become akin to Japanese manufacturers. After all, why bother to invent something when you can take someone else's idea and develop it to the nth degree. Does a film cost any less to make if it has been made before? I don't think so. Obviously, with developments in CGI and other special effects, some people will argue that a remake is often a vast improvement on the original. I will concede that occasionally this is true. I may also agree that there is justification if the original was an obscure foreign language film or perhaps a short. However, how can you advocate the remaking of classic or cult films such as Psycho, Pelham 123 or Barbarella. Has the film industry lost its nerve? With the huge sums of money spent on making and promoting films nowadays, is it safer to take a tried and tested formula than to risk millions on something new and fresh? Even when they do use an innovative idea, the tendency to overmilk with sequel after needless sequel irritates me. Terminator Salvation! Really? Let the machines rule the world, I don't care anymore.

This tendency to reuse old ideas isn't exclusive to movies. All the shops are full of fashions from years ago. It's amazing to me how all the young girls think they are getting something amazing and new. They don't realise their mothers probably wore that same outfit when dating their dad.

In a disappointing parallel to the movie and fashion industries, the music business also seems unable to showcase originality. Turn on the radio and you will hear the same songs played over and over again. Most will sound at least vaguely familiar as you realise it's either a cover version or a large part of the song has been sampled from a song you used to dance to in your teens. When was the last time you turned on the radio and heard a new song from an artist you never heard of? DJs can't introduce us to new music like they used to. Their hands are completely tied by station playlists.

Some people only like music in a specific genre, some like music to dance to, some like it to listen to. We all have different tastes and I fully appreciate that. Personally, I have a freakily eccletic music collection encompassing everything from Country to Rock, Folk to Rap. Old or new, chart or indie, I have something to suit all my different moods. There is not much I won't listen to although I do prefer proper songs with proper lyrics. I cannot stand these music snobs who look down their noses at you because you don't like a certain band or can't recite last year's Mercury Prize nominees. Music is a personal choice. That said, I have a problem with boybands, for example Westlife. Firstly, they are not bands, they do not play instruments. Secondly, why do their fans accept this constant stream of cover versions. (Westlife have recorded 63 according to Wikipedia). If they were making improvements to the arrangement of the original song maybe I would feel differently but the latest single from Westlife is practically a clone of the Daughtry version. I am not even a hater of covers. I think in the right place at the right time for the right reasons they can be great.

So why do we just accept what we're given. Why do we hand over our hard earned cash for sub-standard, 2nd hand goods? We wouldn't expect to pay the same price for a used car as a new one. I know this whole retro movement at the moment is everywhere, the emphasis is on re-using and recycling but some things should never be recycled. There is a host of untapped talent in this country alone. Search through the web and you will find unpublished screenplays, designs, music, books and more. The internet seems to be the last hope for all these amazing artists.

So, Creation vs. Evolution. I know which one I'd like to see win.

Old Dreams , New Beginnings

I don't feel old. I don't have any wrinkles yet or grey hairs. I suppose I should be grateful. What I do have is an unavoidable sense that time is running out. Things I always planned on doing haven't been done yet. Goals I set myself were forgotten. I increasingly feel like I've wasted too much time.

I had so many hopes and dreams when I was growing up. At ten, I wanted to be forensic scientist years before anyone had even heard of CSI. At eleven, I remember begging for ballet lessons only to get ballroom dancing lessons instead because they were all we could afford. At thirteen I wanted to be a writer. I would spend hours in my room composing songs and stories. All my teenage angst scrawled across scraps of paper and tatty notebooks. I would pour my heart out on the page and lose myself in imaginery worlds where life was different. Not perfect, just different.

Obviously I never fulfilled any of my ambitions, they were all short-lived and lacked any real conviction. I would be totally obsessed for a while only to be talked out of it or discouraged by a chance remark. For years I blamed everyone else on my lack of success. I thought that I had failed because no-one had encouraged me. Looking back now I realise that I didn't fail. I just never really tried.

Writing helped me cope with all the trials in my life. It kept me sane when I felt the world was falling apart around me. It saw me through my parent's breaking up, my first heartbreak and my divorce. It remains my favourite form of therapy.

As the big 4 - 0 approaches I find myself reflecting on the past more and more. I've even dusted off the small cardboard box from the loft where I packed away all my creations from my youth. Who knows maybe I'll find something worth publishing. At least now I'm ready to try.