coming up with the catchphrase necessitated a post
I'm a little late in writing this one, what with the topic having been extensively discussed prior to demiurgent's vacation. Now things have at least tentatively started back up over at Websnark, and I'm discussing an issue that's months old at best. But it wasn't until I was listening to Eric's guest spot on the Keencast that the thought really took shape. His appearance concluded with everyone saying they were excited by the prospects of posts over at the 'Snark, and one of the regular hosts quipped "And godwilling he may actually talk about webcomics again."
And that was when it hit me. A thought I'm sure I've had before, but never with such force behind it. And never with such a strong desire to put it down on paper (metaphorically speaking.) To record the words for posterity, in a place where everyone I know can read them. Maybe even the man himself. And that thought was this:
I don't give a damn if Eric Alfred Burns never writes another webcomic snark ever again. Never again submits a strip without comment. Never distributes another biscuit, whether tasty or otherwise.
Bear with me for a second here. I'm not saying I want Websnark to go away. Just the opposite, really. I'm as excited as anyone that Eric is provisionally back in the saddle. I am a fan of Websnark. I belong to the snarkoleptics community. And more to the point I am a fan of Burns, and of his writing. He's more to me than just some guy with a blog, and I'm glad Randy Milholland reportedly disabused him of that notion.
And I understand the impulse on the part of the webcomics community (insofar as such a thing exists at this juncture.) I really do. Eric may not have done it first, and there are those who argue he doesn't do it best, but Eric got people talking in a way no one else had before. He bears a significant share of responsibility for The Dialogue. And as a result of that there's an impulse to enshrine him in that position, to turn him into some sort of Yogi Berra of webcomics, cleverly and succintly dispensing ideas and wisdom not about any particular webcomic but about the medium itself. Where they are, where they're going.
But... well... personally I resist it. Because I've been reading that blog for a while now. And I've enjoyed a great deal of stuff that has absolutely nothing to do with webcomics. I enjoyed the period of time where the focus of Websnark shifted away from webcomics criticism as much as I enjoyed everything that came before. It boils down to the fact that I don't think of writing about webcomics as Eric's life's work. And I'm willing to wager neither does he.
These days every time I see that Eric has snarked a strip I get a little afraid inside. A little wary that he's done so because he feels obligated, because so many people are clamoring for him to influence The Dialogue and he wants to meet that demand. And I know that he burned out on it once, and I don't want him to again. Because I don't want him to retreat out of view. I don't want Websnark to go away. I do want Gossamer Commons to come back eventually.
And I would absolutely love for him to finish, and publish, his novel. I'd love to buy a copy, and hold it in my hands.
Let Burns be Burns. That's what I say. I like it so much I might even have to have it printed on a t-shirt, if only for myself.
(I thought about cross-posting this to the snarkoleptics by the way, because in my heart I believe a number of them agree with me. But it seemed like unnecessary shit-stirring. This is my opinion, these are my words, and I take full responsibility for them.)
And that was when it hit me. A thought I'm sure I've had before, but never with such force behind it. And never with such a strong desire to put it down on paper (metaphorically speaking.) To record the words for posterity, in a place where everyone I know can read them. Maybe even the man himself. And that thought was this:
I don't give a damn if Eric Alfred Burns never writes another webcomic snark ever again. Never again submits a strip without comment. Never distributes another biscuit, whether tasty or otherwise.
Bear with me for a second here. I'm not saying I want Websnark to go away. Just the opposite, really. I'm as excited as anyone that Eric is provisionally back in the saddle. I am a fan of Websnark. I belong to the snarkoleptics community. And more to the point I am a fan of Burns, and of his writing. He's more to me than just some guy with a blog, and I'm glad Randy Milholland reportedly disabused him of that notion.
And I understand the impulse on the part of the webcomics community (insofar as such a thing exists at this juncture.) I really do. Eric may not have done it first, and there are those who argue he doesn't do it best, but Eric got people talking in a way no one else had before. He bears a significant share of responsibility for The Dialogue. And as a result of that there's an impulse to enshrine him in that position, to turn him into some sort of Yogi Berra of webcomics, cleverly and succintly dispensing ideas and wisdom not about any particular webcomic but about the medium itself. Where they are, where they're going.
But... well... personally I resist it. Because I've been reading that blog for a while now. And I've enjoyed a great deal of stuff that has absolutely nothing to do with webcomics. I enjoyed the period of time where the focus of Websnark shifted away from webcomics criticism as much as I enjoyed everything that came before. It boils down to the fact that I don't think of writing about webcomics as Eric's life's work. And I'm willing to wager neither does he.
These days every time I see that Eric has snarked a strip I get a little afraid inside. A little wary that he's done so because he feels obligated, because so many people are clamoring for him to influence The Dialogue and he wants to meet that demand. And I know that he burned out on it once, and I don't want him to again. Because I don't want him to retreat out of view. I don't want Websnark to go away. I do want Gossamer Commons to come back eventually.
And I would absolutely love for him to finish, and publish, his novel. I'd love to buy a copy, and hold it in my hands.
Let Burns be Burns. That's what I say. I like it so much I might even have to have it printed on a t-shirt, if only for myself.
(I thought about cross-posting this to the snarkoleptics by the way, because in my heart I believe a number of them agree with me. But it seemed like unnecessary shit-stirring. This is my opinion, these are my words, and I take full responsibility for them.)