Silly Thinking

Here's a quote from Christopher Barzak over at the website for Kelly Link's anthology "Trampoline." I think it's a good quote, worth sharing.

Tomorrow I return to answer any and all questions about myself, my writing, my political connections, and so on...


Q: Can you say something, particularly in light of these grave times, about the writer's role or responsibility in the creation of work that is purely literary, that is the work of the imagination, as opposed to work that serves more overtly and diras a voice of conscience?

A: I think that writing can be purely literary and still serve overtly and directly as a voice of conscience. And I think that writers, like anyone else, have a choice in how they make their work. I myself think we need writing that is purely literary, writing that is purely a voice of conscience, and writing that is both literary and a voice of conscience. We need the purely literary as a form of healing for our imaginations. We need the voices of conscience as a form of healing and direction for our cultures. We need writing that is both purely literary and a voice of conscience that bridges reconnects our conscience beings with our imaginations, so that we can begin making the world over again, for the better, I hope.