Tayari's Blog: Niagara has Fallen

Posted by TayariJones on May 31, 2006 08:48 AM
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Yesterday, I left the colony to take a day trip to Niagara falls. It's only an hour away and some friends had a car. So I, along with Australian playwright, Vivienne Walshe figured this was a good time to check out one of the seven wonders of the world. We thought we'd be inspired, and we were, but not in the way we thought.

Niagara falls is the corniest, cheesiest, chain-restaurant havingest, town I have ever seen. Not only that, most of the crass commercialism is passe crass commercialism because the buildings seem to have been built in the mid-eighties.

"Oh my god," said Vivienne. "This is so American."
"Watch your mouth," I said. "We're on the Canadian side of the falls."

Well, Vivi and I decided to fork out $15 to ride a boat called the Maid of The Mist which takes you on an open boat right up to the falls so you can really experience the power of the Niagara river rushing off a 200 foot cliff. And, yes, it really is one of the seven wonders of the world. Yes, it is spiritual.

And here is the lesson of it. The town of Niagara Falls is, in short, a hell hole. And it was built up around a breath-taking, awe-inspiring, shiver-making, natural wonder.

And that brings me to writing.. and it brings me to publishing. (I think you see where I am going here.) The writing, what you do with the page is your Niagara Falls. The business angle, the advances, the networking, the hustle.. all of that is just the crap that distracts us from the power and the beauty of the Falls.

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There are 2 comments on "Niagara has Fallen". If you'd like to leave a comment, click here to jump down to the comments entry form.

Comment #1, by Ladylee [TypeKey Profile Page]

What a deep comparison, Tayari...

You told me something profound in an email long ago... that what makes me a writer is what's in my heart, not when I am published. So if I never make one red cent off my writing, I can appreciate the raw beauty of it, even if I am the only one appreciating it...

Good post, and good observation.

May 31, 2006 09:47 AM

Comment #2, by Jackie [TypeKey Profile Page]

I took my son to Niagara Falls about ten years ago (he is now 23) because I remember being awed by the Falls when my parents took us there one summer in the 1960s. What he remembers best about that trip was that I played a video game with him in one of the arcades and we played until we won the game. He was so proud of me for doing that with him. I just wanted to get him out of the arcade so I got a lot of change and played and played and played (to the music of Aerosmith of all things) so that I would never have to go back in an arcade ever in life. Dues paid, memory won. He was not impressed by the Falls, only the cheesy shopping opportunities. Oh well.....

May 31, 2006 10:48 AM

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