Statutory Confinement, I can hear myself being a control-obsessed freak, a near-Monica Chandler Bing or even a reflection of the English teacher whom I detested the most. A writer's obsession with the punctuation is a mystery that the non-writer world is yet to crack. And something that no longer surprises me Its a passion that can only be savored when you arrive at the secret recipe, your writing draft.
Its a pleasure to write, carefully tracing out the lines and break-ups and separators. Nothing can suffice the simple high of drafting a piece without many errors. It is a sure way to measure progress and not to forget focus. Sigh! If only the railway station paperbacks understand this. They would cover themselves in a more dignified way. What about the cheap sales of master-pieces? Print-offs. Rip-offs. Replicated without as much as a thought and so much of any mercy (This coming form a person who has printed out adaptations while being a freelancer)
If only you've known that I spend hours, carefully verifying and cross-checking punctuations in every piece I write. Because I am filled with wonder constantly at the character they lend to the lines. At their unique shapes that make my wrist turn, when I write and not type out. Their ability to stand out against the letters, stopping them, prodding them, allowing them to introspect. Imagine your life's story-line being completely devoid of punctuations. No time to pause. No time to stop and celebrate. No time to question motives. No time to be in awe of experiences. I'm sure living would lack a deeper meaning, to begin with.
Looking at the sad paper-backs make me think of punctuations and the words that they interrupt or crown. So, next time you are tempted to pick one of those adaptations, why don't you end your thought with a question mark (?) and action with a full stop (.)
