Please leave your answers in the comments because as desperately as I would like to relate this post to writing or books, and as neck-deep in revisions as I am at this moment, and as recently as I have been quite close to some Holsteins---even I don't know the answer.
I just wanted to post this picture from my recent trip to Tennessee.
All that's missing is my devilish laugh.
Oh, wait! I thought of something bookish: Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type.
But you can do better. How, I ask you again, are revisions like being kissed by a cow?
... because the black and white on the page forms a 3 dimensional object, thus moving and shaping into something entirely different from what you began with.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I need another cup of coffee?
Having been kissed by cows MANY times (hey, I grew up surrounded by dairy farms), I can tell you that's it's always surprising. I think revisions are like that. Sometimes a magical, surprising thing happens while you are writing, and it startles you as much as that kiss from a cow.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSorry for the delete. I hate typos, so I needed to change it.
ReplyDeleteWhat I wanted to say is this-- you two are the cutest things EVER!
Amy, I'm having another cup of coffee, too. But I understood your analogy anyway. Lots of mooo-ving (sorry) and shaping going on here.
ReplyDeleteTricia, yes, that's it, exactly! I love being startled, in a good way, during a revision. It's like suddenly catching sight of yourself in a mirror and thinking "well, that girl looks nice today," and then realizing it's you! You look good! I'm always amazed at how much my brain gets up to when I'm not paying attention. Maybe cows really are running things behind the scenes.
Okay, maybe because both cow-kissing and revising seem more daunting/gross than they end up being so you just have to do it already darnit? Also, if you do it right, maybe the cow/manuscript turns into a prince?
ReplyDeleteOK, first off -- cute.
ReplyDeleteSecond -- hilarious.
Third -- Revising your work is like getting kissed by a cow. You never really want to go through with it but in the end you're almost giddy with the surprises that come leaping out of that boring, cud-laced, black-and-white...
Wow, what a question for the day--and appropriate, since I'm contemplating major revisions to a manuscript!
ReplyDeleteRevision is like being kissed by a cow because...maybe...it seems like an unimaginable ordeal until it actually happens, and then, you think, hey, that wasn't so bad. I survived.
Yes you are too cute you two! Revisions are like being kissed by a cow because... they can both be slurpy and messy and smelling of the pasture, surprising you and making you laugh or weep or run away; but then you have a story. And it's more fun when you've got someone to share it with.
ReplyDeleteThere's a certain sloppy joy in it, and you can't help but laugh when it's done.
ReplyDeleteOooh, I just read the other comments and see I sound a bit like Cloudscome, but not as good or detailed.... :-)
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree with all of you:
ReplyDeletedaunting,
unimaginable,
giddy,
slurpy,
and sloppy
joy...
I'm not so sure he's being kissed by the cow. I'm thinking the cow is whispering the secrets of the universe in his ear. (And from the look on his face, I'd say the universe is QUITE amusing!)
ReplyDeleteWhen revising, don't you have to listen to the secret whisperings of your draft to know what to keep and what to change?