Happy B-Day Bukowski



If Bukowski were alive today, he'd be 84 years old.

I was listening to NPR at work today when The Writer's Almanac came on. Garrison Keillor read a rather benign poem by Bukowski, which sounded all wrong coming out of his mouth. I sense he is not a fan.

Dr. Menlo surprised me with Bukowski's latest book of poetry: Sifting Through The Madness For The Word, The Line, The Way. The first poem reads:

so you want to be a writer?

if it doesn't come bursting out of you
in spite of everything,
don't do it.
unless it comes unasked out of your
heart and your mind and your mouth
and your gut,
don't do it.
if you have to sit for hours
staring at your computer screen
or hunched over your
typewriter
searching for words,
don't do it.
if you're doing it for money or
fame,
don't do it.
if you're doing it because you want
women in your bed,
don't do it.
if you have to sit there and
rewrite it again and again,
don't do it.
if it's hard work just thinking about doing it,
don't do it.
if you're trying to write like somebody
else,
forget about it.

if you have to wait for it to roar out of
you,
then wait patiently.
if it never does roar out of you,
do something else.

if you first have to read it to your wife
or your girlfriend or your boyfriend
or your parents or to anybody at all,
you're not ready.

don't be like so many writers,
don't be like so many thousands of
people who call themselves writers,
don't be dull and boring and
pretentious, don't be consumed with self-
love.
the libraries of the world have
yawned themselves to
sleep
over your kind.
don't add to that.
don't do it.
unless it comes out of
your soul like a rocket,
uless being still would
drive you to madness or
suicide or murder,
don't do it.
unless the sun inside you is
burning your gut,
don't do it.

when it is truly time,
and if you have been chosen,
it will do it by
itself and it will keep on doing it
until you die or it dies in
you.

there is no other way.

and there never was.

Also, check out the documentary Born into This if you're lucky enough to live in one of the few cities showing it. The documentary has some amazing footage, including a scene where Bukowski visciously verbally attacks his wife, Linda Lee, as well as a scene where Bukowski breaks down and cries while reading his poem, The Shower, which is about his ex, Linda King.