Re: conlanging and journaling

On 10/02/2008, Rick Harrison <rick@...> wrote:
>
> I have this vague, shapeless feeling that conlanging and writing a
> diary/journal are similar
> activities in some ways.

I have a similar intuition. I think it's best expressed in a part of Borges'
Dreamtigers.

"A man sets himself the task of portraying the world. Through the years he
peoples a space with images of provinces, kingdoms, mountains, bays, ships,
islands, fishes, rooms, tools, stars, horses, and people. Shortly before his
death, he discovers that that patient labyrinth of lines traces the image of
his face."

This is a very conworld perspective, but I think the same is equally true of
conlanging. We're trying to portray the world.

If you're just doing it for yourself, you can sort of do whatever you want;
> there is no right
> or wrong, no preferred practice or unpopular options.
>
> But there is a potential audience in the shadows of the mind of many
> journal-keepers.
> Grandchildren? Future historians? My future self? For some of us the
> potential audience is
> not clearly defined.
>
> And the existence of a potential audience limits your options.
>
> Erm... that's all I can put into words at the moment, the rest of my
> thoughts are too
> amorphous to enwordulate at this stage.
>
> Has anyone blogged, posted or essayed about similarities between
> conlanging and
> journaling?