Tuesday, June 29, 2010

I make stuff up

I have this great t-shirt given to me by a friend who's also a writer. It says, "I MAKE STUFF UP" right across the chest. Nothing else on the shirt but that.

It's fun to wear, because it starts conversations with people. I almost never go out in it without at least one person commenting. Sometimes I tell them I write, sometimes I let them decide what it means.

The thing that always surprises me, though, is that people sometimes ask me questions about other things. Like directions or which aisle the ketchup is on. I always answer as best I can, but I can't help but think, "What makes you think you can trust me? Because, clearly, I MAKE STUFF UP."

Maybe people who ask for help haven't looked at the shirt, or maybe they feel someone with a sense of humor is more approachable. Perhaps they just like that I'm being honest about not being honest.

Lots of boutique websites sell the shirts. (As well as almost anything else you want to put the slogan on.) If you're a writer or want to give a writer a gift, I can tell you it's a lot of fun. How often do we get to proclaim ourselves in public? I mean, other than when we go around handing out bookmarks with our latest title.