“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

The material on work ideas connected with Ruburt still does have application. Many years ago his experience with different editors, in his short-story publishing days, led him to see that a story that hit one editor might not hit another, that his work would be much more easily accepted by some editors than others, and that some, it seemed, regardless of long enthusiastic letters, would not buy a thing.

Therefore his relationship with Tam Mossman was quite valuable to him, for it took a good deal of the unpredictable nature out of free-lance writing; particularly where projects like books were concerned rather than short stories, and particularly in an area that was itself controversial. All in all, he felt that to be a fairly reliable and adequate framework, whether or not he might get better terms someplace else financially, or in other ways. He long ago settled upon you and his writing, however.

(Pause.) This material should be read in conjunction with the sessions just mentioned, dealing with his ideas about work and creativity. He felt threatened over the disagreements last year about contracts, about Tam’s frequent mention that he might leave. The matter of Yale led him in his own way to think of his work as if it were to be an institution, every word recorded, so that you only wrote down what you wanted other people to know—and therefore somewhat discouraged spontaneity of expression.

I am not agreeing here, necessarily, but stating his reaction. On the other hand, such an alliance seemed to bring some kind of prestige. He felt also that my ideas in Mass Events, and his ideas in God of Jane, were almost bound to bring about some controversy from the beginning—for reasons he largely worked out for himself—and they are related in his book.

The latest disclaimer issue simply falls into the same pattern, and therefore was added to it, but all of those issues involve his feelings and beliefs about work and creativity. Any issues with you also involved work and creativity, along with the expectations that you had of each other—not just in your married roles but as partners and colleagues in your artistic endeavors.

(9:55.) Overall, being is its own reward—not that there are not others, but that being obviously makes all of your experiences possible, so you cannot tie being up in a package of work only, regardless of the nature of the work. All of this goes back to ideas that existence must be justified, and Ruburt’s early ideas that writing would justify his life—but writing should express life, and is an expression of being, an expression of spontaneity, an expression of emotion, of body as well as mind (all intently).

His early writing, and his best later writing, spring alike from that realization, when he forgets ideas of our work’s responsibility, or how respectable he should appear, and simply does it because it is a natural expression of his being —one expression among others.

Now Ruburt’s hips are definitely changing their positions. Certain joints that worked very poorly are releasing, allowing portions of the body to move in new directions. His body is thrusting itself upward. Much work is done when he is in bed. It can be uncomfortable, but far less so with understanding and a bit of patience. He becomes frightened, for the reasons given in late sessions, and again, he can use as much reassurance as you can give him—as much understanding. And the better the communication between you, the better the entire situation.