Ipse Dixit

Ipse dixit is a Latin phrase. It means "he himself said it." The story goes that when the great Pythagoras taught his students math, he didn't necessarily explain why it worked. So his students, when arguing or explaining, would shout out, "ipse dixit." Pythagoras himself said this, so it has to be right.

It sounds stupid when you listen to the story. So what if some Greek guy said something? That doesn't make him right. Who cares how famous he is? He could be wrong. Heck, he could have done something as stupid as slipped up on addition.

And yet, we seem to fall prey to ipse dixit all the time. The worst time of all is at school. Our teachers barrage us with us with rules we need to follow. Essays have to start with you're going to say, the next three paragraphs are what you say, and then the final paragraph sums up what you just said. Ok. How come? What purpose does it serve? If I think that it's boring and I daydream while reading or writing it, then how come I should follow these rules?

Ultimately, the only rule you should ever follow are the ones you can explain. I start my blogs with a principle or a scene because those are the most approachable and entertaining kinds of writing. Intellectual people grasp a principle and want explanation and elaboration. Emotional or story-oriented people will get pulled into a scene and then want to understand the underlying factors and the consequences of the scene.

The only time you should follow a rule you can't explain is if it works. I have no idea why the general public likes characters who are incredibly stupid, loud, repetitive, and annoying, but they do. Lots of people make these characters and these characters always sell. It would certainly help to know why these characters work, but if you know how to make them and that people like it, you might as well just make them and enjoy the getting while the getting's good.