Absurdism is indeed different from existentialism, though the difference is subtle. And I’ve even posted comparing various forms of existentialism. But, in short, the difference between existentialism and absurdism comes in their solution to finding meaning in life. They both agree that the universe is inherently meaningless, but existentialism states that we must create our own meaning.

The existentialist mantra (at least of the Sartrean variety) is existence precedes essence; we are born, we exist, and then we must choose to craft our own essence, our own purpose. Absurdism, on the other hand, focuses on the tension between a meaningless universe and our constant striving to find meaning. This tension is what gives rise to the Absurd. Camus argued that we are all immersed in this tension and are thus presented with three alternatives: we can kill ourselves, we can deny the absurdity and take refuge in myths and religion, or we can embrace the absurdity. To embrace the Absurd is to own up to the meaninglessness of it all and move on, to keep living and living well. Camus famously illustrated this using the image of Sisyphus pushing a boulder up a hill for all eternity.

Sisyphus could wallow in the futility of his task, or he can accept his fate and make the most of it. ‘ Il faut imaginer Sisyphe heureux.’ Camus said. ‘One must imagine Sisyphus happy.’ There are further differences between the two schools of thought, and many variations within. But both were deeply concerned with how to live and how to confront the millstone of a potentially cold and indifferent cosmos. For millennia no girl or boy made that now-familiar noise or that recognizable shape with their arms. They did not bank or weave, did not yaw with instinctive elegance and mimic a machine.

There was a first time. There was one child who first pretended to be an airplane. She was an eight-year-old girl. The day before she inaugurated the era she had watched entranced from the edge of a close-cut meadow while a wobbling engine trundled fast forward and made it at last off the ground.

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She had stared up at its precarious progress with a new kind of delight. [] There will be a last child too.

She will play when Earth is mostly cold and mostly dark, and under heaps of granular, grubby ice. The time will not be without joy and it will find its last pleasures in things other than color.

Another girl will run to the edge of a cliff and back again, purring like a propeller. That will be anachronistic, but not much more than if she pretended to be a jet: no planes of any kind will have flown for centuries. She will be the last player of a game passed down.

She will not know what it is she mimics. And after that final, offhand, chilly performance of this girl whose name we don’t yet know, even that trace will be gone and it’ll be the end of this brief epoch and time for other things.

Afterwards, all the children will play differently, with their arms held up under heavy clothes into quite other shapes than those of metal wings. You’re in luck, my friend! It just so happens this is a specialty of mine: A) When in doubt, plot it out. Plotting is the most under-utilized tools of writers, and it makes things so much simpler. Similarly, unlike full manuscripts, you can churn out several prospective plots within a matter of days or weeks. This keeps your other ideas from getting lost in the shuffle, and can help you pick which one you’d like to work on. (Some of my favorite posts on plotting,, and.) If you’re still befuddled, try this coin-toss trick: flip a coin to pick between two.

If you’re disappointed by the outcome, you’ll know whichever you landed on is not the one for you at the moment. If you have more than two, repeat until only one is left. B) Know that whichever work you choose to work on, you’re going to hear the siren song of at least one of the others.

Especially when you’re on a tough spot of whatever it is you’re working on, and you think everything about it is garbage, you’ll find yourself thinking “ugh, why didn’t I work on *insert other idea here*!? It’s so much better and more fun and would be easier to write!” Yeah, no. If you do give in and work on said other idea, it will be just as difficult and grueling. Take it from someone who knows. Once you begin an idea, finish it!

Even if it sucks (which it won’t – at least, not as much as you’re picturing) you’ll emerge a better writer with better habits, and you will be glad you did. Finally, C) Get used to having lots of ideas bouncing around. It’s the greatest gift and the greatest curse of creative people, and it’s a good thing: it’s better to be overflowing with ideas than to find yourself at the bottom of a creative dry-well. You can imagine yourself as Sisyphus pushing the boulder up the hill, but as Albert Camus said, “We must imagine Sisyphus happy.” In other words, take delight in the fact that there will always be more to do. Best of luck, and happy writing! “Craft beers, brewed without a purpose, for a greater purpose.” Tucked between the bustling Lyndale-Hennepin mess by the Basilica and Dunwoody college sits Sisyphus Brewing, a hidden gem of Minneapolis.