When I look at the definition of art I use, 'that which is both necessary and sufficient,' I find that it is a distillation of the act of writing: expand from the originating idea to all that is sufficient, then cut back to only what is necessary. It is indeed specific to writing, and, I now realize, has no content other than the method of create/edit I place my faith in. Why does it satisfy me as a definition? I feel a gestalt in the relation between necessary and sufficient that goes beyond the meaning of the words taken individually and that I am at a loss to explain. It's the negotiation between form and content, between necessary and sufficient, between paring back and growing outward until the cuts amplify the natural pattern of growth. As you see, I can't do any better than synonyms.
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