Daily Jots

I was thumbing through one of the books on my book shelf looking for inspiration for today’s post and noticed the title above. I’m trying to work more quiet time into my day and I think that instead of a book, I might start the series… A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle, over for the second time.
I have only been to France once and that was back in 1985, so I think the country deserves a return visit and this time, more than just for the day. We always rent a house in some part of England for two …read more

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“We are not the same persons this year as last; nor are those we love. It is a happy chance if we, changing, continue to love a changed person.”W. Somerset Maugham

I have been reading a bit of W. Somerset Maugham lately.  He was a very interesting man, and a writer worth reading and studying. He was considered an expert at plot; each word was deliberately placed to propel the storyline without sacrificing the story itself.
“I have never pretended to be anything but a story teller. It has amused me to tell stories and I have told a great many. It …read more

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“I am impelled, not to squeak like a grateful and apologetic mouse, but to roar like a lion out of pride in my profession.”
John Steinbeck

I spent yesterday writing about Hemingway – it was a whole thing about polydactyl cats and I mentioned my two polydactyls Hemingway and Steinbeck.  Hemingway has been quite full of himself today.  I think, he thinks, that I was writing about him and not the author.  (Don’t tell him – grumpy polydactyls are just not fun.)  But then I realized that Steinbeck, my jet black polydactyl was quite depressed.  He was virtually ignored.
Actually this is just …read more

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“One cat just leads to another.”
Ernest Hemingway

I am not a big fan of Ernest Hemingway’s work.  That has never been a secret.  I acknowledge that in literary terms he is a good writer – probably one of the best.  I respect the tenacity he had to make his writing as compact, meaningful, and perfect as possible.  He never wasted words; each word in a book propelled the story.  But I still don’t like the stories he told all that well.
But you know, you gotta like a guy who writes standing up, for self-discipline.  And you gotta like a guy who …read more

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I love words. They are the tools of my trade that, hopefully, paint pictures of what I am thinking. I also love the way words can take control and proceed with their own agenda!
Newspaper and news stories in general are great for word blunders. It’s the headlines; they can be goofed up… well, beyond words. I remember my personal favorite that occurred in the opening minutes of the nightly news in a large city; unfortunately I can’t recall where it happened, but I laugh about it to this day. It was a 30 second summary …read more

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The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive. To him a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death.
“Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create – – – so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, his very breath is cut off from him. He must create, must …read more

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Thought of the Day:
“If this volume should fall into the hands of any one to whom I have not myself entrusted, I beg him at once to lay it down, and, if he cannot return it, to destroy it entirely; for in these pages I mean to write thoughts and feelings which no one but myself should know.”
Francis Ellingwood Abbot
Thinking Outside of the Box:
The above quote is from a book that I just started reading. “If Ever Two Were One,” is a collection of diary entries written by Francis Abbot from his college days in 1855, until his death …read more

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Thought of the Day:
“I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.”
Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
Thinking Outside of the Box:
Not everyday can be full of deep and meditative thoughts! When I woke up this morning, I couldn’t seem to get my brain and mind in the same time zone as my body. Nothing, absolutely nothing, is better than a cup of coffee on mornings like that.
When morning fog still has not lifted and it hugs the earth, the aroma of the freshly ground beans is an invitation to the day. This is especially so in winter, when the …read more

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Thought of the Day:
“I read today that Sylvia Plath wrote most of her highly acclaimed and respected work in the middle of the night after her three children and husband had gone to bed and were sound asleep. At the age of 30, she took a bunch of sleeping pills and stuck her head in a gas oven. Her suicide was successful. I can’t help but think the two are connected.”
Adelle Tilton
Thinking Outside of the Box:
It’s my blog so I can do my own quote! Talk about ownership issues!! Anyway, I read about this …read more

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Thought of the Day:
“As the season of believing seems to wind down let me gently remind you that many dreams still wait in the wings. Many authentic sparks must be fanned before passion performs her perfect work in you. Throw another log on the fire.”
Sarah Ban Breathnach
Thinking Outside of the Box:
Do you ever have problems with creativity? I do. We all do. Any author who tells you that they don’t, is lying. There are days when ideas just “t’ain’t” gonna happen. This whole week has felt that way; since Madelyn, my parrot passed away on …read more

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