There’s an old adage writers use as a guiding light: “Murder your darlings.” It comes from the English writer, Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, and is part of the advice he gives to writers as part of On the Art of Writing: a collection of lectures he gave at Cambridge: “If you here require a practical rule …
Tag: nonfiction
A TOUCH OF SILVER: Maximum Wattage
Sometimes you need to seek out silver linings in the inspirational words of others. Today is one of those days, as I turn to the work of philosopher, speaker, and writer Alan Watts. Photo credit: alanwatts.com Watts’ work is a gentle reminder to remain in the present, but instead of rambling on about him and …
Positively Toxic
“Positive vibes only.” “Being happy is a choice.” “Put good stuff out into the universe, and good stuff will come back.” Before a pandemic swept the globe and changed our lives – almost certainly on a permanent basis – empty sayings like these were everywhere. Unfortunately, our collective change in circumstances have done little to …
Golden
June 26, 2019Early morningThe light of a newly risen sun trickles over the eastern ridge behind my parents’ trailer and in through the living room window. It slowly covers the brown carpet with a thin, golden blanket. My father stands vigil over my grandfather, a man quite literally on his death bed. They are untouched …
Strange Sacrifices
Here’s a hot take for a COVID-19-ravaged world. It’s easier for some people to send loved ones off to literal war in a foreign country than it is for them to swallow their pride and wear a face mask and latex gloves to the grocery store. Americans are conditioned for bombastic, over the top, summer …
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