Monthly Archives: May 2021

Reflections from Isaac Bashevis Singer, the great short-story writer,: “Now, for a plot you need characters. So instead of inventing characters, I contemplate the people whom I have met in my life who could fit into this story. I sometimes … Continue reading →

Mountain Air Tell me of Progress if you will But give me sunshine on a hill— The grey rocks aspiring to the blue, The scent of larches, pinks and dew, The summer sighing in the trees, And snowy breath on … Continue reading →

“Nature is the art of God.” Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri was born today, May 14, in 1265. A poet, author, and philosopher, he is best known for the Divine Comedy, widely viewed as the most important poem of the Middle … Continue reading →

“Every piece of writing which is not simply the purveying of straightforward information — as a recipe or a formula is, for example— is an essay in persuasion. You are persuading your reader, while you hold his attention, to see … Continue reading →

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end.” Ursula K. Le Guin How good it is also, to remember this powerful truth! While it helps to have a … Continue reading →

A story: In 1928, a young Walt Disney suffered a devastating reversal of fortune — a blow so harsh that his budding career seemed about to crash and burn. After a number of failed cartoons, the 26-year-old animator lost his … Continue reading →

I am not young enough to know everything.”    J.M. Barrie Love this quote! I can still remember hearing it in high school and thinking how clever it was! Sir James Matthew Barrie was a Scottish novelist and playwright whose birthday, … Continue reading →

O the month of May, the merry month of May, So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green!O, and then did I unto my true love say: “Sweet Peg, thou shalt be my summer’s queen!     Now the … Continue reading →

Here’s a contest you may want to consider: The North Street Book Prize for self-published authors. Deadline: June 30, 2021. Prizes will be awarded in seven categories: Mainstream/Literary Fiction Genre Fiction Creative Nonfiction & Memoir Poetry Children’s Picture Book Graphic … Continue reading →

The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful will win.” “The reason sport is attractive to many of the general public is that it’s filled with reversals. What you think may happen doesn’t happen. A champion … Continue reading →