Your Monday Motivation
In case you, like me, need this today (or any day):
Category: Writing
Writing
Science Fiction, Fantasy, Reality, and You
Coming off my blogiversary post on Saturday, I was catching up on some TED/TEDx videos and one of them made me think of the originality post I talked about re-visiting within the next year. The speaker not only touches on fantasy tropes being tropes and therefore not original, but also about the not unheard of concept that fantasy helps understand reality. In fact, it’s not just fantasy, there’s science fiction as well. And I see…
Writing
The Layers and Nuance of Decluttering, as told by Ann Patchett
Anyone who’s gone through a family member’s belongings after they have passed knows the many emotions it may stir. And then, for many of us, there’s all the stuff we’ve accumulated… which would not be a nice to leave someone to go through. But then what do you do with all the stuff? A longform article about this would be nice. A longform article by a novelist used to elegantly weaving sometimes conflicting, sometimes ephemeral…
Various and Sundry Writing
More about what’s in the Public Domain in 2025
My now annual post about the Public Domain continues to a noticeable amount of traffic and I continue to find additional resources post-January 1st, so here’s two more. First is a video from energetic book-lover Jenny Fern whose 16-minute video about books entering the public domain. She is candid about not knowing some of the authors or characters at all, so don’t be hatin’ on someone who doesn’t know about Miss Marple, and enjoy this…
Acting Producing Writing
It’s Time for a Montage: A 2024 Film Montage
“Supercuts” are always fun and supercuts of a past year’s films are a fine tradition to uphold. For over a decade, I’m enjoyed the meticulously crafted montages by David Ehrlich, a film critic and, as quickly becomes apparent: wholly unrepentant cinemaniac. His tastes and judgment on films are as varied as they are unexpected, paired beautifully with a veritable mixtape of a soundtrack that grabs you as much as it startles you. Basically, one minute…
Writing
The Curious Resurgence of Barnes & Noble and its Adjusted Business Model
It probably doesn’t surprise readers, given my posts during Banned Books Week, that I like libraries and bookstores. And while I favor independent and used bookstores when I can (and usually get my books online from Bookshop.org), I have visited various Barnes & Noble stores on several occasions in recent memory. So I was interested to learn that they’re doing well, even in this age of “is anybody reading?” On one level, I am amazed…
Writing
Writers’ Block, Procrastination, & other Author Ailments
Statistically speaking, some of you made some new year’s resolutions regarding writing, but what if you’re finding that difficult? Dennis Palumbo is a screenwriter-turned-therapist I’ve referenced before on this blog (see this one about getting notes on your script and this interview with veteran screenwriter Ken Levine). Well, there’s three more articles I can share, ones he wrote for the Psychiatric Times last fall — and ones that might help writers figure out their author…
Writing
The Philosophical Implications are Staggering!
Okay, so maybe I should have saved the image above for a post entitled “The Theological Implications are Staggering!” — which many classmates may recall me uttering, but in my web travels, I came across this graph which I shall ponder. Ponder, I say! And no, it’s not that they misspelled Anton Chekhov‘s name. It’s the internet, I’ve almost come to expect such things. But if this is not philosophically diverting or comic for you,…
Producing Writing
May His Memory Be a Disturbing Blessing, R.I.P., David Lynch
Filmmaker and singular artist David Lynch died on January 15, 2025, just days before today, what would be his 79th birthday. You can read obituaries and remembrances from: Variety also has a collection of remembrances from Steven Spielberg and others about Lynch and the Hard Times has an appropriately satirical take on Lynch’s passing. As fate would have it, the first David Lynch film I saw was his least favorite, if for no other reason…
Writing
The Perils of Doing Something 700,000 Times
Thinking of Saturday’s post, when it comes to writing implements, one shouldn’t be limited to pens of course, but for writers (vs. illustrators) I can’t recall scribes being as agog about pencils these days (I may be wrong, send links!). However, when it comes to markers, Sharpies have not only become ubiquitous when someone reaches for “a marker,” but they come in more colors than Oreos have flavors, i.e., slightly less than the number of…