#writ

Silence is not a natural environment for stories. They need words. Without them they grow pale, sicken and die. And then they haunt you. ↗

— Diane Setterfield

#writing #nature

Q: Where and when do you do your writing? A: Any small room with no natural light will do. As for when, I have no particular schedules... afternoons are best, but I'm too lethargic for any real regime. When I'm in the flow of something I can do a regular 9 to 5; when I don't know where I'm going with an idea, I'm lucky if I do two hours of productive work. There is nothing more off-putting to a would-be novelist to hear about how so-and-so wakes up at four in the a.m, walks the dog, drinks three liters of black coffee and then writes 3,000 words a day, or that some other asshole only works half an hour every two weeks, does fifty press-ups and stands on his head before and after the "creative moment." I remember reading that kind of stuff in profiles like this and becoming convinced everything I was doing was wrong. What's the American phrase? If it ain't broke... ↗

— Zadie Smith

#interview #writing #writing-life #life

Our reality is influenced by our notions about reality, regardless of the nature of those notions ↗

— Joseph Chilton Pearce

#nature

Nothing is invented, for it's written in nature first. ↗

— Antoni Gaudi

#nature #written #nature

...the grocery store poets do everything they can to encourage us in our willing suspension of disbelief. ↗

— Michael Pollan

#nature

Fairy tales are rife with transformation — from beast to handsome prince, from dirty scullery maid to well-dressed princess. It is perhaps no coincidence that nature in the Cinderella stories facilitates transformation, for nature itself is a changeable thing, from season to season, from a sunny day to rain, from an egg to a flying bird in a matter of weeks. (Source: "The Nature of Cinderella".) ↗

— Marie Rutkoski

#fairy-tales #stories #telling-tales #writing #nature

I often think publishing a book is like doing a poo. Once it's ready for the world, you have to relinquish that control and let nature take its course. A few will be impressed by your creation, others will be disgusted. Plus, no one will enjoy your success and achievement in producing it as much as you did. ↗

— H.O. Charles

#publishing #writing #nature

...how many writers still dare compare a woman to Nature, like Campion? - there is a garden in her face - how lovely... ↗

— John Geddes

#garden #nature #writers #writing-advice #love

Payne sought clarification. “Vertical or horizontal?” “Horizontal, of course.” “Sorry but I can’t help you.” “Will you pipe down for a minute? Naturally she was dead since I work at a cemetery. Her face struck a chord though. So, I rummaged around in the old Rory memory bank, and Emily is what rings a bell. Didn’t we go to school with an Emily? Tenth or eleventh grade, if I recall it correctly. ↗

— Ed Lynskey

#crime-fiction #mystery #romance #suspense #thriller

The dangerous pileup of modifiers is a hallmark of Joel's rhetorical style. ↗

— Michael Pollan

#nature