Yet More Quotes to Ponder*
By Antonios Maltezos
The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself.
~ Albert Camus
If I ever did that, it would be by accident… saving the world, I mean, and I would be King, for sure, slipping into me white duds, me chocolate brown shirt unbuttoned to show me gold chains, some chest hair. I’d be wearing the good shoes, too, the kind that don’t drag your feet so you look like a has-been construction worker who spent too many years keeping the hammer from swinging into the family jewels.
If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster.
~ Isaac Asimov
I’d probably grab my doctor by the throat, one of those leverage holds that pinch both the blood supply to the head, and the air passage. I’d demand that he show me where he keeps the good stuff – quick!
Clarity. Clarity. Clarity. When you become hopelessly mired in a sentence, it is best to start fresh.
~ Strunk & White
Hopelessly mired! I don’t know about that. I’ve been stuck on a sentence… yah, but hopelessly mired? I’d rather use those words when explicating the whole of my writing career. I am hopelessly mired between a fantasy vision of my future where I’m paying the staff to pick up after me, and reality. It’s the fantasy part I have to do away with before I come unstuck, but it’s also the fantasy that keeps me going. And screw the clarity, clarity, clarity! That’s the last thing I want to be doing – thinking clearly.
*Thanks MLR.
The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself.
~ Albert Camus
If I ever did that, it would be by accident… saving the world, I mean, and I would be King, for sure, slipping into me white duds, me chocolate brown shirt unbuttoned to show me gold chains, some chest hair. I’d be wearing the good shoes, too, the kind that don’t drag your feet so you look like a has-been construction worker who spent too many years keeping the hammer from swinging into the family jewels.
If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster.
~ Isaac Asimov
I’d probably grab my doctor by the throat, one of those leverage holds that pinch both the blood supply to the head, and the air passage. I’d demand that he show me where he keeps the good stuff – quick!
Clarity. Clarity. Clarity. When you become hopelessly mired in a sentence, it is best to start fresh.
~ Strunk & White
Hopelessly mired! I don’t know about that. I’ve been stuck on a sentence… yah, but hopelessly mired? I’d rather use those words when explicating the whole of my writing career. I am hopelessly mired between a fantasy vision of my future where I’m paying the staff to pick up after me, and reality. It’s the fantasy part I have to do away with before I come unstuck, but it’s also the fantasy that keeps me going. And screw the clarity, clarity, clarity! That’s the last thing I want to be doing – thinking clearly.
*Thanks MLR.
posted by Antonios Maltezos | 8:59 am
2 Comments:
I'm a little worried about all this talk of reading The Elements of Style. It's a reference book. For which vs. that, you vs. yourself, do I really need italics?
Who's MLR? Thanks for the quotes, Tony. I love reading what other writers say about writing.
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