- Hermann Hesse, from Demian
I realize today that nothing in the world is more distasteful to a man than to take the path that leads to himself.
If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear as it is - infinite.
- William Blake, from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell.
Another thing I need to do, when I’m near the end of a book, is sleep in the same room with it. Somehow the book doesn’t leave you when you’re asleep right next to it.
Joan Didion said this and I adore it. Besides, books are sexy.
I can't stand a sentence until it sounds right.
The Book Cover Archive
A site about book covers and the people who design them. How nice.
Stories aren't about things. Stories are things.
From “Don’t Write What You Know” by Bret Anthony Johnston in the Atlantic 2011 Fiction Issue.
Have Films Won and Books Lost?
In today’s Guardian Books section there is a thought-provoking piece by John Lucas on narrative, story and the obsession with plot in our book club culture. It’s a fascinating read. The essential point is that:
“Films won and books lost. That’s the story of the 20th century – the story of where the stories went,” Toby Litt observes. An emphasis on strong plot and the rejection of fiction‘s digressive powers seems to be the order of the day. We just don’t do longueurs anymore. The Richard and Judy culture of book clubs, while laudable in itself, demands strongly-plotted novels with likeable characters as fodder.
Is this really true? Is so, what does this portend for literature?
Getting the fiction chops back. Working on several new pieces. My daimon smiles.
T. C. Boyle Interview
Check out this superb interview with T. Coraghessan Boyle from The Paris Review.
I love his take on creating the next Tolstoy:
Take the writers out of the classes, put them in dark cells with a plug for their monitors, a slot at the top of the door for pizza, and a slot at the bottom for waste. Every time a finished story comes back out that top slot, you write them a check for a thousand dollars. In six months, you’ll have Tolstoy.
How nice.