Dan Jorgensen's Blog, page 125

'Have Notebook, Will Write'

 

“Always carry a notebook. And I meanalways. The short-term memory only retains information for three minutes;unless it is committed to paper you can lose an idea forever.” – Will Self
Born in London on Sept. 26, 1961 Self is a novelist,journalist, political commentator, television personality and author of 12novels, 6 collections of shorter fiction, and 9 collections ofnon-fiction writing that includes his newest best-seller Why Read.   Fiction, though, is his forte’ and he said. “I always wanted to write fiction.Always. As far back as I can remember it's been integral to my sense of myself- everything else was always a displacement activity.”
He is a graduate of Oxford University and first got interestedin writing at age 10, greatly influenced by science fiction writers like Frank Herbert.  Self’s firstpublished book, a 1991 collection of his short stories called The Quantity Theory of Insanity, thrusthim into the public eyeand since then he’s been nominated for many awards, in particular for hisnovels Umbrella and Dorian.
“The writing life is essentially one ofsolitary confinement," the aptly named Self said.  "If you can't deal with this, you needn't apply.”

A Writer's Moment: 'Have Notebook, Will Write'

A Writer's Moment: 'Have Notebook, Will Write':   “Always carry a notebook. And I mean always. The short-term memory only retains information for three minutes; unless it is committed to ...

A Writer's Moment: 'The Power to Read'

A Writer's Moment: 'The Power to Read': “I could name you a dozen superheroes whose powers I'd like to have. But if I could have any power in the world, it wo...

'The Power to Read'

“I could name you a dozen superheroes whose powers I'dlike to have. But if I could have any power in the world, it would be the powerto read or watch a creative work and absorb the technical skill of the peoplewho made it.  Because then I could haveeven more fun writing. That's my core identity. I'm a writer. I just lovetelling stories.” – Kurt Busieck 

A Writer's Moment: 'The powers of observing'

A Writer's Moment: 'The powers of observing':   “I love the line of Flaubert about observing things very intensely. I think our duty as writers begins not with our own...

'The powers of observing'

 

“I lovethe line of Flaubert about observing things very intensely. I think our duty aswriters begins not with our own feelings, but with the powers of observing.” – MaryOliver

Born this date in 1935, Oliverwon both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for her poeticstylings, and The New York Times described her as "far and away,[America's] best-selling poet.”   She began writing poetry at the ageof 14 never really stopped until her death in 2019. 

 

Oliver's poetry turns towards naturefor its inspiration and describes the sense of wonder it instills in her."When it's over," she says, "I want to say: all my life I was abride married to amazement.  I was thebridegroom, taking the world into my arms."  For Saturday’s Poem, here is Oliver’s,

 

ADream of Trees

There is a thing in me that dreamedof trees,
A quiet house, some green and modest acres
A little way from every troubling town,
A little way from factories, schools, laments.
I would have time, I thought, and time to spare,
With only streams and birds for company,
To build out of my life a few wild stanzas.
And then it came to me, that so was death,
A little way away from everywhere.

There is a thingin me still dreams of trees.
But let it go. Homesick for moderation,
Half the world's artists shrink or fall away.
If any find solution, let him tell it.
Meanwhile I bend my heart toward lamentation
Where, as the times implore our true involvement,
The blades of every crisis point the way.

I would it werenot so, but so it is.
Who ever made music of a mild day?

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A Writer's Moment: 'Read a lot; write a lot"

A Writer's Moment: 'Read a lot; write a lot":   "As a writer, one of the things that I've always been interested in doing is actually invading your comfort space.  Because th...

'Read a lot; write a lot"

 

"As a writer, one of the things that I've always been interested in doing is actually invading your comfort space.  Because that's what we're supposed to do.  Get under your skin, and make you react."  -  Stephen King You’d be hard-pressed to findsomeone in America and perhaps the world who has not heard of or read StephenKing.  His books have sold upward of 400million copies; many movies have been made from his works; and he’s won dozens of major writing awards.  Amongthem are the Mystery Writers of America’s Grand Master Award, and the NationalBook Award Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
Born on Sept. 21, 1947 Kingcontinues to reside in his home state of Maine and along with his wife Tabithais one of Maine’s greatest philanthropists. The Kings annually contribute some $3 million to charitable causes.    And, he has been unafraid to share his writingtalents with others, including authoring the book On Writing, one of thebest books written on the craft of writing.              His advice to would-be writers:  “If you want to be a writer, youmust do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There's no wayaround these two things that I'm aware of, no shortcut.   If you don’t havethe time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write.”

A Writer's Moment: 'A license to observe and share'

A Writer's Moment: 'A license to observe and share':   “A journalist enjoys a privileged position. In exchange for not being able to participate in the rough-and-tumble issues of a community,...

'A license to observe and share'

 

“Ajournalist enjoys a privileged position. In exchange for not being able toparticipate in the rough-and-tumble issues of a community, we are given licenseto observe it all, based on the understanding that we'll tell everyone whathappens fairly and squarely. That's harder than it sounds.” – BillKurtis
Ifyou’re a fan of NPR's  “Wait, Wait … Don’t Tell Me!” then you know that BillKurtis’s voice is one of the most recognizable on the air.  There, he is the announcer and scorekeeper(yes, they really have a scorekeeper) on the show.

The longtime broadcaster at WBBM-TV in Chicago, where he anchored “CBS Morning News,”  Kurtis also was the host of a number of the A&ENetwork’s crime and news documentary shows, including Investigative Reports,American Justice, and Cold Case Files.  Born in Florida on this date in 1940, Kurtisbegan broadcasting at age 16 and continued doing it part-time while working hisway through college and then law school in Kansas.  After finishing his law degree he wasweighing options in the legal field while working part time at a Topekastation when one of the nation’s biggest storms struck the region.  He ended up on air for 24 straight hours, an effort lauded across the nation and leading to an offer from WBBM where he spent 30 years at the CBS affiliate beforegoing to CBS nationally.
Whilemany are lamenting that today’s youth seem ambivalent about journalism, he said he believes young people are looking for answers tothe big questions and there's a bright opportunity ahead in the news business. 
 “Think of it: television producersjoining with newspapers to tell stories. It's journalism of the future.”