Libre Paley's Blog: Libre Paley - Thoughts on Literary Erotica, page 15

Papyrophilia

“Papyrophilia” means an obsessive love of paper, and it seems to be the nearest I can get to an obsession over stationery – or writing equipment and office supplies in general. In the normal course of events, I dislike shopping. The only exceptions are poking about in local markets – home or abroad, and stationery … Continue reading Papyrophilia

Sheer Mindlessness

Author Kate Atkinson was on the long-running British Radio Show Desert Island Discs this morning, and during her one-to-one interview (between playing her chosen recordings), the subject came up of her creative process. Before embarking on a new book, she is apparently in the habit of de-cluttering and tidying. “There’s something about mindlessness, as opposed … Continue reading Sheer Mindlessness

Disagreeable but necessary?

How many instances of praise does it take to balance out one negative criticism? I am aware of a notion called a ‘criticism ratio’, which seems primarily to have been explored in reference to the workplace. In other words, the proportion of praise against criticism (even where constructive) that a person can process yet remain effective. … Continue reading Disagreeable but necessary?

Drink the rainbow

“Let me, O let me bathe my soul in colours; let me swallow the sunset and drink the rainbow.” – Khalil Gibran. Colour your mood Colour can both affect and create mood. Those in the field of Colour Psychology may go further in citing colour as an influencer of human behaviour. This is an area … Continue reading Drink the rainbow

Golden delicious

You see there, I wish I had the ability to take good photos. Because the autumn colours were so gorgeous. My favourite time of the year in a lovely place, stopping off at Sizergh Castle on the way home from England’s Lake District this weekend. It was probably the last we’ll get of the autumn colour in … Continue reading Golden delicious

Worry is the mother of invention

“Worry is the mother of invention.” Likely many of us have seen that twist on an old aphorism. I am not sure who first coined it, though I have seen it attributed to Dr Adam Perkins. Dr Perkins is a neurobiologist and primary investigator at King’s College London on research into why some of us are … Continue reading Worry is the mother of invention

Purple reign

Hitting a ‘purple patch’ and employing ‘purple prose’: I vaguely assumed the phrases were related, but had not realised they essentially have the same origin. Probably because one is used in a positive sense (i.e. for a period of good luck and success in one’s life) and one used pejoratively (i.e. about language, particularly written, … Continue reading Purple reign

Old friends, book amends

I am thinking of returning to a novel I started to write a couple of years ago, but have not looked at in over a year. Around forty-five thousand words of a draft plus a bunch of notes on topics as diverse as building an eco-friendly home to college towns in New England to Virginia Woolf. … Continue reading Old friends, book amends

The Kinder September

September is the real beginning of the year… I know it is the beginning because I feel the wall of energy, which I have allowed to soften with the mercury, toughen up… The first day of January is bogus… Winter is the middle of the year; spring the finale, and summer is free… September is … Continue reading The Kinder September

Greener Grass

It’s the first day of a new month and I caught sight of the ‘September’ page of a calendar pinned up behind the counter of a shop. The page featured a picture of a semi-rural street cast in mellow, early-autumn sunshine. The scene was half familiar, but then it did feature the characteristics of many … Continue reading Greener Grass