Consider these two really odd “Sayings of the Desert Fathers.” Both are from the chapter on “Self-Control” in Benedicta Ward’s translation. They said of one hermit that he sometimes longed to eat a cucumber. So he took one and hung it in front of him where he could see it. He was not overcome by […]
Between Obscurity and Fame (The Writer’s Inner Life)
When I posted about the writer’s battle with “the demon of futility” I mentioned the frustration that can come from identifying yourself as a writer. People ask what you’ve written. They’ve never heard of it. They’ve never heard of you. In a way this is perfectly natural: A book can be a success by any reasonable […]
Facing Futility (The Writer’s Inner Life)
One of the struggles a writer faces (or anyone else with creative projects as part of their vocation) is the sense of futility. It is one of those temptations that comes in a kind of inner voice. Why not be old fashioned and just call it one of our demons? The Demon of Futility It can […]
The Problem of Idleness (The Writer’s Inner Life)
As Mark Twain, allegedly said (but probably didn’t), History doesn’t repeat itself — but it does rhyme. (The funny bits all get attributed to the same famous guys. As Abraham Lincoln said, The internet is being ruined by fake quotations. That one has to be true. I have it on a bumper sticker.) Fake quotation […]
Journaling for Clarity and Action (The Inner Life of the Writer)
Here’s the writer’s dilemma in a quick haiku: Sit before your screen. An empty file. No words come. You curse the cursor. It is writing that makes you a writer. Having ideas only makes you want to be one. To be a writer you have to make words come out: turn thoughts into letters, string them […]