I Can Go ANYwhere! Take a Look ...
Monday, August 20, 2007 at 10:37PM I suspect that every now and then my blog looks a bit like Reading Rainbow for grownups. hehe. But I kind of can’t help it, since this is one of my life’s constants: I read all the time. I LOVE books. This is a great place to distill and remember and shape the impressions that great books (and even mediocre books) leave on me. I’d love to know what books are in your life right now.
I have been kind of simultaneously reading two over the weekend, which converged unexpectedly at a single, emphasized point - exactly what I really needed to hear to help me out of this kind of slump I’ve been feeling.
The Writing Life
I finished one last night, Annie Dillard’s The Writing Life. This memoir/guidebook about writing caught my eye on one of the tables at Borders a couple weeks ago, and I thumbed through it for a couple of minutes before deciding to get it.
Annie Dillard’s prose is so measured, so metrical, so visual. Her subject is her own life as a writer, but her extended metaphors apply to any artistic pursuit. And then there are the lines I had to get out of bed and get a red pen for. Like this:
“I, always want to paint, too, after I see the Rembrantds. ”
(Incidentally, she makes me want to write things. So this comparison applies as much to me reading her work, as her looking at masterworks of art). She makes me want to write better journaling on my scrapbook pages. Journaling that is well-thought and real, that is honest. She says:
“Write as if you were dying. At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patience. That is, after all, the case. What would you begin writing if you knew you would die soon? What could you say to a dying person that would not enrage by its triviality?”
I would write about what matters to me. And lastly, so powerful:
“One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now. The impulse to save something good for a better place later is the signal to spend it now. Something more will arise for later, something better.
Art & Fear
The other, Art & Fear, by David Bayles and Ted Orland, is one I discovered by following links around Amazon. This one tends to get read at the beginning of university design degree programs. It’s directed toward all artists, kind of a motivational and inspirational book.
Check out this passage, so strikingly similar to the one above:
“Look back at your work and it tells you how it is when you hold back or when you embrace. When you are lazy, your art is lazy; when you hold back, it holds back; when you hesitate, it stands there staring, hands in its pockets. But when you commit, it comes on like blazes.”
So the message of the weekend is something I’ve needed. Commit. Don’t worry. Don’t hold back. Don’t be motivated by fear, but by love - not only a love of the craft, but a love of my subjects and the stories I have to tell. So needed this.
One final quote (Annie Dillard again), which pretty much sums up my philosophy regarding teaching and sharing scrapbooking and Photoshop:
“The impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you. You open your safe and find ashes.”
When you give away the best that you have (whether that’s scrapbooking, knowledge, love, time, or energy), something more will arise for later to fill that need. This has a bit to do with faith, I think - trusting that there WILL be something left over, or that something will arise for later if you spend this now.
Of all these, energy is the hardest one for me. It’s the one I’m the most fearful of running out of, and the one I tend to hold back in giving.
So let’s talk about books (and maybe not even books) that made you want to write. Or paint. Or fix cars. What have you read, or listened to, or seen that left you amazingly inspired, and running for your scrap table, or camera, or paintbrush, etc?
Jessica |
34 Comments | 
Reader Comments (34)
"Bird By Bird", by Anne Lamott
"Poemcrazy", by Susan G. Wooldridge
Thank you for posting your thoughts and these excerpts. They resonated very powerfully with me.
Couldn't have come at a better time...
- Lee
http://scrapperlicious.blogspot.com/
http://www.inspiremethursday.com/
Both from Jessica (AND I have quoted YOU in a signature of mine:
'Creativity is a well that you can dip from forever, not a loaf of bread that’s only eaten once.' Jessica Sprague
If you love reading books about books, a really fun fictional series is the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde. The first book is "The Eyre Affair". Thursday works for Jurisfiction as a literary detective traveling in and out of books. This is the type of book I have dreamed of writing since a child. go check it out!
Jessica, thanks for all the inspiration you share on a daily basis! jackie
My favorite writers always make me want to write---especially those writing of their own life, like Anna Quindlan's old essays from Living Out Loud. And the writers who are able to make poetry out of the everyday, like Joan Didion and Isak Dinesen.
And if you will just find a way to present at CKC in Phoenix next month, you have a ready and willing TA!
I'm a new scrapbooker who has been reading your blog posts for several weeks. You often inspire me to get off my duff and complete a scrapbook page.
And your pages and designs are beautiful. -Wendy
Of course the all time fictional book about books is Fahrenhiet 451. If I wasn't forced to read this in highschool I would have never picked it up. I am so glad I was forced. It reminds us the power of what we write and how important it is to hold on to even with our lives. It is science fiction along the lines of "1984" but the social commentary and overall meaning make it such an important work.
Since you love to read so much, you ought to check out this website:
http://www.shelfari.com
I'm totally obsessed with it (when I'm not cruising scrapbooking blogs and websites!).
XXX
http://www.37days.typepad.com/
Many of her essays bring a lump to my throat and I can relate on so many levels. I teach a journalling class at my local scrapbook store and at the beginning of the first class I read them the "Why 37 Days?" essay. This is the link: http://37days.typepad.com/37days/2005/01/why_37_days.html
To me that is the essence of why I scrapbook and why I believe it is important to journal on my layouts - maybe not every layout but the layouts that invoke feelings in me, the everyday moments that are so easily forgotten.
At the beginning of the third class, I emphasize the importance of including their own handwriting on some of their pages.This essay really makes the point. It wasn't until the third repeat of the class that I could get through reading it without crying.
http://37days.typepad.com/37days/2005/09/save_a_grocery_.html
I just know that you will get a lot out of roaming through the archives. There are some great stories there and boy, can this woman write from the heart!
Joan
Thanks <a href=http://bigoogle.com> google </a>
Sehr wichtig und nicht unnuetz http://testzwecke.homeftp.net/
� ������� ������������ ������ <font color=red><a href=http://www.drochila.net/>��������� ����� �����</a></font>.
���������� ����� ����� �������������� �������� �� www.drochila.net
����� 100 GB ����� �����. ����������� DVD ������ � ����� �����.
�� ������
http://www.youtube.com/freedating777
<a href=http://www.youtube.com/freedating777>Free Dating Site</a>
This might help!
<a href=http://www.managedforexresearch.com>Managed Forex Research</a>
Bye!
Attention! Learn how to get HUGE traffic from Google, Yahoo, MSN and all other search engines starting in ...20 minutes from now!
Dear Webmaster and Internet Marketer,
Iget over 1 MILLION VISITORS to my websites every month. I am a webmaster and I use my websites to sell digital and physical products. The key for success are VISITORS which means - TRAFFIC.
Traffic must be of high quality - the best converting traffic are visitors coming from search engines. It is a fact and everybody knows it.
I DO NOT WANT TO PAY too much for advertising - Google Adwords or Yahoo Overture are very expensive these days and I am not using them much. So???
Finally, I developed a software which brings you almost UNLIMITED number of visitors EACH DAY! It is really amazing! I decided to show other webmasters how to get TONS of TRAFFIC completely automatically! Reading this web page you will learn how to dramatically BOOST your hits and sells.
The Best Way to Make AdSense Money Online
http://trafficadd.net/
<b> The Best Way to Make AdSense Money Online</b>
Working at home using AdSense and the power of the internet
Most of the people don�t want to have a boss.
Working at home is a dream for most of the people, but few can achieve this with success.
In a business you need to have the skills and the strength to endure unpredicted situations.
Any business in the world is having on behind an great idea or great product.
This is what you need. An idea or a product that is new or can complete another product that is on the market at this moment.
For example you have a passion for pit bull dogs. You can start an informational website about these dogs, a forum, a blog, also you can start an online market for people wanting to sell or buy pit bulls or pit bull puppies.
In this website you can implement a lot of income streams like AdSense, direct advertising from companies working in the same industry, paid classifieds posting for dogs.
<b> We can guarantee 10,000, 100,000, or even 1,000,000 visitors to your site</b>
http://trafficadd.net/
� ���� ���� ���� � 2000 ����, ��� ������ ������� �������. �� ��� ��� ��������� ������ ������ ��������� ��������, �� ������� �� ���� ������ �������� ��������. ������ ��� ��� � ���������� ��� ���� �� game boy, ������ ����������� ��� ��������� � ���� ������ �� <a href=http://www.gameboy-advance.ru>sony psp</a> ��� ���� ������ sony psp ��� psp.
���� ����� � ��� � ��������� ����������� � ����� ��� ���� ��� �� ���, ��� �������� ������� �� ���������. ���� ���� gameboy-advance.ru ������ ��� �� ����� ����������� �������������, �� �� ��� �� ������. ��� ��� ��� �������� <a href=http://www.gameboy-advance.ru>���� psp</a> - ����� � ���! ������, � ��� ���� �� ������ ������������ ���� psp, �� � 80 �� ��� ��� psp �� �����.
�� �������, ���� �� � ����, ����� ����� �� ����...
���� ���� ���������� �������, ������� ��������� ��� � ������� �������� ����� �������� � ��������. �� ������ �������� � ��������� �������� � ���� ������� �������� ������ � ����������, ��������� ����� � ������ �������.
http://eurobuil.ru
- ������������� � �������������� ���������� �����, ��������� � ���;
- ������, �������������, ��������������(� ����������� ����������) �������, ������,
��������� ���������, ����������;
- ������������� �������� �����, ������, �������� � ������ ����������� �� ����;
- �������� ������ � ���������� �� �������, ������������ � ������������� �����������;
- ������������ � ��������� �������, ���������, ������������ ������ �� �������������� ������, ������������ ������� ������������� �������, ������� �������, ���������� � ������ ����������
http://agamed.ru
�������������� � ������������� ��������� � ���������� ����� � ������ � �����������
������ ������� ���� � ���������� ���� �� ���������������� ������ ������������;
���� �� ���������������� ����� � ������� ������ ���� ����� ��������������;
������������� ����� �� ������ � ������� ������������, ���� ������������� ������� ����� ������� ��������������� ��������� �� �� ������;
������������� ����� �� ������ � ��� �����;
������������� ������� ����� � ��� ���������.
http://h-build.ru
����� ��������, ��� ��������������� ������ � ����� ���������� �� ���������� ��������. ������ ���������� ���������, ����������, �������, ������� ����� ���������� ����������� ������ ���������
http://prostor99.ru
http://luncosm.ru
���������� ��������� ����� �� ������� � �������������� ��������
http://stroi-t.ru