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Here I have assembled some of my favorite quotes from the three different authors assigned for the class to read.
1. Don Murray: a) "Instead of teaching finished writing, we should teach unfinished writing, and glory in its unfinishedness." b) "The writer, as he writes, is making ethical decisions. He doesn’t test his words by a rule book, but by life. He uses language to reveal the truth to himself so that he can tell it to others." c) "We have to respect the student, not for his product, not for the paper we call literature by giving it a grade, but for the search for truth in which he is engaged." 2. Maria Popova (E.B White, Ray Bradbury, Don Delillo) a) E.B. White: "A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper." b) Ray Bradbury: "My passions drive me to the typewriter every day of my life, and they have driven me there since I was twelve. So I never have to worry about schedules. Some new thing is always exploding in me, and it schedules me, I don’t schedule it. It says: Get to the typewriter right now and finish this." c) Don Delillo: "A writer takes earnest measures to secure his solitude then finds endless ways to squander it." 3. Anne Lamott: a) "All good writers write [Shitty] drafts." b) "Very few writers really know what they are doing until they've done it." c) "Almost all good writing beings with terrible first efforts."
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The Proust Questionnaire - Or a half-baked insight into me.
I consider myself to be a pretty easygoing guy, so hopefully these answers reflect that. __1.__What is your idea of perfect happiness? As of right now, I’m not sure if I have a defined idea of perfect happiness, but a nice bottle of beer comes pretty close. __2.__What is your greatest fear? Being average, as in not accomplishing anything major in my life. __3.__What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? My insurmountable tendency to procrastinate; it’s a real problem. __4.__What is the trait you most deplore in others? Hypocrisy. (Yes, I’m guilty.) __5.__Which living person do you most admire? Don’t really have one of these, a lot of public figures these days don’t really have a lot to be proud of. __6.__What is your greatest extravagance? A watch my grandfather gave me as a keepsake before he passed away. __7.__What is your current state of mind? Exhausted, the week was really long. I’m looking forward to next week though. __8.__What do you consider the most overrated virtue? I’m not sure I believe any virtues to be overrated. They exist to help people lead positive lives. __9.__On what occasion do you lie? Only when I absolutely have to, and I never enjoy doing it. __10.__What do you most dislike about your appearance? My brown eyes. __11.__Which living person do you most despise? George Soros; think meddlesome billionaire types. Although I don’t really despise anyone. __12.__What is the quality you most like in a man? Fraternité. __13.__What is the quality you most like in a woman? Compassion. __14.__Which words or phrases do you most overuse? What’s up man/dude/bro. That kind of stuff. __15.__What or who is the greatest love of your life? My girlfriend. __16.__When and where were you happiest? When I was in Tortola with my best friends Josh and Tighe for Christmas in July. It was a real blast. __17.__Which talent would you most like to have? I’d really like to have a talent for film-making. I’m not bad at writing, but I’d really like to be a Stanley Kubrick tier guy. __18.__If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Not really sure, I’m pretty happy with myself as is right now. __19.__What do you consider your greatest achievement? Academically, completing a thirty page paper for a class in a week. Other than that, losing forty-five pounds in six months. __20.__If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? I’d come back as a Tiger, because why not? __21.__Where would you most like to live? Italy, in the hills of Rome. It has some of the most beautiful sites in the world. __22.__What is your most treasured possession? I don’t really have one specific item that I really consider to be my most treasured possession but I think if I had to choose one it would be a gold ring that was engraved on the day I was born. __23.__What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? For a person to be without any friends, family, or loved ones to rely on. Also, not having any kind of income and being homeless on the street. __24.__What is your favorite occupation? Don’t have a specific one but I really enjoy skiing, swimming, and for rainy days, netflix. __25.__What is your most marked characteristic? My height, it’s the first thing people notice at least. __26.__What do you most value in your friends? Loyalty I guess, I’m not very picky. __27.__Who are your favorite writers? Unfortunately, I don’t read as much as I’d like to anymore. When I was really young I was obsessed with the Eragon series. (Hard to write that with a straight face.) __28.__Who is your hero of fiction? Same answer as above. __29.__Which historical figure do you most identify with? Henry Ford, the guy was pretty chill. That or George Patton. __30.__Who are your heroes in real life? Don’t really have any. __31.__What are your favorite names? I think the name Berticus, it was my nickname briefly in high school because I grew so much in such a short time. __32.__What is it that you most dislike? People being pretentious. __33.__What is your greatest regret? Not going with my gut when I chose the first college I attended after high school. It was not the right place. __34.__How would you like to die? With my family surrounding me at an old age. Generic, I know. That or while I'm doing something insanely risky/dangerous. __35.__What is your motto? Hard work never killed anybody, but why risk it? Just kidding, go to school kids. |
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