Category Archives: Memorable Quotes

The First Meeting of the Inklings, with George Sayer

Posted on June 19, 2018 by

I wrote last week about all the literary groups that formed some of the greatest writers of the 20th century, and how L.M. Montgomery was alone. One of those was the Inklings, which made C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien into … Continue reading →

Posted in L.M. Montgomery, Memorable Quotes, Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Emily of New Moon’s Visitation of Beauty with Father Cassidy (L.M. Montgomery Series) #LMMI2018

Posted on June 14, 2018 by

The story I want to share, the tale of Father Cassidy in Emily of New Moon, is looked on a little darkly in some parts of L.M. Montgomery studies. Part of this is because the Emily books can be read as a … Continue reading →

Posted in L.M. Montgomery, Memorable Quotes, On Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 19 Comments

“Stay in the Valley if You’re Wise”: Advice on Writing in Emily of New Moon (L.M. Montgomery Series) #LMMI2018

Posted on May 24, 2018 by

While L.M. Montgomery could be viewed as a writer’s writer for her prose, imaginative vim, and her shaping of characters, her novel Emily of New Moon is almost a textbook on the writer’s life. A friend tipped me off to the … Continue reading →

Posted in L.M. Montgomery, Memorable Quotes, On Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

C.S. Lewis’ Pretty Awful and Peculiarly Interesting Letter on Writing

Posted on May 1, 2018 by

How many times have you heard of the struggling writer providentially bumping into an established author or writing a letter? And then that writer on the edge of hopelessness becomes the recipient of a little piece of advice or encouragement … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Memorable Quotes, On Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Resources on David Lyndsay’s Cult Classic “A Voyage to Arcturus”

Posted on April 16, 2018 by

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a scathing review of David Lindsay’s trippy SF morality tale, A Voyage to Arcturus (1920). C.S. Lewis loved this book–and so does genius actor Paul Giamatti, according to the rather peculiar, subtly hypnotic, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Memorable Quotes, News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Little Rooms of Imagination with Madeleine L’Engle and C.S. Lewis (Friday Feature)

Posted on April 13, 2018 by

I tell my students often enough to read the fore-matter in their textbooks. “That’s where the good stuff is,” I argue. “That’s where the author shares his or her vision for writing.” Now, I suspect that students rarely heed my … Continue reading →

Posted in Feature Friday, Memorable Quotes, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Octavia Butler’s and Robert Heinlein’s Rules of Writing

Posted on March 26, 2018 by

My most significant alien encounter this year has been in the science fiction of Octavia E. Butler. I have only dipped into her work, enjoying her Xenogenesis Trilogy (1987-89) and a collection of short pieces, Bloodchild and Other Stories (2nd ed., … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, On Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments