A Word for Living Creatures

Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ball park. Aim for the company of immortals.

David Ogilvy

creativemorningsaustin:

Austin Kleon at CreativeMornings/Austin from CreativeMornings/Austin on Vimeo.

Here’s the text and slides if you don’t feel like watching it all…

You have to look closely to see its loveliness.

(via matthewhayles)

The best approach is to not try to write things that will go viral. No, the best approach is to write for just one person. Make an impact on just one person. Even better, make it so they can’t sleep that night unless they choose to make a difference for just one other person by sharing your message with them. The rest will take care of itself.

Seth Godin echoes Kurt Vonnegut, who in the seventh of his 8 timeless tips on writing advised, “Write to please just one person.” (via explore-blog)

(via explore-blog)

Write ALL the stories.

writing

Following your bliss is useless. People are passionate about a lot of stupid things. It’s not a great mantra. Meaning, I think, comes from doing a full accounting of your limitations and assets, your passions and your weaknesses, your belief system and your fears, and then rubbing up against the things that cause you to panic, like an allergy skin scratch test, and find out what your reactions are. Once you figure out how you can contribute to the greater good, once you’re able even to define that, you take that information and pour yourself into one direction. Regardless of discomfort or regrets or what-ifs. (And then doing that over and over again, until death.) That does not fit on a T-shirt. That to me is more important than bliss, which would really just lead me back into bed, maybe with a bowl of corn flakes…

Jessa Crispin (via austinkleon)

(via austinkleon)

jaymug: Steal. It’s not where you take things from. It’s where you take them to.

(via amandaonwriting)

let go

i am learning to let go swing back and forth head back head back clouds cirrus bluebirds bluebirds in the window a song a song on repeat a song of from my mother a song i am letting go i am letting go learning to fall to roll to get back up i am learning to breathe to not clench the breath to fall roll stand back up i am learning to not fall to pieces when i hit the ground hit the ground again again and again this is how i learn to let go this is how i learn not everything gold can stay not everything comes back wants to come back should come back this is how i learn this is how i am learning learning to let go to let go of places of homes of people bluebirds in the window clouds skudding across the sky clouds building into a storm nimbus clouds letting go their burden of rain letting go as i am letting go learning to study the clouds again the lightness of being the lightness of swinging my mother’s song bluebirds bluebirds flying away home i am learning to let go no have let go of this person of you the you i loved the you who left me lying on the mat clenched breath shattering learning to get up again learning learning learning to let go of this no that moment learning to breathe again to study clouds cumulus again to swing again to sing songs again to let go of places homes things people me i am learning to let go let go

imperfectio:

Journey to the past (by mog)

(via prettybooks)

books
art

When I read a book, I put in all the imagination I can, so that it is almost like writing the book as well as reading it–or rather, it is like living it. It makes reading so much more exciting, but I don’t suppose many people try to do it.

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (via prettybooks)