My husband and I had the great pleasure of meeting Ray Bradbury near the end of his life, when he made a personal appearance in our town on behalf of its public library. Not that being so will necessarily make anyone a great writer, but he was also a great literary citizen. And a lovely man!
Excellent LC - as is often the case with your scribbles.
For readers unfamiliar with Bradbury's genius, recommended reading: 'Fahrenheit 451', 'The Martian Chronicles'. And his short story: 'A Sound Of Thunder'.
As to poetry and metaphor in prose, Bradbury's "Dandelion Wine" is one of the most magical sparkling novels I've ever read. Nostalgia bottled in crystal.
"Don’t know what that never occurred to me when I first read it, that it’s the same advice over and over, but there it was clear as day. Writers have been saying the same things and giving the same advice forever, I guess. For centuries. "
You can only notice the themes and patterns and echoes when you've studied long and hard enough as you have Linda! 👏
I read Zinsser a long time ago - I remember it not meaning a whole lot, so I sold it off. Now that I'm writing more and loving it, I think I will revisit it. But I always go to Bradbury when I'm feeling down about my writing.
Happy to be a sublime fool! I think I need to reread Martian Chronicles, which is definitely not science fiction! It is a great example of leaving things out. He never goes into the details of getting to Mars, he just has the explorers show up. And you never think about it because that stuff wasn’t important. M
That's interesting about Bradbury. Do you think he really felt that way, or wanted to shock people into getting their focused attention? Obviously a deep thinker, so maybe he wanted people also to be deep thinkers about writing. I always like to imagine exactly what was on an author's mind through their writing. Sometimes authors like to hide their most private thoughts, or secrets of their craft. At least it seems like that to me. What do you think?
I read Bradbury at least once a year. I realized after reading this post that I need to up my rereading, of him, as I'm doing more writing myself and realizing how much better my writing has gotten. Bradbury sings, King clobbers.
I'm always delighted by the authors you pick for these reflections. I remember catching half of 'The Martian Chronicles' (a film version) on television back in the 80s. It was a strange and stunning adaptation that didn't come close to doing justice to the original book. I used to read 'A Sound of Thunder' to my students in Peru. Bradbury is underrated.
I recently started re-reading this awesome book. I haven’t highlighted anything myself, but I’ve dog-eared plenty of pages! I also like watching a speech he gave via YouTube. It’s called something like “An Evening with Ray Bradbury.” In it, as in “Zen…,” he talks a lot about writing short stories. I’ve found this advice invaluable in my own writing. I’ve also started applying it to other areas of creativity (shorter works, rather than longer ones).
My husband and I had the great pleasure of meeting Ray Bradbury near the end of his life, when he made a personal appearance in our town on behalf of its public library. Not that being so will necessarily make anyone a great writer, but he was also a great literary citizen. And a lovely man!
All of this was gold but the final line by Exupery. Incredible.
Excellent LC - as is often the case with your scribbles.
For readers unfamiliar with Bradbury's genius, recommended reading: 'Fahrenheit 451', 'The Martian Chronicles'. And his short story: 'A Sound Of Thunder'.
Enjoy 😊
As to poetry and metaphor in prose, Bradbury's "Dandelion Wine" is one of the most magical sparkling novels I've ever read. Nostalgia bottled in crystal.
"Don’t know what that never occurred to me when I first read it, that it’s the same advice over and over, but there it was clear as day. Writers have been saying the same things and giving the same advice forever, I guess. For centuries. "
You can only notice the themes and patterns and echoes when you've studied long and hard enough as you have Linda! 👏
Dear Linda
This is very TRUE.
(The surgeon knows how to go directly to the source of trouble, how to avoid wasted time and complications.)
Straight to the point, no time wasted. This is for me one of the Golden Rules which we all should have.
Thank you so much for very nice words.
GOD BLESS
Sam John
IRAQ
I read Zinsser a long time ago - I remember it not meaning a whole lot, so I sold it off. Now that I'm writing more and loving it, I think I will revisit it. But I always go to Bradbury when I'm feeling down about my writing.
Happy to be a sublime fool! I think I need to reread Martian Chronicles, which is definitely not science fiction! It is a great example of leaving things out. He never goes into the details of getting to Mars, he just has the explorers show up. And you never think about it because that stuff wasn’t important. M
That's interesting about Bradbury. Do you think he really felt that way, or wanted to shock people into getting their focused attention? Obviously a deep thinker, so maybe he wanted people also to be deep thinkers about writing. I always like to imagine exactly what was on an author's mind through their writing. Sometimes authors like to hide their most private thoughts, or secrets of their craft. At least it seems like that to me. What do you think?
Thank you. Beautiful words
I read Bradbury at least once a year. I realized after reading this post that I need to up my rereading, of him, as I'm doing more writing myself and realizing how much better my writing has gotten. Bradbury sings, King clobbers.
I'm always delighted by the authors you pick for these reflections. I remember catching half of 'The Martian Chronicles' (a film version) on television back in the 80s. It was a strange and stunning adaptation that didn't come close to doing justice to the original book. I used to read 'A Sound of Thunder' to my students in Peru. Bradbury is underrated.
I recently started re-reading this awesome book. I haven’t highlighted anything myself, but I’ve dog-eared plenty of pages! I also like watching a speech he gave via YouTube. It’s called something like “An Evening with Ray Bradbury.” In it, as in “Zen…,” he talks a lot about writing short stories. I’ve found this advice invaluable in my own writing. I’ve also started applying it to other areas of creativity (shorter works, rather than longer ones).