If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they’re happy.” ― Dorothy Parker

“Beware of advice—even this.”
—Carl Sandburg

I can’t write five words but that I change seven.
- Dorothy Parker

I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.
- Douglas Adams

It is perfectly okay to write garbage—as long as you edit brilliantly.
- C. J. Cherryh

Presidential Quotes

Each Presidency is encapsulated in a quote. If you asked the man or woman on the street to give you a quote from a president; this is the one they are most likely to come up with (My Opinion).  It is what we remember. Somebody can say the words and we associate it with that president. These quotes quite often become important because of events that occur long after they are uttered. Other times, they are poignant and enlightening when they are first said.  These quotes can be bad or good. What I am trying to capture is the idea of how we as a people push and condense a presidency into a few words.

 

Frankly D. Roosevelt – “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”

Harry S. Truman – “The buck stops here.”

“Dwight D. Eisenhower – “Beware the Military Industrial Complex”

John F. Kennedy – “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

Lyndon B. Johnson – “If chosen I will not run, if elected, I will not serve.”

Richard M. Nixon – “I am not a crook”

Gerald Ford – No Quote, the presidency doesn’t register with the public’s memory.

Jimmy Carter - Set your thermostats to save fuel.

Ronald Reagan – “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.”

George H.W. Bush – “Read my lips, no new taxes.”

Bill Clinton – “I did not have sex with that woman.”

George W. Bush – “I hear you and the people who tore down these building will here from all of us                            soon.”

Barrack Obama – “If you like your Health Insurance, you will be able to keep your Insurance.”

How We Live Now

I just finished a great great book called, HOW WE LIVE NOW by Meg Rosof. The reason I mention it is because she breaks all the rules. It is about a young girl in England visiting her cousins when war comes to Great Britain. It is a modern day story not WW II. She doesn't use a lot of dialog. She does a lot of telling vice showing. But she does it in such a way that I was engrossed. Her pacing, flow, Rhythm, what ever you want to call it pulls you into the story. The 1st person Voice is spot on. I don't know how she did it but I am going to have to study it again to try and figure out the tricks.

 

I believe they have made it into a movie.

 

I just wanted to pass it along.

A thought

"For as much as they tell you about Stop, Drop, and Roll, as a kid, I really expected to be on fire more times in my life."

                                                   Dylan Snodgrass