Halftime Speeches (vol. 1, no. 5)

Here are five bolts of inspiration I’m sharing this month:

1. Ellen Burstyn on becoming:

  • “You become the noun by doing the verb.”

2. Bruce Springsteen on what’s inside his “Rock-n-Roll Survival Kit”:

  • “DNA, natural ability, study of craft, development of and devotion to an aesthetic philosophy, naked desire…[and]…if you want to take it all the way out to the end of the night, a furious fire in the hole that just…don’t…quit…burning.” (p. xii, Born to Run by the Boss)

3. Neil Strauss on writing (but it holds for everything we create):

4. Elizabeth Gilbert on a story about Jack Gilbert (no relation) and one of his students:

  • “…on afternoon, after his poetry class, Jack had taken [his student] aside. He complimented her work, then asked what she wanted to do with her life. Hesitantly, she admitted that perhaps she wanted to be a writer. He smiled at the girl with infinite compassion and asked, “Do you have the courage? Do you have the courage to bring forth this work? The treasures that are hidden inside of you are hoping you will say yes.” (p. 7, Big Magic)

5. Encore blog from me on losing:

  • “I do not want to go back. But, sometimes I get so tired of the daily struggle. I get confused by our culture. I get lost without the guidance of a limelight. And, sometimes I think “would it be so bad to plug back into the matrix, just for a bit?” (Publish or Perish)

That’s it. Have a great day. And, go start something! – shawn

PS If you’re reading this newsletter for the first time, you can read previous issues hereview lists of poems, questions, quotes and songs I’ve shared before here, and subscribe here.

css.php