Category Archives: inspiring

A.S. Byatt, on the tale of Scheherazade

Posted on May 11, 2012 by

Narrate or Die: Why Scheherazade keeps on talking by A.S. Byatt, the New York Times magazine The best story ever told? Perhaps the story of the two brothers, both kings, who found that their wives were unfaithful, took bloody vengeance, and … Continue reading →

Posted in art, fairy tales, heroines, history, inspiring | Leave a comment

A Lemony pep talk

Posted on January 21, 2011 by

Dear Cohort, Struggling with your novel? Paralyzed by the fear that it’s nowhere near good enough? Feeling caught in a trap of your own devising? You should probably give up. For one thing, writing is a dying form. One reads … Continue reading →

Posted in inspiring, kid lit, writerly lives | 1 Comment

Crushing on Meryl

Posted on June 30, 2010 by

I can’t find a transcript of this, sadly. www.rom.on.ca/media/podcasts/mp3/streep.mp3 “In Conversation With Meryl Streep” Institute for Contemporary Culture, October 8, 2009 On October 7 Meryl Streep joined Johanna Schneller, The Globe and Mail film critic, for a candid and energetic … Continue reading →

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Rowling Magic

Posted on March 11, 2010 by

J.K. Rowling, author of the best-selling Harry Potter book series, delivers her Commencement Address, “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination,” at the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association. “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, fantasy, harry potter, inspiring, kid lit, writerly lives | Leave a comment