A Writer's Moment: 'Little by little they lead to the truth'

A Writer's Moment: 'Little by little they lead to the truth':   “Science … is made up of mistakes, but they are mistakes which it is useful to make, because they lead little by little to the truth.”  – ...

'Little by little they lead to the truth'

 

“Science … is made up of mistakes, but they are mistakes which it is useful to make, because they lead little by little to the truth.” – Jules Verne

Born in the seaport city of Nantes, France on Feb. 8, 1828 Verne grew up around sailors and their tales.  His earliest stories were about the sea and the often-fantastical sea creatures sailors were said to encounter, tales later repeated in his book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and alluded to in Journey to the Center of the Earth.   Those two novels along with From Earth to the Moon led to him being dubbed one of the “Fathers of Science Fiction,” along with H.G. Wells and Hugo Gernsback.

 

The author of 62 books, he is the second-most translated author in history – only behind Agatha Christie.  He also wrote numerous plays, short stories, essays, poetry, songs, and scientific, artistic and literary studies. His work has been adapted for film and television since the beginning of cinema, as well as for comic books, theater, opera, music and video games.

 

In 1890, Verne’s fictional character Phileas Fogg became the centerpiece of a real-life challenge.   Journalist Nellie Bly of The New York World decided to try to "best" the character’s Around The World in 80 Days record, reporting on her escapades as she traveled.  She completed the trip in 72 days, establishing herself as both a daredevil adventurer and one of the most-read reporters of her day.

 

During the trip, she stopped in France to visit Verne and was shocked to find that he produced his masterpieces in a small, nondescript room on a beat-up old typewriter at an ordinary-sized desk. 

 

“It’s not the place you write that matters,” Verne told his aspiring young American visitor.  “It’s what you produce there that counts.”

A Writer's Moment: 'Like a broken-winged bird'

A Writer's Moment: 'Like a broken-winged bird':   “Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly.”  – Langston Hughes Hughes, a poet, social activ...

'Like a broken-winged bird'

 

“Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly.” – Langston Hughes

Hughes, a poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist, was born Feb. 1, 1902 in Joplin, Mo., and became world famous as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance Movement in New York City.   His poetry and fiction portrayed the lives of the working-class blacks in America as full of struggle, joy, laughter, music, and pride in the African-American identity and its diverse culture.    For Saturday’s Poem, here is Hughes’,

                                                 I Dream A World

I dream a world where man
No other man will scorn,
Where love will bless the earth
And peace its paths adorn.
I dream a world where all
Will know sweet freedom's way,
Where greed no longer saps the soul
Nor avarice blights our day.
A world I dream where black or white,
Whatever race you be,
Will share the bounties of the earth
And every man is free.
Where wretchedness will hang its head
And joy, like a pearl,
Attends the needs of all mankind-
Of such I dream, my world!

A Writer's Moment: And he did

A Writer's Moment: And he did:   "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of be...

And he did

 

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.” – Charles Dickens

 

Opening lines of books often can make or break them, and one of the most famous of all time despite its “run-on” nature, is Dickens’ opening to A Tale of Two Cities.  It’s the intro to what would become one of the 100 greatest books of all time – about the universal nature of the book, the French Revolution, and the drama depicted within its pages. 

 

Born in Portsmouth, England on Feb. 7, 1812, Dickens was the most popular novelist of his time and remains one of the best known and most read.  His works have never gone out of print and have been continually adapted  for the screen since the medium was invented – the most famous being the beloved A Christmas Carol.  He wrote 15 novels, 5 novellas and hundreds of short stories and nonfiction articles.  He also was a tireless letter writer; campaigned vigorously for social reforms and was a popular speaker in appearances around the world..

 

And he created dozens of memorable characters, many who took on lives of their own and became part of our vernacular.  Think “Scrooge,” for example.  His biographer Claire Tomalin regards him as the greatest creator of character in English fiction after only William Shakespeare.  Dickens gave the world a view of Victorian England that remains as vivid today as it was in its own time.

 

“The most important thing in life,” Dickens said, “is to stop saying ‘I wish’ and start saying ‘I will’.” 

A Writer's Moment: 'Setting a pattern for success'

A Writer's Moment: 'Setting a pattern for success':   “When I get started each day, I read through and correct the previous day's 2,000 words, then start on the next. As I reach that figur...