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Wednesday, April 2, 2014

APRIL 2ND and Insecure Writers Support

“If you have not done things worthy of being written about, at least write things worthy of being read.”
― Giacomo Casanova
Casanova ritratto.jpg
(1725-04-02)Birthdate:2 April 1725
 
So?  You have decided to ride the Outlaw Trail of days with me, have you?

Come with me to 1927 and listen to a haunted tale from a stretch of the Badlands the Lakota still fear:





We will have some fun, no?

Almost as much fun as this gringo had:


On April 2nd, 1725, Giacomo Cassanova was born, and erotic tall tales were never the same.


On this date in 1796, a forged Shakespeare play, VORTIGERN AND ROWENA, flops in London,

helping to expose its author, William Henry Ireland, as a fraud ... or a late April Fool's prankster.


Emile Zola, author of Nana, was born on this day in 1840: 

“There are two men inside the artist, the poet and the craftsman. One is born a poet. One becomes a craftsman.” ― Émile Zola


Sadly, this date also contains irony and tears:

1917:

President Woodrow Wilson tells Congress "The world must be made safe for democracy." asking Congress for a declaration of war and to send U.S. troops into battle against Germany in World War I .

And American young men have been dying ever since making the world safe for democracy.


B stands for Bradbury -- Ray Bradbury,

whose loss I still feel.  SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES is one of my favorites of his.  What is your favorite Bradbury tale?

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.” ― Ray Bradbury



Here is Ray Bradbury giving my insecure writers' support for this month:


21 comments:

  1. Casanova set the bar a bit high for me - there are a lot of us who will never meet those exacting standards. But I have never warmed to him anyway.

    Yay for Ray Bradbury (my copy of Something Wicked... is very well read)- and some Theodore Sturgeon too. Too many talented people whose loss I feel strongly.

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  2. My fave Bradbury was 'The Illustrated Man'.

    I only remember a Casanova where Richard Chamberlain played the part in the eighties.

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  3. Awesome post from Ray Bradbury. I like knowing how the greats got their inspiration.

    You've got a cool theme going Roland.

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  4. Interesting and inspiring video featuring Ray Bradbury... (A to Z-er here)

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  5. B for Bradbury is an excellent choice. He's one of my favourite writers and 'tutors'!

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  6. One day I will finish Dandelion Wine! I lost the book after I started reading it in college, now it haunts me every time Bradbury is mentioned!

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  7. When we stop reading, we stop growing.

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  8. I don't know what I would do without reading. Bradbury was great. Do you have something for the letter V yet? As we drove by Vasquez rocks yesterday on our way to LA, I was reminded of that sexy, bandito.

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  9. Great video! Bradbury will live forever. You picked a great companion for today's journey on the outlaw trail.

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  10. Elephant's Child:
    Getting a late start answering my friends -- a meeting with my surgeon over my nose. Ouch!!

    I like Clifford D Simak too. My fantasy life would be great to read unlike my real one!

    D.G.:
    Cassanova was a legend in his own mind. :-) Richard Chamberlain lived his own legend.

    Donna:
    Ray made me look good! I was concerned that others might not like my Outlaw Trail. Thanks for liking it!

    J. Gi.:
    Great of you to say that. :-)

    Puvomun:
    Ray was a genius and a warm, kind man. Thanks for visiting.

    David:
    You should get the audiobook and listen on the way to work with an old friend from college. :-)

    Alex:
    It helps to reflect upon what we read, too. Thanks for visiting when I know you are so busy!!

    Inger:
    Thanks for the suggestion -- I have written all but two of the posts -- work makes it a challenge!! I'll see what I can do!

    Siv:
    You're right: Ray is a great companion on our writing journey. Great seeing you here.

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  11. Ray Bradbury. I couldn't have picked a better person to represent "B" if I tried.

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  12. Just the title alone, Something Wicked This Way Comes has been a top ten for me. I always enjoy hearing from past writers who still follow us on this writing journey.

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  13. Chrys:
    Yes, I love his style and imagination ... and heart. Thanks!

    Nicole:
    The giants are like light houses showing us the way, right?

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  14. I can't believe you have time to answer our comments during the challenge. I went back to see just in case. It was just a suggestion. I wrote a post about him a while ago and, sort of, fell for his long dead charm. And you should see those rocks where he hid out.

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  15. Inger:
    It's only polite to answer -- Sam McCord would have it no other way! :-) I am going to have to look up Valdez. But my eyes are heavy and my strength waning! :-)

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  16. I wish I had more time to do all the things I can't seem to find time to do. Like reading books.

    I have Her Bones... downloaded to be read eventually.

    If I didn't read so many blogs then I might read more books.

    Lee
    A Faraway View
    An A to Z Co-host blog

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  17. Fantastic! I love the information I am finding here. Good job. :)

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  18. Arlee:
    Thanks for downloading HER BONES! Do you have a Kindle Fire or an iPhone or smart phone? I would gladly send you the just released audiobook of HER BONES ARE IN THE BADLANDS. Robert Rossman does a magnificent job on it! Let me know.

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  19. Mel:
    Your words mean so much to me. Thanks!

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  20. No, don't have any readers. I use my desktop which is one reason why it's slow getting to a lot of books. I can't sit too long at the computer to read books. So I guess Her Bones... is in some cloud that Amazon has waiting for me when I'm ready. Thanks for the offer though. I didn't realize audiobooks could be accessed with devices like you mention.

    Lee
    A Faraway View
    An A to Z Co-host blog

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  21. I listen to audiobooks on my rare blood runs on my Kindle Fire, plugging it into the van's radio system. It makes the long, lonely night runs much more endurable. :-)

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