I’m a writer, working on memoir. Read yours a few weeks ago. It was recommended by Marion Roach Smith, from whom I’m taking a masterclass. I love your “voice” and the musicality of your prose!
I’m also an artist, though I have zero schooling in the visual arts. I play with collage and mixed media.
I’ll try to attend your coworking session. I have to force myself to reach out. It does not come naturally for me.
I live in the US, central Kentucky.
I’m also a recovering academic, a Miltonist by training.
(Yikes. That’s a lot of sentences beginning with “I.”)
Hi Kathy, great to meet you just now! Marion is so smart and astute- you're in capable hands working with her. I'm so glad you reached out to make a connection, and I hope you'll join us again. Keep cool, and hope to see you next week :-)
Thank you Samantha for today’s essay. I experience delight, a feeling of joy, when I happen upon an essay that stimulates deep thinking and reveals details of the realm of creators. Your efforts for today’s “The Life Boat” had exactly that effect. Always grateful for your work.
Oh, thank you for this Samantha. I loved Rubin’s book and appreciated reading of your takeaways. And, thanks too for the link to Jeannine Ouellette, whose work I was not aware of. There was a connection for me to a book I’m currently reading called Mutual Aid by Peter Kronoptkin. It’s an old book but makes the case for sociability, mutual aid, and collaboration as being major keys to survival, not competition alone.
Oh yes, thank you Kim for making that link to Kropotkin! A book I read a long time ago but it made a mark on me. I loved how he shows us mutual aid everywhere in nature. A book ahead of its times.
Hey Samantha, cheers for this. I think this a cool, and rather beautiful, message about being creative from Rick Rubin, who kind of epitomises cool whatever he does.
Love the quote on patience, especially. Will be thinking about that one. Is “graft” auto-correct wreaking its havoc on some other word like “craft” or “grit”?
No, Graft is graft! But I do like your observation that it's a combination of craft and grit, which seems to capture its meaning rather well! Maybe it's British English? Ah yes, it seems so. For benefit of North American readers then, from the Cambridge dictionary:
graft verb (WORK): to work hard
[ I ] UK informal. to work hard: graft (away) It was very sad that after spending all those years grafting (away), he died so soon after he retired.
Oh my heavens! In American English, graft is a kind of financial corruption! I was 99% sure that you didn't mean that here (it would have had to be a VERY distended metaphor). Had no idea of this British usage at all.
Yes, it was serendipitous, as I had just finished writing this when I read her post and added her reference. The story of the Beach Boys/Beatles is great isn't it! Apparently the Beatles listened to Pet Sounds obsessively while working on Sgt Pepper.
Hi Samantha, I was at the talk last week, and thoroughly enjoyed it - just setting up my own substack on the back of your words of wisdom. Loved today's post too - and the ethos of creativity not being a competition, that's exactly what I believe. It was a timely reminder as sometimes it doesn't always feel like that when you feel you are being judged all the time! Thank you for sharing.
Hi Sam.
This is my first comment on your Substack.
I’m a writer, working on memoir. Read yours a few weeks ago. It was recommended by Marion Roach Smith, from whom I’m taking a masterclass. I love your “voice” and the musicality of your prose!
I’m also an artist, though I have zero schooling in the visual arts. I play with collage and mixed media.
I’ll try to attend your coworking session. I have to force myself to reach out. It does not come naturally for me.
I live in the US, central Kentucky.
I’m also a recovering academic, a Miltonist by training.
(Yikes. That’s a lot of sentences beginning with “I.”)
Thank you for your lovely work.
Kathy
Hi Kathy, great to meet you just now! Marion is so smart and astute- you're in capable hands working with her. I'm so glad you reached out to make a connection, and I hope you'll join us again. Keep cool, and hope to see you next week :-)
Thank you Samantha for today’s essay. I experience delight, a feeling of joy, when I happen upon an essay that stimulates deep thinking and reveals details of the realm of creators. Your efforts for today’s “The Life Boat” had exactly that effect. Always grateful for your work.
Thank you, Gary - always great to hear your words of appreciation!
Oh, thank you for this Samantha. I loved Rubin’s book and appreciated reading of your takeaways. And, thanks too for the link to Jeannine Ouellette, whose work I was not aware of. There was a connection for me to a book I’m currently reading called Mutual Aid by Peter Kronoptkin. It’s an old book but makes the case for sociability, mutual aid, and collaboration as being major keys to survival, not competition alone.
Oh yes, thank you Kim for making that link to Kropotkin! A book I read a long time ago but it made a mark on me. I loved how he shows us mutual aid everywhere in nature. A book ahead of its times.
Hey Samantha, cheers for this. I think this a cool, and rather beautiful, message about being creative from Rick Rubin, who kind of epitomises cool whatever he does.
Yes. He's a dude - Big Lebowski vibes, no?
Great post! Very encouraging, informative, uplifting, optimistic.
And we all need a bit of that, don't we! Thanks Michael.
I liked it (your essay) well enough to order the Rubin book from Amazon. Should get it this Friday.
Ha ha! Another one for the to-be-read tower!
You mean "towers". Teetering towers at that!
Mine looks like the City of London....
Love the quote on patience, especially. Will be thinking about that one. Is “graft” auto-correct wreaking its havoc on some other word like “craft” or “grit”?
No, Graft is graft! But I do like your observation that it's a combination of craft and grit, which seems to capture its meaning rather well! Maybe it's British English? Ah yes, it seems so. For benefit of North American readers then, from the Cambridge dictionary:
graft verb (WORK): to work hard
[ I ] UK informal. to work hard: graft (away) It was very sad that after spending all those years grafting (away), he died so soon after he retired.
Oh my heavens! In American English, graft is a kind of financial corruption! I was 99% sure that you didn't mean that here (it would have had to be a VERY distended metaphor). Had no idea of this British usage at all.
And then you add in the Scots words I use without realising it and it's amazing we understand each other at all! Not to mention Orcadian dialect...
😊😊😊
I think in English graft in that sense becomes shaft. I can only image what shaft will become if I hand it back to an American!!
Or maybe grift?
I was wondering about that earlier — whether “grifter” and “graft” (in the North American sense) were related.
Made me laugh out loud. Yes, shaft as a verb in North American speech is a tad indelicate!
I loved Jeannine O's writing this week. Your examples in music of inspiration and type of collaboration are just gold. Thank you.
Yes, it was serendipitous, as I had just finished writing this when I read her post and added her reference. The story of the Beach Boys/Beatles is great isn't it! Apparently the Beatles listened to Pet Sounds obsessively while working on Sgt Pepper.
Hi Samantha, I was at the talk last week, and thoroughly enjoyed it - just setting up my own substack on the back of your words of wisdom. Loved today's post too - and the ethos of creativity not being a competition, that's exactly what I believe. It was a timely reminder as sometimes it doesn't always feel like that when you feel you are being judged all the time! Thank you for sharing.
Oh, fantastic Shelia! That's great to hear. Well done you for taking the plunge. Tag me when you post something and I can give it a boost :-)
thank you - I'll do that.