WOW! REACTION TO “CLICHÉS THAT HAVE WORKED FOR ME”

WOW! REACTION TO “CLICHÉS THAT HAVE WORKED FOR ME”

James R. Fisher, Jr., Ph.D.
© October 14, 2010

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REFERENCE:

This has been the greatest response of the some 562 missives published on my blog (www.fisherofideas.com) to date.

There is a consistent theme to the reaction to this missive, and because of that, I’m sharing two representative comments. There was, however, reference made to the length of the missive by some suggesting it was informative but a bit too long.

I pondered this. My inclination is to read THE NEW YORK REVIEW, THE LONDON REVIEW, FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND THE SMITHSONIAN. Many essays in these publications are as long as 10,000 words. Length has never bothered me, but I have trained myself to be a fast reader. I'll have to work on this.

Another common comment is that there is an edge to my writing. I find that true of many of the writers I read.

One reader has reminded me how indebted I am to my wife, "Beautiful Betty (BB), to which I concur. He implied that she has softened me, or rounded off some of my rough edges.

Speaking to that, several years ago, during a seminar I was conducting, I admitted to this edginess. After that seminar, a lady came up and asked, “What do you read?”

“Books and periodicals,” I answered putting my stuff together to leave.

“No, that is not my question,” she smiled demurely. “What do you read? That is my question.”

I told her I read novels, biographies, histories, books on psychology, sociology, philosophy, theology, and such.”

“What kind of novels?"

"Dostoyevsky, Camus, Sartre, Joyce and writers of that ilk. Mysteries. I tend to read every novel my favorite mystery writers have written. I read some of Hemingway, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, and …”

“I get the point. What type of biographies?”

“All kinds! Of historical personalities, philosophers, religious leaders, men of the soft and hard sciences, medicine.”

“What kind of histories?”

“Mainly American and Western Civilization, but also of Eastern religions through Western interpreters. Pardon me, but where is this going?”

“Be patient. I’m not through. What don’t you read?”

“What don’t I read? I’m not much into sci-fi, or comic novels, don’t read true crime or horror. I have read Steven King, but liked only THE STAND. I don’t read celebrity biographies or many national bestsellers. Does that help?”

“My reading differs with yours, but I sense you are a prisoner of your reading the same as I am. Think about that.” Then she left.

If she is right, and she may be, my inability to write more clearly or poignantly could boil down to what I read. Obviously, writers have influenced me. Still, it is a handicap readers in the end are the final determiners. In any case, readers of this piece have been more than generous.

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A READER WRITES:

Hello Jim,

Thank you for this piece. It is the best you have written in months, maybe even more than a year.

Always, when you write from the heart there is so much more meaning than the academic pieces. Those are very good, however, and informative and greatly appreciated.

When you write about life, there is a very different tone. You even seem to use the language differently. It is softer but still hard-edged, like a velvet gloved iron fist.

IN THE SHADOW OF THE COURTHOUSE (2003) was somewhat like that. In this piece, you have obviously advanced your ability to tell a story with heart.

Everybody wants to be a critic, and I apologize if that’s what this sounds like. It’s difficult to explain why this resonated with me to the extent that it did.

Michael

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DR. FISHER RESPONDS:

Michael,

Thank you for your comment. It is deeply appreciated. I write the best I can every day, and hopefully, the practice will help me deserve your comments.

Be always well,

Jim

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A READER WRITES:

Jim,

This is one of the most powerful pieces of writing I have ever read. You put in a nutshell what life is, and should be about. I thank you for this piece of prose. It has impressed and influenced me in more ways than I can express. Thank you.

Mary

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DR. FISHER RESPONDS:

Mary,

Your comments are humbling. Thank you.

Be always well,

Jim