What I Learned From..
Where sharp thoughts and messy learning collide. For the intellectually restless, the margin-scribblers, the readers and writers who refuse to think in a straight line.
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[WILF] Pumpkin Spice & Finding Flavors
Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Do you know that books smell like nutmeg or some spice from a foreign land? I loved to smell them when I was a boy.” — Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451 Photo by Natalie Goodwin What I Learned From … It’s Pumpkin Spice season, friends! Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! The air turns crisp, the leaves begin their fiery transformation, and a familiar scent...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Blue Pencils About Disappearing
The real work of editing happens in blue: the messy, invisible layer of questions and shifts that makes the final red checkmark possible and powerful. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Of course it takes skill to be a poet! But an editor? A pair of shears, a blue pencil, and a paste-pot!” — Alice Corbin Henderson Photo by Tamanna Rumee What I Learned From … When you say...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Flawless Tapestries About Defiant Legacies
Arachne made a goddess furious, Minerva tore her tapestry apart. This myth has everything: perfection, defiance, and the price of telling the truth. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. "Let her contend in art with me; and if her skill prevails, I then will forfeit all!" — Arachne, in Ovid’s Metamorphoses Photo by Kelly What I Learned From … Oh, foolish hubris! The Greek/Roman myth...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Beavers About Forcing the Flow
What eight beavers taught us about creative resistance, alignment, slow-building ideas, and why your best writing might not wait for the paperwork. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “We tiptoed the tops of beaver dams, hopped hummocks, went wading, looked at spring flowers, tried to catcha snake, got lost and found. How fine it was to move at a meandery, child's pace.” — David...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Iron Gall Ink About Work That Lasts
The ink that wrote history is erasing itself. What iron gall teaches us about making work that lasts without destroying its foundation. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Nothing is permanent in this wicked world—not even our troubles.” — Charlie Chaplin Photo by Pixabay What I Learned From … For the past two millennia (give or take a few centuries), if you wanted your words to...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Vanilla About Faking It
Vanilla isn’t basic. It’s rare, slow, and hard to create. A story of scent, struggle, and what writers can learn from the world’s most faked flavor. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “I am not plain, or average or - God forbid - vanilla. I am peanut butter rocky road with multicolored sprinkles, hot fudge and a cherry on top.” ― Wendy Mass, Every Soul a Star Photo by Sidath...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Julia Child’s Soufflé About Conviction
Pancake flops, studio spirals, and the conviction to flip the damn thing anyway. Julia Child reminds us how mastery handles the mess. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Do not confuse guilt with conviction. Guilt is self-centered, and leads only to destructive obsession. But conviction brings balance—a sense of purpose beyond oneself.” ― Jordan Ifueko, Redemptor Photo Credit:...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Bookplates About Claiming Your Stuff (Without Being a Jerk)
Bookplates, beetles, and a third-grade claim on a nature book. What they taught me about writing, legacy, and why we mark what matters. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you.” ― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, The Shadow of the Wind Photo Credit: University of Glasgow Library Collections What I Learned From … I found the...
READ POSTWhat I Learned From Georgia O’Keeffe About Bones and Ochre
A forgotten garden’s colors, O’Keeffe’s desert minimalism, and the power of limits. Why fifty shades of purple beat infinite choice every time. Welcome to What I Learned From…If someone forwarded this to you because they think you're one of us, they’re probably right. You can subscribe here. “Exact realism does not equal awe. I had to create an equivalent for what I was looking at—not copy it.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe Photo Credit: Elisa Doucette What I Learned From … Last month I took a trip to...
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