Recently, I reread Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis in order to write a book summary on it. I'm a big fan of Clive (take those adjectives in whatever manner you wish), but in my opinion, Mere Christianity is his weakest work.
That being said, a few quotes caught my eye and made me think (or, I guess, rethink). For the next couple of days, I thought I'd share those with you.
Today's quote:
"In literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original and whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring two pence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it." (p. 90)
This coming from the man whose greatest and most sophisticated work (again in my opinion) is a retelling of the Psyche and Cupid myth.
As I began the latest set of rewrites on my WIP, I found out that it shares some things in common with a friend's novel that's set to release in about a year.
Crap. I'm not original at all!
Well, no. I'm not. But here's the thing: it's still my story, not his. And the character is her own character (I can't claim her as mine because she has a mind of her own).
I can stop worrying about being quirky, gritty, edgy. I can stop trying to write the Great American Novel. And I can just write my story. (Or paint my canvas or play my piano...)
Right on, and write on, H.
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