I’ve said many times this last year that quarantine was time we didn’t know we needed–almost as if God put humanity as a whole in time out. (“Go to your room and think about what you’ve done…”) As a society, we’ve been forced to pause and reckon with many of our institutional shortcomings (for example,Continue reading “time we didn’t know we needed”
Author Archives: joshua chamberlain
write it anyway
This morning, I committed to working on a project that scares me. It’s a story that isn’t mine to tell. It delves into a topic I’m by no means an expert in. It makes me nervous. It would probably get me “cancelled.” I’m writing it anyway. Bad things happen when we censor ourselves as weContinue reading “write it anyway”
one thing at a time
For a long time, I’ve suffered from a kind of creative ADHD. I think it’s caused by a variety of things: promiscuity of interest, a broad range of influences, having too many ideas all at once, and the unconscious fear of bringing something to completion. Currently, I’m tinkering with an idea for a novel (composedContinue reading “one thing at a time”
stuck
Austin Kleon recently posted a great interview with Paul Simon, where he tells Dick Cavett how he wrote “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” There are many things at play here (art as theft, input influencing output, accessing the unconscious), but the thing that speaks to me most is the idea of being “stuck.” “Everywhere I wentContinue reading “stuck”
portals to other places
For some reason, the concept of the portal has been on my mind lately. It could be the hypotrochoid set I bought at a thrift store recently, but it was also likely brought on by this interview with Jennifer Egan, in which she says, “reading is always about finding a portal into another world.” InContinue reading “portals to other places”
kick-start your day
Buy a real alarm clock. Set it on the other side of the room. Turn off your phone before bed. Plug it in somewhere far away from where you sleep. Don’t turn it on again until you’ve been awake a while, until you’ve finished your first cup of coffee, written your morning pages, meditated–done whateverContinue reading “kick-start your day”
changing your tune
I’ve been a Bayside fan long enough to follow them through quite a few changes. While so many of their contemporaries have fallen by the wayside and disappeared from my music collection, I’ve stuck with Bayside because they’ve managed to grow alongside me, both musically and as individuals. With recent discussions about cancel culture andContinue reading “changing your tune”
gorging on forbidden fruit
In this age of colossal cinematic crossovers (thing such as The Avengers or Godzilla vs. Kong), perhaps the one that beats all the others is Austin Kleon’s appearance on Andy J. Pizza’s Creative Pep Talk. In a conversation that ranges from setting creative rules for yourself to following your disgust, my favorite bit came asContinue reading “gorging on forbidden fruit”
Obama on cultural appropriation
I just finished listening to Renegades: Born in the USA, a series of conversations between Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen, with topics ranging from race and gender to the myth of the road to fatherhood. As far as podcasts go, it counts among my favorites. There are a million and one things that struck me,Continue reading “Obama on cultural appropriation”
the art of inversion
I had a conversation with some friends last night about inversion–the idea of taking something and flipping it on its head. Example: one of my college professors once gave a lecture on divorcing the signifier from the signified. He said the the class, “Green means…” and everyone replied “Go.” “Red means…” the professor said. “Stop,”Continue reading “the art of inversion”
