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In order to understand the world, one has to turn away from it on occasion; in order to serve men better, one has to hold them at a distance for a time. But where can one find the solitude necessary to vigor, the deep breath in which the mind collects itself and courage gauges its […] The post Episode 24: Process, Retreats and Dark Nights of the Soul appeared first on John Fanning.

Your hand opens and closes, and opens and closes. If it were always a fist or always stretched open, you would be paralyzed. Your deepest presence is in every small contracting and expanding, the two as beautifully balanced  and coordinated  as birds’ wings. That’s part of a poem transposed by Coleman Barks in his book […] The post Episode 23: Balance, Health and Notebooks appeared first on John Fanning.

And that, of course, is the lingering problem: The maintenance of an arbitrary division between “literature” and “genre,” the refusal to admit that every piece of fiction belongs to a genre, or several genres. There are very real differences between science fiction and realistic fiction, between horror and fantasy, between romance and mystery. Differences in […] The post Episode 22: Limits, Genre and Numbers appeared first on John Fanning.

“Always remember, your focus determines your reality.” That’s a quote from the character of Master Qui-Gon, in “Star Wars, Episode I, The Phantom Menace, written by American writer, director and producer, George Lucas. More on that later. I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with John Fanning podcast. How’s it goin out there. Hope […] The post Episode 21: Focus and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones. That’s a quote from The Analects attributed to the Chinese philosopher Confucius. I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with John Fanning podcast. How’s it goin out there. Hope all is well. This is Episode 20 of my series of episodes on […] The post Episode 20: Work and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

“No one can arrive from being talented alone. God gives talent, work transforms talent into genius.” That’s a quote from Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova from the 1956 book “Pavlova: A Biography” edited by A. H. Franks in collaboration with members of the Pavlova Commemoration Committee. I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with […] The post Episode 19: Mentors and Talent Borrows, Genius Steals appeared first on John Fanning.

Much Madness is divinest Sense —To a discerning Eye —Much Sense — the starkest Madness —‘Tis the MajorityIn this, as All, prevail —Assent — and you are sane —Demur — you’re straightway dangerous —And handled with a Chain — That’s a quote from The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. I’m John Fanning and this is […] The post Episode 18: Enthusiasm, Passion and Madness appeared first on John Fanning.

Dancing is very like poetry. It’s like poetic lyricism, sometimes, it’s like the rawness of dramatic poetry, it’s like the terror — or it can be like a terrible revelation of meaning. Because when you light on a word it strikes you to your heart. That’s a quote from the American dancer and choreographer Martha […] The post Episode 17: The Dancer and the Dance appeared first on John Fanning.

I love my rejection slips. They show me I try. That’s a quote from Sylvia Plath in her posthumously published The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath, and I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with John Fanning podcast. How’s it goin out there. Hope all is well. This is Episode 16 of my series […] The post Episode 16: Failure, Rejection and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is: Infinite. For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro’ narrow chinks of his cavern. That’s a quote from William Blake’s 1793 poem The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. I’m John Fanning and this is the […] The post Episode 15: Doors and the Cave appeared first on John Fanning.

Capitalism … is by nature a form or method of economic change and not only never is but never can be stationary. … The fundamental impulse that sets and keeps the capitalist engine in motion comes from the new consumers’ goods, the new methods of production or transportation, the new markets, the new forms of […] The post Episode 14: Capitalism and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

Ageism is the stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination against people on the basis of their age. Ageism is widespread and an insidious practice which has harmful effects on the health of older adults. For older people, ageism is an everyday challenge. Overlooked for employment, restricted from social services and stereotyped in the media, ageism marginalises and […] The post Episode 13: Ageism, Retirement and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. Those are some of the words from the beautifully optimistic children’s book The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with […] The post Episode 12: Courage, Trolls and Human Walls appeared first on John Fanning.

For the great enemy of truth is very often not the lie–deliberate, contrived and dishonest–but the myth–persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. That’s a quote […] The post Episode 11: Myths, Lies and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

Excellence is an art won by training and habituation: we do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have these because we have acted rightly; ‘these virtues are formed in man by his doing the actions’; we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a […] The post Episode 10: Perfection, Shakespeare and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without the work. That’s a quote from French writer Émile Zola, and I’m John Fanning and this is the Create with John Fanning podcast. How’s it goin out there. Hope all is well with this crazy Corona virus. This is Episode 9 of […] The post Episode 9: Genius, Talent, Originality and Gifts appeared first on John Fanning.

…for me – writing is less a business than a vocation, a calling. Not so much something you choose as Something that chooses you, not so unlike a drug, really, in that it’s hard to imagine quitting. Whether you’ll actually make money is almost beside the point. Viewing writing as a vocation doesn’t make you […] The post Episode 8: Black Sheep, Difference and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

At the very best, a mind enclosed in language is in prison. It is limited to the number of relations which words can make simultaneously present to it; and remains in ignorance of thoughts which involve the combination of a greater number. These thoughts are outside language, they are unformulable, although they are perfectly rigorous […] The post Episode 7: Lexical Prisons – Imagination and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

Now, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else, and root out everything else. You can only form the minds of reasoning animals upon Facts: nothing else will ever be of any service to them. This is the principle on which […] The post Episode 6: School, Education, Imagination and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.

In America, the imagination is generally looked on as something that might be useful when the TV is out of order. Poetry and plays have no relation to practical politics. Novels are for students, housewives, and other people who don’t work. Fantasy is for children and primitive peoples. Literacy is so you can read the […] The post Episode 5: Imagination and Creativity appeared first on John Fanning.