Inspired By: Prose

Obviously, I read a good amount. I read for fun. I read to escape. I read because there's nothing good on TV. I read because other people have done way cooler stuff than I have and I want to live vicariously. I read because other people have experienced heartbreak in ways that I never have and hopefully never will.

And lately, I find myself reading because I'm jealous.

It's just … almost everything I've read lately is just SO deliciously good. Not even necessarily in plot — though if the writing is good, it can make up for weaknesses in plot, in my opinion. I'm just amazed at the metaphors other people think to write in, and the prose that flows out of other people's pens. And I've started thinking about how I write, and whether these types of exotic sentences come natural to these amazing writers, or if they, like me, have to really work hard in order to create something that flows beautiful and poetic.

I know that I'm writing a blog and not the next great American novel or anything. I try to write this blog the way I would talk with you in real life. I'm not trying to make this space something it's not. But I can't help but be wistful at how beautiful some of these sentences are, and how unlike anything I could have written.

What has been inspiring you lately? What are some of your favorite book quotes?