August 2025 Update
“Mark it, nuncle: Have more than thou showest, Speak less than thou knowest, Lend less than thou owest, Ride more than thou goest, Learn more than thou trowest*, Set less than thou throwest;”
*trowest = believe
— The Fool in King Lear Act 1. Sc. 4
Such simple advice from a fool, and yet so difficult to follow in a world which constantly tries to get us to play the fool with our wallets and our tongues. This update is coming so late because I neglected it in the first week of August, and everything got away from us. Now the end of the summer is closing fast and we can't seem to get a spare moment. Even though we purposely tried not to schedule anything it seems we've had some travel or events happening every day. Have never been more tired in my life.
Writing
I managed to finish the second draft of Book 2. I think there is still more polishing to do, and possibly some shoring up in the latter section, but it is readable as a book for other people now, so progress. Also querying and getting rejected, which is par for the course. Have gotten some encouraging rejections though, so going to keep going.
Music
Have been picking up the guitar but not getting much done, mostly because it's been difficult to take advantage of the uninterrupted time that I have. I did manage to record a fun podcast with my friend, which was guitar related, and very fun, but I have to edit it. Hopefully it will be out soon.
Reading
The stack of books by my bedside is comical. Picked up King Lear to re-read after seeing it live, then picked up Three Musketeers after starting the audiobook on my way to visit a friend. Am also still reading Bleak House, and managed to finish a Sanderson book. Ah yes and also read Huckleberry Finn. If I had to pick one that's been most in my mind and not Shakespeare it is probably Bleak House. Has made me appreciate Dickens a lot more, and it is quite a haunting mystery. Dickens really has no respect for the English language. Don't try to write like him unless you have the utterly bewildering eye for detail that he does. Definitely not my style, but I respect it, and it's a fun ride. Huck Finn was also a highlight. I read it and then made my wife read it so we could talk about it. It is hard to argue with Hemingway's statement that all of American Literature comes from Huck Finn. There are patterns originated in that book that have been echoed and echoed and echoed. Problematic? Sure. Every book has problems, just like every person does, but Mark Twain was onto something, whether he knew it or not. I don't know how Jim kept his cool with Tom Sawyer's antics, and yet, I know exactly how and why.
Seeing
This summer has sort of been the “Summer of Shakespeare” for us. We went to see three plays, and I hope it becomes a tradition. Twelfth Night and King Lear by Capital Classics, and Hamlet by Time's fool. Managed to drag our kids and family members. I believe that live Shakespeare is for everyone, even if you have no interest in reading it. My five year old son was belly laughing at Malvolio's speech (“Some have greatness thrust upon them”), and whether or not he will clearly remember it, I have to believe in it. There are plenty of studies about the benefits of reading to children, and whether or not we remember our toddler-hood, it affects us. Going to see a Shakespeare play is about the closest thing one can come to live time travel, and the words and stories have lasted for a reason. In them we can see the passions that still exalt and crush our lives and histories played on the stage. I feel the echoes of it in my bones. And we receive more from live actors than even the best screen productions. It is a sort of collaborative spell. And a life-giving catharsis in this world of fast food regurgitations.
Thank you for reading! I greatly regret that I will most likely never be able to meet you in person and shake your hand, but perhaps we can virtually shake hands via my newsletter, social media, or a cup of coffee sent over the wire. They are poor substitutes, but they can be a real grace in this intractable world.
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