Citations favorites – Flaubert

Il a commis « le crime d’avoir écrit en français. »

He had  committed “the crime of having written in French.” [In response to Madame Bovary's scandalous reception.]

I’m reading Madame Bovary in French. I have yet to finish the introduction (I usually just read on my metro ride to work). I’m in love with Flaubert’s philosophy of writing. I hope the novel itself will be this good. I know it will. I’m in love with the idea that Emma is a product of the novel itself, as are the best of us.

About time I rent Les Enfants du siècle. And pen another poem, or ten. Dwell on the troubadours.

Citations favorites – féministes

Nothing like the inspiring words of one of the first female writers, a feminist, Louise Labé.

Le plus grand plaisir qui soit apres amour, c’est d’en parler. (The greatest pleasure that comes after love is talking about it.)

Incontinent que les hommes commencent d’aymer, ils escrivent des vers. (Unrestrained as the men beginning to love, so they write in verse.)

Bien je mourrais plus que vivante heureuse. (Better I die than live happily.)

Crutch words

I was stumbling the other day when I ran across Holt Uncensored’s list of top ten mistakes writers make, all mistakes that make it past editors and publishers.

Heading the list were crutch words. I nearly skipped down to flat writing, but a few so-called “crutch words” caught my eye.

abraded
abrading
abrasion

So now I’m wondering, what makes a word a crutch word and what makes it careful wordplay with your reader?