Quotes to Munch On

From JP, words of wisdom on the difference between dreams and ambitions:

Letting go of my aspirations and ambitions is a freeing experience. It is not the same as letting go of my dreams.

The things I write are expressions, or perhaps distorted reflections, of my dreams. They are my dreams made word. Wanting to write recognisable, marketable, publishable short stories or books is not my dream - it is, or was, an ambition. To be a published writer was an aspiration, not a dream.

Truer words have never been spoken. Ironically, for me, it would seem the reverse: I would want to be published commercially as a writer but writing has always been a side-effect of my reading.

But that doesn't mean that I don't dream of becoming a writer. More like some dreams come late in life-- in my case, by the time I hit my late 20s. *gulp*

From Dean, responding to a query on why the local literary outlet, Free Press magazine, takes so blasted long to publish submissions to them (if they ever do):

Normally, publications issue a rejection letter or an acceptance letter. But it is highly possible that your story is in limbo, i.e. not decided upon/unread, or in the "slush pile" (they've read it but are still undecided). Some of these publications take months to respond because of various factors, which may include a staggering number of submissions. Or not.

Ah I knew it. Those lazy bastids.

Seriously, what's so bad about replying to people who have made the time and effort to write to you? Even at my job, I get guilty if I'm not able to reply to queries about the archives or requests for contact with our paper's columnists. As it is, I'm amazed at Joey's ability to respond to the mass of people who comment on his blog.

Maybe it's because I have a traditional letter-writer's ethos. And even in the era of emails, comment functions and message boards, it takes so little to express gratitude and/ or a response to the person talking to you.

(And yes, that includes responding to wackos and nut-jobs. Hey, if you can find the time and effort to mark spam mail as junk in your email, why not reply to those aren't spamming you, right?)