Fiction shows the external effects of internal conditions. Be aware of the tension between internal and external movement.
Interpretation
Fiction reflects how our inner thoughts and feelings influence our external reality.
This quote by Raymond Carver emphasizes the profound relationship between our internal state—our thoughts, emotions, and perceptions—and the external world we experience. Fiction serves as a lens through which we can understand this dynamic, revealing how our internal conditions manifest in our actions and interactions, highlighting the importance of self-awareness in navigating life.
In practice
In a discussion about the impact of literature on personal growth.
Woke up this morning with a terrific urge to lie in bed all day and read. Fought against it for a minute. Then looked out the window at the rain. And gave over. Put myself entirely in the keep of this rainy morning. Would I live my life over again? Make the same unforgivable mistakes? Yes, given half a chance. Yes.
I loved you so much once. I did. More than anything in the whole wide world. Imagine that. What a laugh that is now. Can you believe it? We were so intimate once upon a time I can't believe it now. The memory of being that intimate with somebody. We were so intimate I could puke. I can't imagine ever being that intimate with somebody else. I haven't been.
Every great or even every very good writer makes the world over according to his own specifications.
When I'm writing, I write every day. It's lovely when that's happening. One day dovetailing into the next. Sometimes I don't even know what day of the week it is.
It's strange. You never start out life with the intention of becoming a bankrupt or an alcoholic or a cheat and a thief. Or a liar.
When you're writing fiction or poetry... it really comes down to this: indifference to everything except what you're doing... A young writer could do worse than follow the advice given in those lines.
I would sooner be holy than happy if the two things could be divorced. Were it possible for a man always to sorrow and yet to be pure, I would choose the sorrow if I might win the purity, for to be free from the power of sin, to be made to love holiness, is true happiness.
The poor is the center of the Gospel. If we take out the poor, we cannot understand the message of Christ
Opinions about obviousness are to a certain extent a function of time.
Being solo really lends itself to different interpretations - and everything is in the moment and on a whim. I never realised how far out you can go when you are by yourself.
We are kept from the experience of Spirit because our inner world is cluttered with past traumas . . . As we begin to clear away this clutter, the energy of divine light and love begins to flow through our being.
My effort should never be to undermine another's faith but to make him a better follower of his own faith.
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