22 Comments
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Pahaldeep's avatar

Finally, read it. This is so beautiful. You motivated me to keep a commonplace notebook❤️

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

YAY! Thank you so much! And that’s so exciting — I really think you will see the benefits in your own writing. It also makes me a more careful reader!

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Sophia's avatar

Some quotes that I like from books I’ve read in the past few months.

“Because that's the thing about the future. You can't get there by imagining. You can only get there one step at a time, and the hardest part is taking that first step.” -The Ride of her Life

“Sometimes life is just like that, Annie thought. You can be so worried about the challenge in front of you that you fail to realize that you've been chipping away at it all along.” -The Ride of her Life

“It's clear to me now why God answered me with silence that night. Silence is the hallmark of the vulnerable. They are vulnerable for many reasons, but this may be the main one: When they call, no one answers. And it's not because they can't talk, not because they don't have something important to say.” -The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

Why are each of these SO inspiring?! I love the idea that we’ve been chipping away at the challenge all along. Thank you so much for reading and sharing Sophia!

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Ellie's avatar

I read Cheryl Strayed’s book Tiny Beautiful Things a while ago but there is a quote that still resonates with me especially recently. She says “This is not how your story ends. It’s simply where it takes a turn you didn’t expect.” I try to think about that perspective when something happens that feels too big or hard to move past. It is not what I expected to happen but it could put me on a path to something new.

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

I LOVE Tiny Beautiful Things, and I love this quote! I just finished reading an essay she wrote for The Sun about losing her mom, and there will definitely be a Cheryl Strayed quote in the next installment of this series!

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Michela's avatar

that’s so inspiring ✨

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

I'm so glad you think so Michela! I totally agree :)

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Sakina Bano's avatar

i LOVE this, recently I read some chapters of 'Silencing the past' by Michel-Rolph Trouillot and he wrote 'When reality does not coincide with deeply held beliefs, human beings tend to phrase interpretations that force reality within the scope of these beliefs. They devise formulas to repress the unthinkable and to bring it back within the realm of accepted discourse'. Its such a universal truth in my opinion and applies to humanity throughout history especially considering roles of power and who holds said power in society.

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

oh my gosh Sakina. I love this! It’s so true wow. Thank you for sharing!

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Martina's avatar

oh i love this!

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

Thanks Martina!! It’s been so inspiring for my own writing to focus in on great lines others have written!

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Mackenzie Grubbs's avatar

Oh, I love your take on the commonplace book practice! I have such an aversion to actually marking up the books I buy and very rarely look back through at quotes -- though, as I study fiction, I find myself returning to entire passages or chapters of books to help me with my own craft. I think a commonplace quote book is a great idea!

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

Thank you so much Mackenzie! I really think it would be great for your craft—I think of it as like a commonplace book lite haha!

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chamidae ford's avatar

I love that line from Goobye to All That! Such a great essay.

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

Probably my favorite essay I’ve read all year (or ever) SO good! Thanks for commenting chamidae - means so much!

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Ancheeta's avatar

I’ve been trying to do this for so long. My sign to finally start my own commonplace notebook!!!!

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

Yes! Do it! It’s been such a fun, inspiring practice!

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Mark's avatar

I like that Moshfegh line, and it reminded me of some other sound-related lines from her other books, like these two:

From Homesick for Another World:

“If he could have it his way, nobody would ever say anything again. The entire world would go silent. Even the clocks wouldn’t tick. All that mattered would be the beating of hearts, the widening and narrowing of pupils, the whirling of ties and loose strands of hair in the wind—nothing voluntary, nothing false.”

From Death in Her Hands:

“There was great satisfaction in shoving a bad book through the return slot and hearing it splat against the other books in the bin on the other side of the librarian’s desk.”

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

These are so beautiful!! Thank you so much for commenting and sharing. I particularly love the image of the bad book splatting into the return pile!

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Moves to Master's avatar

I really liked quote #17 about the father drinking - The back to back metaphors really make you feel the desperation of the drinking. Powerful.

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Caroline Beuley's avatar

That’s one of my favorites too! Can’t believe Alan Newman the famous refrigerator poet commented on my essay! Wow!

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