Author Charles Wiegand
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand
@charleswiegand.bsky.social
1K followers 380 following 970 posts
Charles wrote "Heartbeats Across Borders" and many short stories, some have been published in many different journals/anthologies as well has his own two collections - "Daydreaming" and "Uncharted Realities". All three of his books are available on Amazon
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · Oct 22
My novel - "Heartbeats Across Borders" www.amazon.com/dp/B0D76PKHTG
My collection of short stories -"Daydreaming" www.amazon.com/dp/B0CNG22W76
My second collection of short stories - Uncharted Realities www.amazon.com/dp/B0D9ZSHXDR
For more info visit: author.wiegand.org
#writerslift #books #reading
My novel - "Heartbeats Across Borders" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D76PKHTG My collection of short stories -"Daydreaming" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CNG22W76 My second collection of short stories - Uncharted Realities https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D9ZSHXDR For more info visit: https://author.wiegand.org #writerslift #books #reading #publishedauthor #author #coffee #art #love #life
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
declaration suggests that maintaining grace under pressure is not passive; it’s active authorship of the self. Just as a writer chooses voice over reaction, Washington chooses dignity over degradation.
charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
For writers (and anyone living with intention), the quote offers a craft lesson, too: our responses matter. What you allow others to do to your soul, your anger, your bitterness, shapes your narrative. Washington’s
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
need not become your response. His statement emerges from his own journey as a formerly enslaved man, educator, and public figure navigating a racially hostile society, and it resonates as a refusal to let hatred define his identity.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
freedom: no one has the right to compel you to hate, and by refusing that compulsion, you preserve your soul’s dignity. In the face of oppression and prejudice, Washington stakes a claim not only for survival but for moral agency; hate may be a tool of the oppressor, but it
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
The actual quote from Booker T. Washington is this: "I would permit no man, no matter what his colour might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him." That quote and the above paraphrased version common on the internet assert a powerful principle of personal
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 9h
"I shall allow no man to belittle my soul by making me hate him." (Paraphrased)
--Booker T. Washington (1856-1915)
From “Up from Slavery” (1901) in chapter 11

#writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #BookerTWashington
"I shall allow no man to belittle my soul by making me hate him." (Paraphrased) --Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) From “Up from Slavery” (1901) in chapter 11 #writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #BookerTWashington The actual quote from Booker T. Washington is this: "I would permit no man, no matter what his colour might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him." That quote and the above paraphrased version common on the internet assert a powerful principle of personal freedom: no one has the right to compel you to hate, and by refusing that compulsion, you preserve your soul’s dignity. In the face of oppression and prejudice, Washington stakes a claim not only for survival but for moral agency; hate may be a tool of the oppressor, but it need not become your response. His statement emerges from his own journey as a formerly enslaved man, educator, and public figure navigating a racially hostile society, and it resonates as a refusal to let hatred define his identity. For writers (and anyone living with intention), the quote offers a craft lesson, too: our responses matter. What you allow others to do to your soul, your anger, your bitterness, shapes your narrative. Washington’s declaration suggests that maintaining grace under pressure is not passive; it’s active authorship of the self. Just as a writer chooses voice over reaction, Washington chooses dignity over degradation.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 1d
words when a short one will do, adverbs mirroring verbs, passive voice obscuring the actor, these are “weeds” to be removed. The goal is writing that is simple, direct, and human. The writer’s voice, not stylistic ornament, should carry the piece. In sum: clutter out, clarity in.
charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 1d
true. Clear thinking begets clear writing, and if your sentences are heavy with filler words, then you haven’t fully understood what you’re trying to say.

He follows this diagnosis with a prescription: ruthlessly prune your prose. Every word must pull its weight; long
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 1d
suffers from what he calls “clutter”: needless words, inflated constructions, jargon, and complicated phrasing that don’t add meaning but distract or confuse the reader. He contends that writers too often think complexity and big words make them sound important, yet the opposite is
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 1d
#writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #williamzinsser

In this part (in most editions - chapter 2) of "On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction," Zinsser argues that much of contemporary American prose
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 1d
“Clutter is the disease of American writing. We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills, and meaningless jargon.”
― William Zinsser (1922-2015 )
From “On Writing Well” 1976, Chapter 2
“Clutter is the disease of American writing. We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills, and meaningless jargon.” ― William Zinsser (1922-2015 ) From “On Writing Well” 1976, Chapter 2 #writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #williamzinsser In this part (in most editions - chapter 2) of "On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction," Zinsser argues that much of contemporary American prose suffers from what he calls “clutter”: needless words, inflated constructions, jargon, and complicated phrasing that don’t add meaning but distract or confuse the reader. He contends that writers too often think complexity and big words make them sound important, yet the opposite is true. Clear thinking begets clear writing, and if your sentences are heavy with filler words, then you haven’t fully understood what you’re trying to say. He follows this diagnosis with a prescription: ruthlessly prune your prose. Every word must pull its weight; long words when a short one will do, adverbs mirroring verbs, passive voice obscuring the actor, these are “weeds” to be removed. The goal is writing that is simple, direct, and human. The writer’s voice, not stylistic ornament, should carry the piece. In sum: clutter out, clarity in.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 2d
it was a crucial step toward maintaining political integrity and intellectual freedom.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 2d
By following rules of simplicity and conciseness, like cutting out extra words, a writer could resist the "contagion" of poor communication that he felt was spreading through public discourse. For Orwell, the fight for clear and honest prose wasn't just about style;
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 2d
He argued that this bad writing wasn't just lazy; it was a serious political problem, as convoluted language was often used by politicians to hide the truth and make dishonest acts sound respectable.

The greater context is that Orwell saw a direct link between clear language and clear thinking.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 2d
George Orwell's famous advice, “If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out,” is the third of his six rules for good writing. The essay itself is a sharp critique of the decline of the English language, which Orwell believed was being polluted by vagueness, clichés, and pretension.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 2d
“If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.”
— George Orwell (1903-1950)
From "Politics and the English Language” 1946

#writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #georgeorwell
“If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.” — George Orwell (1903-1950) From "Politics and the English Language” 1946 #writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #georgeorwell George Orwell's famous advice, “If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out,” is the third of his six rules for good writing. The essay itself is a sharp critique of the decline of the English language, which Orwell believed was being polluted by vagueness, clichés, and pretension. He argued that this bad writing wasn't just lazy; it was a serious political problem, as convoluted language was often used by politicians to hide the truth and make dishonest acts sound respectable. The greater context is that Orwell saw a direct link between clear language and clear thinking. By following rules of simplicity and conciseness, like cutting out extra words, a writer could resist the "contagion" of poor communication that he felt was spreading through public discourse. For Orwell, the fight for clear and honest prose wasn't just about style; it was a crucial step toward maintaining political integrity and intellectual freedom.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 3d
“stupid” people than about celebrating the value of reading for pleasure and the depth that novels bring. In doing so, the quote becomes a rallying cry for readers and writers alike: join the conversation of the novel, and you’re in the company of the thoughtful.
charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 3d
But the quote also signals Austen’s broader view of reading and culture: if you can’t find pleasure in a “good novel,” Austen implies, you’re missing a key human experience, the imaginative, emotional, empathic engagement that fiction delivers. It’s less about insulting
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 3d
intellectual worth is only found in history, poetry, or theology. Austen places these words in the mouth of a witty male character to show, ironically, that truly perceptive people, whether male or female, appreciate novels just as much as more “serious” literature.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 3d
This sharp line offers more than simple humor; it’s Austen’s pointed defense of novels at a time when they were mocked as frivolous. In the book, the character Henry Tilney uses it to challenge the idea that serious people should disdain novels, exposing a prejudice that
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 3d
“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.”
― Jane Austen (1775-1817)
From “Northanger Abbey” (1817)

#writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #janeausten
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 4d
the writer’s voice isn’t built from a checklist of “good writing” rules; it comes from the writer’s unconscious habits, obsessions, and choices they keep returning to. If Gaiman’s point is true, the trick isn’t finding your style so much as recognizing what you already do, and embracing that.
charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 4d
The quirks: repeated turns of phrase, favorite words, particular rhythms, narrative choices, they’re like fingerprints. When you stop trying to be “correct” and let the natural way you think and tell a story shine, your style reveals itself. That means
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 4d
#writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #NeilGaiman

The idea behind the quote is spot-on: a writer's style isn’t just deliberate ornament or following rules; it often emerges from what the writer cannot avoid doing.
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charleswiegand.bsky.social
Author Charles Wiegand @charleswiegand.bsky.social · 4d
"Style is the stuff you can’t help doing because perfect technique would be completely without style. Stuff that lets everybody know that it’s you playing is the falling away from perfect technique.”
--Neil Gaiman (1960- )
From a 2002 interview at the Boskone convention
"Style is the stuff you can’t help doing because perfect technique would be completely without style. Stuff that lets everybody know that it’s you playing is the falling away from perfect technique.” --Neil Gaiman (1960- ) From a 2002 interview at the Boskone convention #writerslift #life #authors #love #art #coffee #diary #write #books #amwriting #quotes #NeilGaiman The idea behind the quote is spot-on: a writer's style isn’t just deliberate ornament or following rules; it often emerges from what the writer cannot avoid doing. The quirks: repeated turns of phrase, favorite words, particular rhythms, narrative choices, they’re like fingerprints. When you stop trying to be “correct” and let the natural way you think and tell a story shine, your style reveals itself. That means the writer’s voice isn’t built from a checklist of “good writing” rules; it comes from the writer’s unconscious habits, obsessions, and choices they keep returning to. If Gaiman’s point is true, the trick isn’t finding your style so much as recognizing what you already do, and embracing that.
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