The Striking Truth of Life in Leo Tolstoy’s “Tweets”

The greatest Russian thinker has been known for writing mindblowingly long sentences. To break this myth, I continue to publish short lists of Tolstoy’s quotes, which are only as long as ordinary tweets, yet are really massive in meaning.

Everyone dreams to change the world, but no one sets the goal to change themselves. (Каждый мечтает изменить мир, но никто не ставит целью изменить самого себя.

The least simple are the ones who prefer to look simple. (Менее всего просты люди, желающие казаться простыми.)

Real knowledge comes to us through our hearts. We know only the things which we love. (Настоящее познание дается сердцем. Мы знаем только то, что любим.)

Ambiguity of words is an invariable sign of obscurity of thought. (Неясность слова есть неизменный признак неясности мысли.)

Speak only about the things that are clear to you; otherwise, keep silent. (Говори о том только, что тебе ясно, иначе молчи.

People look silly to each other mainly due to the fact that they want to look smarter. (Люди кажутся друг другу глупы преимущественно от того, что хотят казаться умнее.)

Fiction Readers’ Preferences in 2017: What Are They Like?

I just ran across a short article by Mia Botha on WritersWrite*, and while I was studying a table illustrating it (below), a thought flashed through my mind that lately, witout realizing this, I have been in the mood of writing short fiction. It was an intuitive, subconscious intention, very similar to the feeling which I generally have when I experience a disturbing urge to write (every author knows the feeling), but in this season – surprisingly – I have been more apt to writing in short, completed, self-sufficient fictional pieces, which could be valuable in meaning, like parables, but emotionally challenging, like poetry.

shortstoryscheme

(* The above scheme taken from http://writerswrite.co.za/what-exactly-is-a-short-story-and-how-do-i-know-if-i-am-writing-one)

A short story is an etude in creative writing, writing one is similar to rehearsing before a big concert. However, it never occured to me before that short stories and flash fiction as independent genres of creative writing are inevitably going to attract more and more of readers’ attention in the nearest time. Why? Because the world’s pace is accelerating and the readers’ traditional patterns about what, when, and how to read have been changing.

In 2017, an average book lover may only have a few short intervals of time for reading during the day (while having a meal break, while waiting to pick up a kid from school, or simply to break concentration between two working meetings). During each of such intervals, the reader would love to acquire a high-quality, finished, practically useful, yet sensible and emotionally satisfying piece of knowledge. Readers are no longer satisfied with reading for the beauty of the style, they need a lot more. In fact, what they crave for today is an informative, action-packed, imaginative, emotionally captivating, and smartly composed how-to (or how-not-to) presentation of a topic of their particular interest, be it a romance story, a detective plot, a fantasy, or a sci-fi piece. This is why I believe that the readers’ preferences will continue to shift toward reading short stories and flash fiction rather than the longer works of fiction.

I would love to hear your opinion on this. You are very welcome to leave your comments below.

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A Few More “Twitts” by Leo Tolstoy

Life without love is easier. But without love it makes no sense. (Без любви жить легче. Но без неё нет смысла.)

I don’t have everything that I love. But I love everything that I have. (У меня нет всего, что я люблю. Но я люблю всё, что у меня есть.)

The world moves forward thanks to those who suffer. (Мир движется вперёд благодаря тем, кто страдает.)

To start believing in good deeds, one needs to start doing them. (Чтобы поверить в добро, надо начать делать его.)

The most hurtful form of selfishness is self-sacrifice. (Самая обидная форма эгоизма — это самопожертвование.)

The real power of man is not in the movements of soul, but in unbreakable calmness. (Истинная сила человека не в порывах, а в нерушимом спокойствии.)

Learning Two Languages at a Time

Learning two languages at a time can be really overwhelming. The fact is, when you learn a new language, your brain is doing a continuous job of putting the new knowledge in harmony with the existing knowledge and so-called mind patterns, which are “adapted” to your native language and ways of thinking. As a result, if you “stuff” your memory with too many language structures and quite new patterns, you may feel overtired, emotionally worn out, and even depressed.

At the same time, every one of us has his or her individual limits, and I have met people who used to study two or more foreign languages at a time quite successfully. Still, the knowledge of every language is determined by the ability  to communicate in it, which is impossible to do without continuous practice of speaking. If you have lots of language speakers around you all the time in a bilingual country (like the French provinces of Canada, for example), then your chances to successfully master two languages at a time, will be much higher.

Still, I would not advise a native English-speaker, for example, to try and learn Russian and Ukrainian at a time. Slavic languages have many similarities between them, but they are quite different from the languages of Germanic group; this kind of study may become quite tiresome and such learners may end up losing motivation for study at all.

learning-too-much
“This is the first time I’ve done this kind of blog, in that it’s an open question to all of you who read. I’m not sure I’ve mentioned it in a previous post, but I’m learning Spanish. I’m about level B1 and go to a weekly two-hour course. I started properly learning in September 2013. […]

via Have you ever learnt two languages at once? — Dan in Deutschland

What Distinguishes a Successful Blogger in 2017?

learning-distance-1

As I have been learning how to blog, I never miss publications on the newest tendencies in the world of blogging. It goes without saying that every beginner must find a niche and identify a group of ideal readers for their blog, but then… what else? According to my research of publications authored by well-recognized bloggers, the following features will become a must for every successful blogger in 2017:

  • compelling content that adds value to readers;
  • preferably short articles and posts;
  • attractive illustrations, at least one for each post (I have no doubt that in 2017, visualization will become No1 factor of success for bloggers);
  • simplicity and preciseness of all information;
  • an easily identified, unique feel (or a unique author’s voice) of the blog to attract repeated visitors;
  • clearly displayed personality of the blogger;
  • positive general mood of the posts;
  • rational use of social media, (the bloggers should not focus too much on them, they should rather focus on writing);
  • ongoing research related to the main blog topics;
  • regularly appearing video and audio content.

Please, add your ideas in the comments below if you can think of more items. Thank you! Wishing you all the best with your blog!

A Parable: When a Man Lies…

A man was cutting a tree right over the river once, and his axe fell into the water. The man started crying in desperation, when suddenly, the voice of the Lord sounded from above:

Why are you crying, Son?”

How can I not cry?” The man sobbed. “My axe was my only tool which helped me earn my living and feed my family.”

The Lord took out a golden axe from the river and asked: “Is this your axe?”

No,” answered the man.

Then, the Lord produced a silver axe from the river.

“Is this one yours?” He asked.

No, this one is not mine, either,” answered the man.

Finally, the Lord took out an iron axe from the river and asked, “Is this the one?”

The man smiled happily, “Yes, this one is mine!”

You are an honest man,” said the God, “you follow my commandments. So, you may take all three axes as an award for your honesty.”

Since then, the man’s life improved very much. But one day, a terrible thing happened: his wife fell into the river. The man started crying in grief again.

And again, the Lord’s voice sounded from above:

Why are you crying, Son?”

How can I not cry?” The man sobbed. “My wife fell into the river!”

The Lord took out Claudia Shiffer from the river and asked, “Is this your wife?”

Yes! This is my wife!” the man exclaimed happily.

001-claudia-fisher

On hearing this, the Lord grew angry.

You just lied to me! How could you?”

You see,” the man replied, “there is a bit of misapprehension here… If I said this was not my wife, you would take out Cindy Crawford from the water, and again, I would honestly say she was not my wife. Then, you would finally show me my wife and of course, I would say, “yes, this woman is my wife”. But then, you would let me have all three of them, right?”

Sure,” said the God, “so what?”

What do you think I would do with the three of them? How would I be able to support them? I guess, all four of us would become very unhappy.”

THE MORAL OF THE STORY: IF A MAN LIES, HE DOES THIS WITH DIGNITY AND FOR THE COMMON BENEFIT.

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Leo Tolstoy and His Twitts – 2

A few more phrases by the great thinker Leo Tolstoy: short, and smart, and thought-provoking:

  • I am sure that the sense of life for everyone of us is simply to grow (mature) in love. (Я уверен, что смысл жизни для каждого из нас — просто расти в любви.)
  • It is not enough to be smart to live wisely. (Недостаточно быть умным, чтобы жить умно.)
  • Thinking is the ability to deviate from instincts and realize these deviations. (Ум — способность отклоняться от инстинкта и соображать эти отклонения.)
  • Always look for the best side in people, not the worst. (Ищи в других людях всегда хорошую сторону, а не дурную.)
  • Come up with as many things to keep yourself busy as you can. (Придумывай себе как можно больше занятий.)

Woman thinks on the background of blackboard

Leo Tolstoy and His Twitts

leo-tolstoy-2

If Leo Tolstoy lived today, he would probably sue Twitter for limiting his ability to express his ideas in their full length and beauty… or maybe he would not because, believe it or not, Tolstoy has written hundreds of short, yet astoundingly wise sayings, for which Twitter gurus must envy him. Here are a few of them:

  • Power of one person over another kills the powerful one first. (Власть одного человека над другим губит прежде всего властвующего.)
  • Patriotism is slavery. (Патриотизм есть рабство.)
  • Live your life so that you don’t have to be afraid of death or desire it. (Надо жить так, чтобы не бояться смерти и не желать её.)
  • I am positive that the world is being ruled by insane people. (Я серьезно убежден, что миром правят совсем сумасшедшие.)
  • Do not be afraid of lack of knowledge; be afraid of false knowledge. In it is the root of the world’s evil. (Не бойся незнания, бойся ложного знания. От него все зло.)

I will gladly share more in my future posts. I would not want to overload every poist with information, and these five short statements by the great thinker can “load” one’s mind for all day! Do you agree with me?

Relationship Tips: How to make your woman think warmly about you all day?

Young Fashion Woman on Autumn Background

Well, the answer to this one seems simple: comfort her, physically and emotionally.

If you want her to remember you again and again during the day, it makes sense to impress her with something in the morning, so she can carry her good memory of the morning with her, wherever she goes during the day. It would be a good idea to let her have something that she can keep with her to remind about you during the day.

Here are a few ideas:

– Set her favorite melody on her phone so she can hear it when she receives calls or messages (I hope it goes without saying that in some cases this would not be a good idea, if, for example, she dislikes speaking on the phone at all).

– if she usually takes lunches to work, make it for her, put in a short note for her, pack it nicely, and let her take it to her office (again, if you have been in a relationship for a while, you know her particular do’s and don’ts, so you won’t make a mistake with that lunch!).

– make her a little gift – a trinket, a small figurine to put on her working table, a pen holder – whatever you can think of, and give it to her at a very nice, tender moment, so she can associate it with your intimate relationship. Then, every time her eye falls on this little gift, she will remember you.

– buy her a pass for a beauty salon (a gym, a master class which she’d mentioned – think of anything that had been discussing or mentioned) or just get her a gift card to her favorite store and put it into her bag in an envelope which would also have a short love note from you). It will be especially pleasant to her if you do this in the morning after a great night together, or simply if you do it without a special reason, when she absolutely does not expect any gifts. She will be thrilled, I promise.

– another good idea of a present is a shawl or a kerchief – some item which she can take to her office and keep it there in case she needs to cover her shoulders.

– You can, of course, make her a bigger present – a good phone, a tablet, a laptop, or any other gadget which she will need to use every day, so it will always be with her. Remember, though, that if you want this item to associate with you in her mind, you need to build that mind connection for her. Think over the moment of giving her this gift and make sure this moment is romantic, tender, and causes her only pleasant emotions.

All these ideas go down to thinking over and preparing a nice surprise for her. If you know your woman well enough, you will come up with the right idea, no doubt. Surprise her with your tenderness, attention, and care, not the money. Women adore this. She will appreciate this, I am sure.

Fun Facts: Men VS Women

In this and a few future articles we’ll try to find out what differs men and women. To be as short and precise as possible, I’ll simply list some facts and statistics, and we can discuss them, if you like, in comments below.

man_vs_woman

1. From the very first days of life, boys continuously move their arms and legs in cradle, while girls prefer to carefully study the world around them just with their eyes.

2. Statistically, girls start speaking at earlier age than boys.

3. Due to the work of hormones in a woman’s body, her sense of smell is about 20% sharper than that of the man. Still, nearly 80% of experts working in the industry of exquisite perfumes are men.

4. Women suffer depressions two times more often than men, and again – hormones are to be blamed for this.

5. Man’s brain is 200-350 grams heavier than the woman’s. This parameter has nothing to do with intellect, though.

Alright, these are a few little facts to think over. We’ll list more in our next posts.

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live mines and duds: the reading life