The Muses Companion – February 3, 2024

Good day, readers. Today is February 3rd, the 34th day of the year 2024, with 332 days remaining.

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.

Helen Keller

Today in Literary History:

On this day in 1874, Gertrude Stein, an American novelist, poet, playwright, and art collector, was born. Known for her avant-garde writing style and influential role in the Parisian art scene, Stein’s work, including books like The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, challenges conventional narrative forms and explores the possibilities of language and expression.

Notable Birthdays:

Norman Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978), the American painter and illustrator famous for his depictions of American culture on the covers of The Saturday Evening Post, was born on this day. His works, while primarily visual, tell profound stories through imagery, capturing the essence of American life with warmth and humor.

Today’s Readings:

From Tender Buttons by Gertrude Stein: “A Carafe, that is a blind glass. A kind in glass and a cousin, a spectacle and nothing strange a single hurt color and an arrangement in a system to pointing.”

Literary Fact of the Day:

On February 3, 1959, known as “The Day the Music Died,” musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson died in a tragic plane crash. This event has been immortalized in Don McLean’s song “American Pie” and explored in numerous literary works that reflect on the cultural impact of music and the iconic figures of the 1950s.

Poem of the Day:

“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Advice for Writers:

Inspired by Gertrude Stein’s experimental style, consider pushing the boundaries of conventional storytelling in your own writing. Play with structure, syntax, and word choice to explore new ways of expressing ideas and emotions, challenging your readers to think differently about the world around them.

Have a thoughtful and adventurous day, dear readers. Until tomorrow, may your creative endeavors lead you down roads less traveled.