This morning, NPR’s Morning Edition did a piece on the 50th anniversary of the publication of The Elements of Style, by William Strunk and E.B. White. The piece ended with this quote from Dorothy Parker: “If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they’re happy.”
Moments after the piece aired, my brother texted me to say: “I heard this and thought of you.”
But of course.
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I love Dorothy Parker.
By Alison on 04.16.09 6:19 pm | Permalink
The greatest compliment I have ever received was from a twitter friend who told me I am “pithy like Dorothy Parker.”
By Annika on 04.16.09 6:39 pm | Permalink
Did you hear Wait,Wait Don’t Tell Me last weekend? They did twitters of Pride and Prejudice and some other bits of fine lit. It was great.
By blackbird on 04.16.09 8:17 pm | Permalink
Awesome.
By misfithausfrau on 04.16.09 8:27 pm | Permalink
Dorothy Parker is my hair idol, among other things. You are so right, she would have loved Twitter.
By Nadine AKA Scarbiedoll on 04.16.09 9:42 pm | Permalink
Brothers always know best!!!
By farmerswife on 04.16.09 10:19 pm | Permalink
Opps not sure what happened there, but THIS is my website not the above!!
By farmerswife on 04.16.09 10:22 pm | Permalink
My daughter so wants to be a writer- she has changed her major from Speech Path, to English, and now is thinking Mass Communications…
I keep wondering- does this mean she will be moving back in w/ me after graduation???
By Shara on 04.17.09 12:54 am | Permalink
So when does your book come out?
By daysgoby on 04.17.09 7:01 am | Permalink
I love that quote.
But you don’t aspire to be a writer, you already are one! So I’m not going to shoot you. Sorry.
By Karen on 04.17.09 12:30 pm | Permalink
Awesome quote. It really made me laugh!
By Sarah @ BecomingSarah.com on 04.17.09 1:10 pm | Permalink
[…] to Chris at Friday Playdate for the quote. (Random trivia - Chris, who I stumbled upon in the blogosphere and love, lives next […]
By Shoot Me Now « InsideOutHappy on 04.21.09 5:40 pm | Permalink
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