Most Influential Writers

I don't often respond to getting tagged (umm... well, actually, I don't often get tagged) but this particular game was too tempting to ignore. Here are the rules, as they were presented to me, complete with dodgy wording:

1.List 15 writers that have been the most influential in your life, including poets and playwrights
2.Compose this list in under 15 minutes
3.Tag at least 14 friends and me (so that I can see your choices)
4. Have fun

And below is the list I came up with. If you're one of my Facebook friends, watch out: I'm about to start tagging.

1. Kazuo Ishiguro
2. Toni Morrison
3. Michael Ondaatje
4. James Joyce
5. William Shakespeare
6. T S Eliot
7. Roald Dahl
8. Milan Kundera
9. George Orwell
10. Edith Wharton
11. D H Lawrence
12. Pat Barker
13. Brian Keenan
14. Graham Greene
15. Terrance Dicks

A Clearer Focus

A few lines to apologise for my recent silence. This time, it hasn't been caused by the usual culprit - the day job - although that has been inordinately hectic for the last few weeks. The real reason is that I've been thinking long and hard about the direction in which this blog should go. I've probably (?) decided that I won't shut it down entirely, but I do need to find a clearer focus for it.

Whilst I'm considering what this might be, I'll just mention a three-part documentary called The Big Silence which UK readers can find on the BBC iPlayer. It followed five people trying to use an 8-day silent retreat to connect with their souls and, perhaps, confront questions about personal spirituality. All of them were affected in deep ways, but the real test came when they tried to apply the insights they'd gained into their daily lives... which brings us back to inordinately hectic day jobs. It was well-worth watching, if only for its depiction of current British attitudes to religion which, more often than not, appear to be ignorant and bigoted.

Have a good weekend,

D.