Member Spotlights Member Spotlight: James Geary January 12, 2026 Share on Twitter (opens in a new tab) on Facebook (opens in a new tab) on Linkedin (opens in a new tab) via email Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? Since my book, The World in A Phrase, is a history of the aphorism and the impact of aphorisms in daily life, I thought I would respond to these questions by citing relevant aphorisms… Writing is thinking. — Ralph Waldo Emerson What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? There is only one proof of ability: doing it. —Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach What is your favorite time to write? Morning is when I am awake and the dawn is within me. —Henry David Thoreau What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? For a poet, it is never a matter of saying it is raining. It’s a matter of . . . making rain. —Paul Valery What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? It’s difficult to say what the wind is, but we can show it. Details are like that. Details are the best instruments to convey feelings. A detail can take the place of so many words. For example, what would you call a five-year-old boy on the day of his father’s funeral as he plays by the funeral feast, blowing out candles? —Lee Seong-bok James Geary’s The World in a Phrase: A Brief History of the Aphorism (Second Edition) is out now with University of Chicago Press.
