Yashvardhan Jain

The longer you live abroad, the more you realize you’ll always be a bit of an outsider, no matter where you are.

Françoise Sagan’s Paris Review interview is worth reading in its entirety. I especially enjoyed this exchange:

Is it possible that novels get written because the novelist imagines himself in the role of a novelist writing a novel?

No, one assumes the role of hero and then seeks out “the novelist” who can write his story.

And one always finds the sam

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When you have something to say, to express, any submission becomes unbearable in the long run. One must have the courage of one’s vocation and the courage to make a living from one’s vocation. The “second career” is an illusion! I was often broke too, and I always resisted any temptation to live any other way than from my painting... In the beginni... See more

No one can build you the bridge on which you, and only you, must cross the river of life. There may be countless trails and bridges and demigods who would gladly carry you across; but only at the price of pawning and forgoing yourself. There is one path in the world that none can walk but you. Where does it lead? Don’t ask, walk!

Said this to a friend but it applies to many:

I think you have a good guess what you should be doing, and there is no need to overthink it. Just decided that for the next 3 months you will execute on your inkling. After that, you can evaluate if you want to try something different. Course correcting too often than eats your bandwidth.

Exa bite quoted... See more

The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature.1

Life has no meaning. Each of us has meaning and we bring it to life. It is a waste to be asking the question when you are the answer.2

People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seekin... See more

Your ambition is not to write the Great American Novel. Your ambition is to finish the damn book. This is a lesson I’ve had to learn over and over again. It’s true of so many things in our lives. Because we’re afraid of failing, sometimes we turn away from it and don’t do it at all. As much as it would have hurt to write a book that everyone hated,... See more

Lamott writes, “The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.”