Every Author's Aid

Here are today’s Wonderful Words:

These were not nice even rows of books in similar bindings but often were battered old veterans moving from the hands of one lover to another, valued for their contents and nothing else.

Education of a Wandering Man, Louis L’Amour, page 199

Background

This line came from Louis L’Amour’s memoir. L’Amour is known as one of the best western writers of all time, and we learn in his memoir that his stories came from two places: his vast experiences and his vast reading. This line described the shelves of his personal library.

What makes it wonderful?

There’s a theory called the Lindy Effect that says the older something is, the longer it is likely to be around in the future.

Take the Bible, for instance. It’s been around for thousands of years, and it’ll likely be around for thousands more.

Then take Wonderful Words. It’s only been around for six months, so the likelihood it’ll be around in six years is small—in sixty years, infinitesimal.

The Lindy Effect is a good rule of thumb to use when deciding what to read. It helps us find the timeless ideas, the ideas that will serve us well now and in decades to come.

If a particular book has been around for decades—or better yet, centuries—it must be pretty darn valuable. And we can bet that reading it will be worth our time.

That’s what I love about these lines from L’Amour. The books in his library were battered old veterans. And books only grow to look grizzled and worn after years and years of use. If they’ve been around for many years, it’s because they have ideas worth reading, and they’ll probably be around for many more.

And how does an author grow to L’Amour levels of fame and success? He has to write timeless stories.

One of the best ways to write timeless stories is to draw inspiration from the timeless wisdom of the books that have endured.

Let's get technical

L’Amour uses a metaphor in these lines to tell us about the appearance of the books on his shelves.

Battered old veterans moving from one lover to another, valued for their contents and nothing else.

Books and battered old veterans—two unrelated things sharing similar qualities. It was a creative and interesting way to explain the appearance of the books lining his shelves. And that’s what a metaphor is—a comparison of unrelated things where the reader understands the qualities of one by way of the other.

The metaphor here is important, but the real value comes from the message behind the words. If you want to write evergreen content—books, articles, songs, whatever—you should consume evergreen content for inspiration. L’Amour was one of the most successful authors of his time, and he built his success on top of the thousands of timeless books he read throughout his life.

You can do the same. Pick up an old book.

Happy writing,

Joe