Every time I read any type of literature I am in some way affected by it.  Therefore I cannot list all of the literature that has affected me, but I have listed a few books that have had a major affect on my life.

I cannot begin to describe how largely the Holy Bible has affected my life.  And not just the Bible, but also many stories of the lives of the saints.  They have greatly inspired me.  I have many great memories as a young child of listening to people read scripture.  When I was around 8 years old I found the Bible quite difficult to understand, but that year my grandmother gave me a children’s bible and I found it much easier to understand.  Ever since then, I read the Bible whenever I can.  When I am stressed, angry, or confused I can take it all away simply by reading the Bible.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, is a book I will never forget. This book is a reminder that good always overpowers evil.  I could read it a thousand times and still find something new each time.

Dracula by Bram Stoker is another book that has had an affect on me.  When reading this classic novel I really discovered how powerful words can be.  During several parts of the book I felt as though I could picture everything.  I occasionally would read it just before I went to sleep, one time I woke up with fear in the middle of the night feeling my throat.  I could read this book for many consecutive hours and still be paying full attention.

Have you ever just closed your eyes and covered your ears for a while?  It is dark and empty.  I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to be both blind and deaf for nearly my entire life.  Helen Keller was truly an extraordinary person.  With help, she was freed from a prison of frustration and darkness.  She learned to communicate, read, and later on she even learned to speak.  Not to mention she became a very talented writer.

Helen Keller was born in 1880, in northern Alabama.  When she was only 19 months old, she was struck by disease which left her both blind and deaf.  She lived the first six years of her life in a lonely dark, and frustrating world.  The frustration was due to the fact that she could not communicate.  Her only way of communication was a few nods of the head, and pushes and pulls used to tell others what she needed.  Because of her great frustration she was very ill behaved.  Until the spring of 1887 when her teacher Anne Sullivan arrived.

Anne Sullivan was sent from Boston to teach Helen to communicate.  At first, Helen was confused about the different finger-made letters.  She found it difficult to make the connection between objects and the words formed by the finger-made letters.  One day Helen and Ms. Sullivan went for a walk, they stopped by a water fountain.  Ms. Sullivan spelled the word water into Helen’s hand, while at the same time Helen’s other hand was feeling the flowing water.  This time Helen made the connection.  This opened so many new doors, and that was only the beginning of her new life.

Helen learned to communicate, to behave properly, and also to read.  She had nearly freed herself from her prison of darkness.  But she still wanted the ability to speak, not just through her hands, she wanted to speak words from her mouth.  In 1890 Ms. Fuller taught her to speak.  Helen would hold her hand on Ms. Fuller’s mouth, Helen would feel the movements of the mouth and tongue.  After much learning Helen spoke her first sentence, “It is warm.”

Those were not the only key incidents that led to her freedom, but I believe they were the most important.

When writing dialogue from memory it should be accurate, succinct, and also lively, but which of these three is really the most important.  Although all three are incredibly powerful, I think that accuracy and liveliness together are the most powerful.  This is not to say that succinctness isn’t important, I just believe that accuracy and liveliness are much more important.

Everybody likes to get things done fast and effectively with minimal effort.  it is slightly annoying to read paragraph after paragraph of irrelevant bulk.  I personally enjoy reading, but there are many of people that really don’t like to read.  People like this especially prefer short, sweet, and right to the point material.  Succinctness is great but this is my conclusion, if you spend effort making it succinct, you may end up having to leave out specific/important details.

A young man walked into a bookstore, this man was in search of a book on financial advice. He browses each isle in search for books that would be helpful to him, he found a section of books that fit his needs.  He grabbed a book and began to read the first page, he soon lost interest.  He selected the next book and began to read, but again he was quickly lost.  A third time he picked up a book, but unlike the previous books this book excited him, and caught his attention.  That of course was the book he chose.  Just think, what if the other books contained better advice?  Livliness is very powerful.

Accuracy is important, especially when writing about significant occasions, or historical events.  Whenever I read autobiographies, biographies, or even published journals, I prefer to read accuracy.  Although accuracy is important sometimes the accurate truth can be very dull, and difficult to read.  If the writer chooses to write accurately, he should also try to be lively and exciting.

The dialogue should be written in such a way that, the reader can feel what the author feels.  The reader should be able to picture what the author sees.  In order to create this affect I believe accuracy and liveliness should be combined. There is a valid argument as to why each of these prospects are important.  When I Write an autobiography I want it to be succinct, but more importantly accurate, and lively.