A Study in Sherlock
Posted February 21st, 2006 at 11:24am
One of the reasons why I decided to keep a blog in the first place was to force my mind into gear and keep learning. After all, nothing obliges you to delve into a topic quite like having to share one’s thoughts and opinions about it. (The old teaching dictum: “The best way to learn is to teach.”) Of course, to stick with something long-term, you actually need to have either a personal stake in it, or a burning interest for it, if not an actual obsession. While I do have a personal stake in this blog and DIYPlanner.com, sometimes the endless marching forwards of productivity methods can get a little wearisome. The subject matter is inherently practical and work-related, never something I’d pursue to unwind or relax. (At least, not any more.)
To that end, I’m thinking of beginning a new multimedia blog. The catch? This one will be about Sherlock Holmes and his creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Since I first learned to read, I’ve always been fascinated by this character. I’ve read the Canon (the 56 short stories and four novels) dozens of times, the rest of Sir ACD’s works at least two or three times, and I have shelves and shelves of scholarly books, pastiches (books in the “original style”), biographies, films, graphics, television programs, radio recordings and more. While I possess nowhere near the knowledge of most Holmes scholars (alas, I have yet to subscribe to the Baker Street Journal), I figure this is a perfect opportunity to immerse myself in a lifelong interest, become more proficient in the subject as I go along, learn to relax a little, and offer some daily illustrations, links, photographs, texts, reviews and old-time radio shows for those who follow the life and times of the Master Detective.
Everyone needs a hobby to unwind. I figure a thirty-year obsession is about as close to a persistent hobby as I get….
8 Comments Add your own
1. Ms Adler | February 22nd, 2006 at 6:16 am
My husband and I (and my daughters too) have been usig your DIY Planner for a year now. We’re looking forward to your new blog, since we are both closet Sherlockians, and can’t wait to see what you come up with.
You’ve saved us lots of money, so we’d like to return the favor. In recognition of your hard work on the DIY Planner we’re sending you a little present we think you’ll enjoy. It’s the very least we can do for someone whose worked so hard and been so generous with so many people. Good luck!
2. Sam Harris | February 22nd, 2006 at 8:54 am
One of our favourite sayings when we make blindingly obvious statements is “No s**t, Sherlock”, example:
“That there DIY Planner is ruddy useful”
“No s**t, Sherlock”
Anyway, if you want to whet your appetite before diving in to a full multimedia blog, why not set up a Squidoo lens? They’re quite fun, as you might have seen on our lil’ site recently. I did one recently about my pet obsession and it was quite a hoot.
3. Richard Carter, FCD | February 22nd, 2006 at 3:58 pm
A Holmes weblog is a great idea. You have one guaranteed RSS subscriber already.
4. Dave | February 24th, 2006 at 8:42 am
“Excellent, Watson!” or should I say “Johnston”.
I too have been a follower of the exploits of the world first (only?) consulting detective since my mother, who I think had a penchant for Basil Rathbone, encouraged me to watch the early films.
For many years I was unaware of the true character of Watson until I began to read Conan Doyle’s stories and since then I’ve been hooked.
I wrote to Sherlock Holmes in the seventies at his address in Baker Street in London and was pleasantly surprised to receive a reply from his secretary saying that the Great Detective was away on an important matter.
I subsequently became a member of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London and have collected a fair number of books, films and other material. I recently treated myself to the complete Jeremy Brett series of Holmes on DVD and my wife added to my collection of books with the third volume of Leslie Klinger’s annotated Sherlock Holmes.
I don’t profess to being a scholar either but it would be interesting to conjecture what he would have thought of the DIY Planner . . .
5. Ted Bongiovanni | February 24th, 2006 at 9:18 am
I’m newly interested in Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle just having finished reading Arthur and George by Julian Barnes. Doyle seems like quite a character himself. Also great that so many of his works are in the public domain.
6. Robert Hyde | March 5th, 2006 at 1:47 am
I always liked Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories, but what i find interesting are the paintings his father did- fairy paintings and illustrations that reveal a vivid imagination. The father had what we might call a nervous breakdown or some type of mental disorder. In those days people were ashamed of such things and tried to hush them up. I’m sure this must have affected Arthur Conan Doyle greatly. The father’s paintings ( I think his name was Richard) would probably be considered “outsider art” if he was alive today, or perhaps he’d be illustrating fantasty- fiction bookcovers today.
7. dougj | March 5th, 2006 at 10:57 am
Robert, I completely agree. The works are fascinating, and reveal much about his father (Charles Altamont Doyle) and his crumbling state of mind, and perhaps ACD’s later fascination with fairies and spiritualism. For the new blog, there are three selections of his artwork from this phase in the queue. Amazing work, really.
8. Russ | March 7th, 2006 at 2:44 pm
Douglas recently inquired on the HoundsL list about past messages.
Here is a link:
http://listserv.kent.edu/archives/hounds-l.html
Russ
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