Jonathan Cott

Temenos, part 2 →

Published 13 Days Ago  ·  All posts on Mar 2  ·  

Today one can conduct an interview on the phone or via Skype, but ideally, in order to truly foster reciprocities of rapport and insight in a meeting, one requires a live countenance and a quiet physical space-like the ancient Greek temenos, with its sacred enclosure or holy grove or magic circle— in which an interview can live and flourish.

Jonathan Cott, xiv, from Listening: Interviews, 1970-1989

There’s this word, again!

I’d spotted it previously… and it came to mind during Steve Heatherington’s monthly podcast call. I was reminded of it by his discussion of telic. But I couldn’t exactly remember the the word temenos at first. I am certain I first heard it mentioned in an episode of Boston Blake’s Mythic podcast, but I couldn’t find a reference to a specific episode (on my blog or by searching.) Then I realized the word appears in the Introduction to a terrific book. Which was also literally sitting on my desk… a crazy confluence of events.

When I first encountered it, I’d not thought of it in the context of what we podcast hosts do for our guests. But Cott makes it crystal clear.

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Bibliofervor →

Published November 26, 2023  ·  All posts on Nov 26  ·  ,

I recently cracked open Listening: Interviews, 1970-1989 by Jonathan Cott. The Introduction alone knocked one of my socks off; I leapt out of my reading chair to search the Internet hoping the Introduction might be published publicly so I could share it. Alas, instead I found this:

There ought to be a word in English that describes the nearly uncontrollable urge to leap out of a reading chair, race to find a friend, and press the book you are reading urgently into their hands. When they politely agree to take a look, you say no, no, you have to read this right now. Let me hold your coffee.

~ W. Scott Olsen from, Review

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Which—thank you W. Scott Olsen!—is an altogether different thing, which knocked my other sock off. I took a few moments to noodle it and didn’t have any good ideas. Then I asked Chat-GPT (v3.5 if you’re keeping score)…

Make up a new english word which describes the nearly uncontrollable urge to leap out of a reading chair, race to find a friend, and press the book you are reading urgently into their hands. When they politely agree to take a look, you say no, no, you have to read this right now while I hold your coffee.

How about “bibliofervor”? It combines “biblio,” relating to books or reading, with “fervor,” conveying intense passion or enthusiasm. This word captures the strong, almost irresistible impulse to share a captivating book with a friend, urging them to read it immediately, even going as far as offering to hold their coffee just so they can dive into the story right away. It’s that delightful moment when a book is so enthralling that you can’t help but share it with someone else in real-time.

Oi! That is a superlative answer. NEW WORD: Bibliofervor :)

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