...which is Part 1 of a two-part post that continues on January 30 with 13 quotes to help 2013 get off to a rousing writing year of stories.
For Part 1, I have 12 writing-related quotes to share because I love trivia, witty and thought-provoking quotes, and clever sayings. In fact, to get my daily trivia fix, I research historical trivia and
"Tweet" four or five tidbits everyday.
My favorite quote is by author, Richard North Patterson. I keep this quote on my computer to read every time I sit down to type. Since it's my writing mantra, it has the honor of being first on the
list. The quotes that follow aren't in any particular favorite order.
Richard North Patterson
Writing is rewriting. A writer must learn to deepen characters, trim writing, intensify scenes. To fall in love with a first draft to the point where one cannot change it is to greatly enhance the
prospects of never publishing.
Mark Twain
Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words.
Marcus Fabius Quintilianus, c. 65 CE
Write quickly and you will never write well; write well, and you will soon write quickly.
Frank Yerby
It is my contention that a really great novel is made with a knife and not a pen. A novelist must have the intestinal fortitude to cut out even the most brilliant passage so long as it doesn't advance
the story.
Gene Fowler
Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.
Charlotte Bronte
I'm just going to write because I cannot help it.
Mark Twain
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.
Clarence Budington Kelland
I get up in the morning, torture a typewriter until it screams, then stop.
Leo Rosten
Every writer is a narcissist. This does not mean that he is vain; it only means that he is hopelessly self-absorbed.
Robert Benchley
It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by that time I was too famous.
Stephen Wright
I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done.
Mickey Spillane
The first chapter sells the book; the last chapter sells the next book.
I hope at least one of these quotes made you smile.
Until next time,
Kaye
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Showing posts with label quotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label quotes. Show all posts
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Writerly Words From Them Who Know
I'm not participating in NaNoWriMo this year. I figure I put in that time (although I lost) in June for camp and I planned to spend this month editing that novel. But I do follow along in my NaNo mail, checking for pep talks from other writers because it reminds me that I'm not alone in the writing world, no matter how frustrated I feel sometimes when the muse won't play.
November is a tough time for writing. Thanksgiving is just two weeks away and then there's that Christmas rush coming. Oh, I can't wait for all the stores to get crowded. I'd rather stick it out at home with a cursor blinking at me while I struggle to think of the next words to put on the page. Or how to arrange them so it doesn't sound like a kindergartner wrote them anyway.
So today I'm bringing you some writing quotes from authors who know what a challenging business this one is. Enjoy and feel free to leave your favorites too, because I love adding to my collection!
The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress. - Philip Roth
We’re past the age of heroes and hero kings. … Most of our lives are basically mundane and dull, and it’s up to the writer to find ways to make them interesting. - John Updike
There is only one plot—things are not what they seem. - Jim Thompson
You know, what may appear from a distance as success is really, closer up, a series of failures punctuated by occasional achievements…. You’ve got to be stubborn about it, keeping faith with your work in spite of all the distractions and the people around you who don’t understand the value of what you do…. So no excuses. Just write. - Wesley McNair, Poet Laureate of Maine
It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and beings to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does. - William Faulkner
A real book is not one that’s read, but one that reads us. - W.H. Auden
“Everybody else is working to change, persuade, tempt and control them. The best readers come to fiction to be free of all that noise. - Philip Roth (again)
Writing—the art of communicating thoughts to the mind, through the eye—is the great invention of the world. - Abraham Lincoln
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit. - Aristotle
Writing a novel is like making love to a gorilla. You’re not done until the gorilla is done. - Craig Ferguson
I collect inspirational and writerly quotes on my Pinterest board, so seriously, toss 'em my way. When I'm not here, I'm blogging at Have Novel, Will Edit, hanging on Facebook, G+, and Twitter.
November is a tough time for writing. Thanksgiving is just two weeks away and then there's that Christmas rush coming. Oh, I can't wait for all the stores to get crowded. I'd rather stick it out at home with a cursor blinking at me while I struggle to think of the next words to put on the page. Or how to arrange them so it doesn't sound like a kindergartner wrote them anyway.
So today I'm bringing you some writing quotes from authors who know what a challenging business this one is. Enjoy and feel free to leave your favorites too, because I love adding to my collection!
The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress. - Philip Roth
We’re past the age of heroes and hero kings. … Most of our lives are basically mundane and dull, and it’s up to the writer to find ways to make them interesting. - John Updike
There is only one plot—things are not what they seem. - Jim Thompson
You know, what may appear from a distance as success is really, closer up, a series of failures punctuated by occasional achievements…. You’ve got to be stubborn about it, keeping faith with your work in spite of all the distractions and the people around you who don’t understand the value of what you do…. So no excuses. Just write. - Wesley McNair, Poet Laureate of Maine
It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and beings to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does. - William Faulkner
A real book is not one that’s read, but one that reads us. - W.H. Auden
“Everybody else is working to change, persuade, tempt and control them. The best readers come to fiction to be free of all that noise. - Philip Roth (again)
Writing—the art of communicating thoughts to the mind, through the eye—is the great invention of the world. - Abraham Lincoln
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit. - Aristotle
Writing a novel is like making love to a gorilla. You’re not done until the gorilla is done. - Craig Ferguson
I collect inspirational and writerly quotes on my Pinterest board, so seriously, toss 'em my way. When I'm not here, I'm blogging at Have Novel, Will Edit, hanging on Facebook, G+, and Twitter.
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