And the More I Write...

Due to the overwhelming response to my last post about favorite writing quotes (Okay, there was hardly any response at all, but such is the blogging life, and this, dear reader, is where a little self-indulgent imagination comes in handy.), I thought I'd put down a few more quotes, for my sake if no one else's. Words and wisdom from renowned writers can go a long way in teaching, inspiring and even at times comforting the likes of us lesser but well-intended scribes. So, with that in mind, here are some more I found of value:

10)  "The end of the story is always found in the beginning."    - William Sloane

 9)  "And I was sardonically amused at those who referred to writing as if it were an act of              supreme inspiration. Writing is fiendishly hard work."               - James Michener

8)  "In my own experience, nothing is harder for the developing writer than overcoming his anxiety that he is fooling himself and cheating or embarrassing his family and friends. To most people, even those who don't read much, there is something special and vaguely magical about writing, and it is not easy for them to believe that someone they know - someone quite ordinary in many respects - can really do it."
                                                                                                       - John Gardner

7) "Words have a great, great power to move us. After everything is said and done, it's the words we're listening to on television and in movies the whole time - the cadence of words, the truth of words. Words have magical power."
                                                                                                      - David Mamet

6) "I see but one rule: to be clear."                                                - Stendhal

5)  "Good description is a learned skill, one of the prime reasons why you cannot succeed unless you read a lot and write a lot."                                                            - Stephen King

4) "Self-doubt can be an ally. This is because it serves as an indicator of aspiration. It reflects love, love of something we dream of doing, and desire, desire to do it. If you find yourself asking yourself (and your friends), 'Am I really a writer? Am I really an artist?' chances are you are. The counterfeit innovator is wildly self-confident. The real one is scared to death."
                                                                                                      - Steven Pressfield

3) "People can see straight through storytelling that is false, staged or cynical. It has to come from the heart, not just the head."          
                                                                                                      - Richard Branson

2) "If a story is in you, it has to come out."                                  - William Faulkner

1) "Stories are for eternity, when memory is erased, when there is nothing to remember except the story."                                                                                            - Tim O'Brien

  

I Write, Therefore... I Quote

What makes a quote really good? More than good, what makes it memorable, powerful, even magical?

Simply answered, the curse and the beauty of words lie in the eye of the beholder.

How many books have you opened and the first thing you see before you get to page one is a short quote or two. There’s even a special word for them in literary circles. For what it’s worth, they’re called epigraphs. Some are intriguing and set the table for the main course to come. Others, like an unknown poem or ancient text, can be so vague and mystifying as to be next to meaningless. Am I supposed to be impressed? Am I really supposed to know what that means?

On the other hand, when someone says something that strikes deep and strikes a nerve, there’s nothing better.

I have always enjoyed a clever quote, a few choice words once spoken or written that, for whatever reason, reveal a spark of uncommon wit and wisdom that taps into my own truth. More than once I have used what I considered a good quote to punch up a short piece of my own writing. Like this:

“Good writing consists of trying to use ordinary words to achieve extraordinary results.” -- James Michener

The right quote operates on two levels. At first reading, it makes its point, plain and simple. At least it better. But then there’s just a moment where your mind flits back to what it just read and says, ‘Hmm. I like that. That works.’ It’s clever, but it’s true.’ And following the idea of author Stephen King that writing is refined thinking, well, why not borrow someone else’s thinking and add it to the mix? Why not plug in a thought or two from some of the masters of the craft to build up your own writing when you need it.

“Easy reading is damn hard writing.” — Nathaniel Hawthorne

I collect quotes. Touching on all sorts of topics. I write them down in a notebook dedicated to just that purpose, and I would suggest everyone do the same. Whenever I come across a quote that makes me pause and speaks to me, I write it down. Gathered together in one place like that, they’re a wonderful touchstone of inspiration and guidance whenever good things try to run and hide — and sooner or later they always do.

I do my best work with words (as opposed to, say, drywall or computer programs), so many of my favorite quotes reflect, as you can see, on the craft of writing. With that in mind, and with a respectful nod to Rene Descartes’ famous meditation, “I think, therefore I am,” I offer a few more of my top iterations by writers on writing to help guide and prompt the pursuit of my craft. I write, therefore…

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” — Richard Bach

“Writing is easy. It’s the words that are hard.” — Mark Twain

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”- Benjamin Franklin

“It’s none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way.” — Ernest Hemingway

“I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.” — Mark Twain

“The first draft of anything is shit.” — Ernest Hemingway

“God gives you the best plots.” — Norman Mailer

“That’s not writing, that’s typing.” — Truman Capote

“If a story is in you, it has to come out” — William Faulkner