Out my office window the little lambs are frolicking over spring green hills this dewy morning. (That's February in California.) I've got a full day of writing ahead, so I thought I'd first share some quotes of inspiration to get motivated.
"I would rather be tortured by writing than be tortured by guilt... One of the things that makes me keep writing is the fear that one day I won't be a writer... And I know that the only way that good things continue to happen for me is to write, to get your butt in the chair and to write." --- novelist Harlan Coben, in a January, 2011 Writer's Digest interview
"You can do anything you want. It just has to work." --sports writer and professor Lowell Cohn, teaching a USF writing workshop, regarding the 'rules' of writing
"When you sit down to write, remind yourself that, for the duration of your writing time, you are in charge of your life." -- writer and professor Jane Anne Staw, from her book Unstuck: A Supportive and Practical Guide to Working Through Writer's Block
"No matter what happens after this, I've made something, and it will always be mine. And now it's yours, whoever you are who will read my book..." --writer Jenny Shank, from her article "The Ham-and-Egger" in a Poets & Writers 'Why We Write' column, Feb. 2011 issue
Dear Reader:
What are you writing today? What words inspire you to continue?
3 comments:
Nicole, you don't know this, but ever since I've been following you, I've started a blog where I post my fiction pieces,just so that I continue to write, to write, to write, and it can only get better.
I love the one about prefering the torture of writing to the torture of guilt! Its so true.
For me I love the speech that Elizabeth Gilbert gave a few years ago where she spoke of the ancient Greeks idea of genius. Your genius was like a personal angel assigned to you, and it might be good or might be bad - but either way it was outside yourself. So that as a writer, when you sit down to write with this frame of mind, it relieves some of the pressure. If what you write is horrible, that's okay - your genius is having an off day. The whole notion helps make the risks of writing a little less worrisome!
Rosaria, I'm glad the blog inspired you to start yours! Sabrina, thanks for your additional words of inspiration!
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