Quotable Quotes

Since it's Monday and therefore the beginning of another productive week of writing, reading and other non-frivolous pursuits, I've collected some Quotable Quotes to soothe and inspire our writerly souls.

I consider each of these a mini-pep talk, a shot of wisdom, advice and solace - which we all need, especially when NaNoWrMo is only days away (I hear you shrieking but you're not alone!) So feel at liberty to plaster them along your desk, pin them on your corkboards and stick them on the bathroom door as your permanent bathroom reader.

Here's a pic of my quotes, strategicly placed in piles, stuck to blank spaces and lined up at eye level. An interior decorating idea free of charge from me to you. Quote collecting is like a wisdom fetish or a bad rash, so beware! It can be contagious and possibly itchy.

(Please ignore everything else in this picture. My random desk design and collectibles display is all part of my writing therapy which is a TOTW for another time ...)

My very first pearl is from Snoopy. Of course. 

"I owe all my rejections to this little book"

 

 

"Begin at the beginning ... and go on till you come to the end: then stop." Lewis Carroll

 

"Anybody who shifts gears when he writes for children is likely to wind up stripping his gears." E.B. White

 

"The difference between truth and fiction is that fiction has to make sense." Mark Twain

 

"You either have to be first, best, or different." Loretta Lynn

 

"A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom." Roald Dahl

 

"One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book;



give it, give it all, give it now." Annie Dillard

 

"No one can write decently who is distrustful of the reader's intelligence, or whose attitude is patronizing." E.B. White

 

"When you catch an adjective, kill it." Mark Twain

 

"When you're tempted to write about a dream come true, be sure that the dream turns into a nightmare as quickly as possible." Crawford Kilian

 

"The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism." Norman Vincent Peale

 

"When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt." Henry J. Kaiser

 

"In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure." Bill Cosby

 

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.

Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.

Genius will not; unrecorded genius is almost a proverb.

Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

Calvin Coolidge

 

And, lastly, I'd like to quote our own Ellen Booraem,

"The best advice I’ve ever received is also the hardest to follow. My editor, Kathy Dawson, constantly has to remind me that, underneath all the magical bells and whistles, a middle-grade fantasy novel is about a kid on a personal journey, trying to figure out who he/she is and where she/he fits in the world. Lose sight of that journey and you’ve lost the story."

 

So many words of wisdom and such little space. We'd love to hear your favorite, or most motivating quote, so please share them with us!

 

... And to every NaNoWrMo participant - GO FORTH AND TYPE YOUR HEARTS OUT, we're rooting for you!

 

Pippa Bayliss

MG Fantasy writer