Quotes About Writing

He cited me her own remark that she wrote from the protected point of view, the woman's point of view, as evidence that she went through her life from inexperience to inexperience.

Some Heisenberg principle frustrates critics who try to analyze how stories are written. Whatever they can analyze has to be dead before it can be dissected.

The great poems of heaven and hell have been written and the great poem of earth remains to be written.

I am reminded again that the greatest phrase ever written is words, words, words.

By living, thinking, even dreaming the story in one continuous process, ideas came faster and faster. Sometimes the typewriter keys would fly so fast that I wondered if my fingers could keep up with them. And at the finish of the story I often had to take a few days off as my fingertips were too sore to begin work on the next book.

A certain nonchalant ease pervades our modern world: we affect an indifference we scarcely feel; our talk is light almost to affectation, our best writing is the same -- we suggest rather than elaborate, hint rather than declaim.

The reason that there are so few good books written is that so few people who write know anything.

The reason why so few good books are written is that so few people who can write know anything.

In the faculty of writing nonsense, stupidity is no match for genius.

Writing is a form attention and trains the writer's attention to find images and stories.

I change over time and my perception of the poem also changes, hence endless revision. I sometimes worry that I spend more time revising than writing new poems.

There are so many poetic styles and ways to write a poem. I can hardly say that I've consciously chosen a particular style, but more that I've just found myself writing and then started accumulating reasons why I was writing the way I was.

The more circumspectly you delay writing down an idea, the more maturely developed it will be on surrendering itself.

Nothing is poorer than a truth expressed as it was thought. Committed to writing in such cases, it is not even a bad photograph. Truth wants to be startled abruptly, at one stroke, from her self-immersion, whether by uproar, music or cries for help.

Of all the ways of acquiring books, writing them oneself is regarded as the most praiseworthy method. Writers are really people who write books not because they are poor, but because they are dissatisfied with the books which they could buy but do not like.

Writers are really people who write books not because they are poor, but because they are dissatisfied with the books which they could buy but do not like.

Work on a good piece of writing proceeds on three levels: a musical one, where it is composed; an architectural one, where it is constructed; and finally, a textile one, where it is woven.

On his office wall he had a note to himself: 'Money is necessary--but it isn't too important.' Money meant for him to keep on writing and to go his own way.

Early on, it's good to develop the ability to write. Learning to write is a useful exercise, even if what you're writing about is not that relevant.

A writer is someone who tells you one thing so someday he can tell his readers another thing: what he was thinking but declined to say, or what he would have thought had he been wiser. A writer turns his life into material, and if you're in his life, he uses yours, too.

Bei einem Dichter klauen ist Diebstahl, bei vielen Dichtern klauen ist Recherche

The written word is redundant on the high seas. Why? Because paper gets wet too easily.

Komisch warm daß inmitten eines Wirklichkeit gewordenen Alptraums, in einem unterirdischen Schloß ohne Ausgang mir schon der Anblick von lesbarer Schrift ein Gefühl von Geborgenheit geben konnte. Deshalb mußte ich lachen, oh meine Freunde, schallend und anhaltend.

Dicke Bücher sind deswegen dick, weil der Autor nicht die Zeit hatte sich kurz zu fassen.