The Mighty Pen Writing Club discussion

Authors usually give the best advice on the writing process...in this topic post any memorable or inspirational quotes by authors about writing

oh oh oh, this is from Roald Dahl.
I love that man.
As far as i want it to be false, he is correct. I cant find the quote, but it goes something like this.

A man is a fool to become a writer.
He must force himself to work. He has to make his own hours and if he doesn't go to his desk at all there is nobody to scold him. There is nobody to encourage him or force him to do anything.

I believe that.
Its very hard for me, myself to start writing, and even harder to write a large number in a day.

excellent! thanks for sharing :)

This is from Katherine Patterson my 4th grade teacher gave me a writers notebok at the end of the school year and she wrote this on it.

Keep in mind that the person to write for is yourself. Tell the story that you most desperately want to read.

I find that this helps me. If i wouldnt want to read the story i'm writing why would others want to read it?

I interviewed author Katherine Langrish and asked her if she had any advice for aspiring authors:

Take the time to think. Thinking is just as much part of creating a novel as actually setting the words down. Don’t feel pressured to start too early, and don’t feel guilty if you’re not hammering out those two thousand words a day. (Me? I sometimes don’t write more than fifty. Or I end up with fewer words at the end of the day, because I’ve been cutting and unpicking.) Often, if you get stuck, it’s a sign that you’re veering off course with the book – maybe trying to force a character to do something they wouldn’t. Give yourself time out. Go off and do something different and let your subconscious mind come up with the answers.

Scott Westerfeld and his wife had a writing tip of the day during the NaNoWriMo.

http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/categ...

I adore Westerfeld. Thanks for pointing those out! :)

Okay, I've rounded up the first batch of Inspirational Author Quotes!

James Dashner, advice to aspiring writers:
I'll start by sharing something I learned from Stephen King that is very wise: you can either write, or you cannot. You either have the talent or you do not. While you can become a BETTER writer, you cannot BECOME a writer.
There's no magical formula. There's no checklist. Pick up something you've written and read it again. Is it okay? Passable? Not THAT bad? If so, then you're on the right path. Next, you need to work your bootie off. I'm not sure why, but many people seem to think writing is different from any other talent. They think you just do it, and your skill level never changes. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Write a novel from beginning to end. I mean it. I don't care if it's the worst book in history, write a beginning, a middle, and an ending, and everything in between. You won't believe the magical power that will come over you once you've accomplished this task. Is it easy? No. Will it win the National Book Award? Probably not. Do I hate when people ask rhetorical questions over and over? Yes.
If you write and finish a complete book, you will suddenly find it much easier to do the next one.

Stephenie Meyer
If you love to write, then write. Don't let your goal be having a novel published, let your goal be enjoying your stories. However, if you finish your story and you want to share it, be brave about it. Don't doubt your story's appeal. If you are a good reader, and you know what is interesting, and your story is interesting to you, then trust in that. If I would have realized that the stories in my head would be as intriguing to others as they were to me, I would probably have started writing sooner. Believe in your own taste.

T.A. Barron
Ultimately, if you notice what's around you, and really take it in, you have a limitless source of material. Then just add a pinch of imagination and anything—literally anything—is possible.

These are all great! Thanks!

I love that Stephenie Meyer one!

Loved the first one
:)

Susan Kaye wrote: "I adore Westerfeld. Thanks for pointing those out! :)"

Did you read Leviathan? And you're welcome! :)

love them all, Amelia :)

No, what's it about?

I got a book full of writing quotes, and they are inspirational. Some of them are:

Natalie Goldbera: You are free to write bad things in this world

Nelson Ellison: Everyone can be a writer. The key is to keep writing.

Lewis Carroll: Start writing from the beginning, keep writing until the end, then stop.

Robert McKee: Someone talented who writes well usually writes for this reason: they want to touch the reader's hearts.