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Advice on Writing

Advice on Writing

I suspect I am not the only one who collects advice on (or applicable to) writing. Sometimes I seek the advice; other times I stumble upon it. In either case it gets collected. One of these days I plan to present the collection in one way or another. Until then, here are a few recent ones (as always, unsourced quotes may be falsely attributed):

Tchaikovsky in a letter to To N. F. von Meck, March 5, 1878 (The Life and Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaiskovsky)

We must always work, and a self-respecting artist must not fold his hands on the pretext that he is not in the mood. If we wait for the mood, without endeavoring to meet it half-way, we easily become indolent and apathetic. We must be patient, and believe that inspiration will come to those who can master their disinclination (p. 281).

Stephen King, On Writing

If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.

Pearl S. Buck (no source)

I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.

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