Along with consistent practice, getting expert advice from seasoned writers is one of the keys to honing our craft. While there are plenty of useful handbooks on writing (I have a whole shelf of them myself), a few pithy words on the writing process may be the only spark we need to push us to the next level. With this in mind, here is a mini-cornucopia of wisdom you can pick and choose from as you write on today:

“Nothing you write, if you hope to be any good, will ever come out as you first hoped.”
(Lillian Hellman)

“There is no rule on how to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly: sometimes it’s like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges.” (Ernest Hemingway)

“Writing is just work–there’s no secret. If you dictate or use a pen or type or write with your toes– it’s still just work.” (Sinclair Lewis)

“When I finish a first draft, it’s always just as much of a mess as it’s always been. I still make the same mistakes every time.” (Michael Chabon)

“Real writers are those who want to write, need to write, have to write.”
(Robert Penn Warren)

“Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go. . . .Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way. . . . (E. L. Doctorow)

“You fail only if you stop writing.” (Ray Bradbury)

“I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English–it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of them — then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice.” (Mark Twain)

“I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.” (James Michener)

“What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure. (Samuel Johnson)

“Don’t get it right, just get it written.” (James Thurber)