As we head into fall and shift our writing projects into gear, here are some words of wisdom from established writers to embolden us and give our words wings:

“Don’t be satisfied with stories, how things have gone with others. Unfold your own myth.”

“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”
Rumi

“I know you’ve heard it a thousand times before. But it’s true — hard work pays off. If you want to be good, you have to practice, practice, practice. If you don’t love something, then don’t do it.”
Ray Bradbury

“The best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today.”
Elbert Hubbard

“Writers have an island, a center of refuge, within themselves. It is the mind’s anchorage, the soul’s Great Good Place.”
Wright Morris

“Think of all the other writers out there in the world, taking the same detour from word processor to coffeepot, thesaurus in hand, hopes in tow. We’re all in it together, crossing over and over the elusive bridge between words and literature.”
Abby Frucht

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.”
Scott Adams

“I discovered that rejections are not altogether a bad thing. They teach a writer to rely on his own judgment and to say in his heart of hearts, “To hell with you.”
Saul Bellow

“The greatest thing a human soul ever does in this world is to see something, and tell what he saw in a plain way.”
John Ruskin

“Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.
Gustave Flaubert

“Inspiration usually comes during work rather than before it.”
Madeleine L’Engle

“To pay attention, this is our endless and proper work.”
Mary Oliver

I hope you’ll find a little gem among these words to polish and keep. Any favorite writerly
quotes that motivate you — I’d love to share them as we all write on.