Better Writer Series: Inspiring Quotes for Writers

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There are times I don't want to write.  I am blank.  I am uninspired. I am lazy.  I am kind to myself and give myself a break from time to time.



I knew a physician who was 80 years old and very sharp.  He had no intention of slowing down.  He was in retirement from full time practice but he did stay available in case other physicians needed coverage (vacations, illness, etc.).  He always had a book with him and we would have some really intense conversations about a variety of topics.  He told me his daily ritual that he felt kept his mind sharp.  Every morning, he read for an hour. Every evening, he wrote for an hour.  He also squeezed in time to do a variety of puzzles (such as crossword puzzles, sudoku, and trivia).  It really makes sense- your brain needs exercise.  His daily routine has always stuck with me and has always inspired me.

Sometimes, we need inspiration to get going and I have sourced some inspirational quotes that help me and may be motivating to you!

It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.
- Ernest Hemingway

It is perfectly okay to write garbage—as long as you edit brilliantly. - C. J. Cherryh

Any man who keeps working is not a failure. He may not be a great writer, but if he applies the old-fashioned virtues of hard, constant labor, he’ll eventually make some kind of career for himself as writer. - Ray Bradbury

I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by. - Douglas Adams

There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you
- Maya Angelou

“Being a good writer is 3% talent, 97% not being distracted by the Internet.”
—Anonymous

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.”
—Richard Bach

“The answer to all writing, to any career for that matter, is love.”
—Ray Bradbury

“The Six Golden Rules of Writing: Read, read, read, and write, write, write.”
—Ernest Gaines

“Be courageous and try to write in a way that scares you a little.”
—Holly Gerth

“The most beautiful things are those that madness prompts and reason writes.”
—Andre Gide

“Writers live twice.”
—Natalie Goldberg

“I just sit at my typewriter and curse a bit.”
—P.G. Wodehouse

“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”
—George Eliot