wrinspiration.

book art 3
To beginning writers: think big, paint your dream to the last detail, and then work out how to get from here to there. It’s a step-by-step process that is, at its heart, one of self-discovery. When the writing gets hard, don’t evade: make fists and wade in, because somewhere at the core of that difficult passage lies honesty. You may not like what it reveals, but you’ll know it to be real. It’s my feeling that honesty is the most important thing a writer must reach towards: intellectual honesty, emotional honesty, spiritual honesty. It’s not easy, since it dismantles your own assumptions (about how people think, how the world works, how you think, how you work, and so on) and can at times reduce you to a quivering wreck. But it’s also addictive, and relentless, and ruthless. Writers who write to evade; writers who take short-cuts, intellectually and creatively, constitute the run-of the-mill crowd. You want to stand apart, as best you can, and not let go of your ambition, or settle for second best. Imagine a world out there filled with honest writers, and then set off to join that crowd.

People can like my stuff or hate it, and some will call it arrogant of me when I say I can look in the mirror and know that what I did in these novels, I did as honestly as I could. So, all you beginning writers: trust me when I tell you it’s a good feeling, that sense of having done the best that was possible in you, and then leaving it out there (even to see it vilified) without apology. Could I have done better with the series, novel by novel? Possibly now, but not at the time I wrote each one.”

– Steven Erikson

I am so inspired to start writing again! I have put it off for too long. I’ve got to get back into it by making myself write a certain amount a day. But, at least I’m reading a lot 🙂

x

3 thoughts on “wrinspiration.

  1. Excellent quote! I think this is relevant to experienced writers too, not just beginners. It’s easy to forget those roots of wanting to explore truth and depth in your stories, and end up working yourself into a rut. This has inspired me too – thanks for sharing it!

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    1. No problem! A friend of mine is a huge fan of Steven’s work and told me to read this. It inspired me a lot! It helps to know how writers go through the same issues that we all go through as beginning writers.

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