Quotes On Writing - A Collection of Famous Writers

Mark Twain

"A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read."

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"Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words."

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The rules governing literary art require... "that the author shall make the reader feel a deep interest in the personages of his tale and in their fate; and that he shall make the reader love the good people in the tale and hate the bad ones."

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"The difference between the right word and the almost-right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

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"When all else fails, write what your heart tells you. You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus."

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"Substitute damn everytime you're inclined to write very, your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be."

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"The secret to getting ahead is getting started."

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"Write without pay until somebody offers to pay."

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On showing, not telling: "Don't say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream."

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"It's no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense."

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"Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please."

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"I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words, and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - It is the modern and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in."

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"Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see."

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"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary."

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"Books are for people who wish they were somewhere else."

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"Classic. A book which people praise and don't read."

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"The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly times pause."

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"Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection."

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"Know how to spell a word more than one way."