Writing Around the Muse: 7 Author Quotes
Ever wonder how some authors write around the muse, avoid writer's block and craft great stories? Check out these 7 quotes by bestselling authors to find out how.
2. “Writing is total grunt work. A lot of people think it's all about sitting and waiting for the muse. I don't buy that. It's a job. There are days when I really want to write, days when I don't. Every day I sit down and write.” Jodi Picoult, The Storyteller
3. "This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.” - Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Block & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
4. “I learned to produce whether I wanted to or not. It would be easy to say oh, I have writer’s block, oh, I have to wait for my muse. I don’t. Chain that muse to your desk and get the job done.” - Barbara Kingsolver – The Poisonwood Bible and Animal, Vegetable Miracle
5. “The biggest mistake you can make is assuming that creativity will hit you all at once and the muse will carry you to the end of the book on feather wings while “Foster the People” plays gently in the background. Storytelling is work. Pleasurable work, usually, but it is work.” – Maggie Stiefvater, The Scorpio Races & The Raven Boys
6. “What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat,’.... And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, ‘Okay. Okay. I’ll come.” - Maya Angelou, I Know why the Caged Bird Sings
7. “Don't wait for the muse. As I've said, he's a hardheaded guy who's not susceptible to a lot of creative fluttering. This isn't the Ouija board or the spirit-world we're talking about here, but just another job like laying pipe or driving long-haul trucks. Your job is to make sure the muse knows where you're going to be every day from nine 'til noon. or seven 'til three. If he does know, I assure you that sooner or later he'll start showing up.” - Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
Please join me for next week's blog post: Writing Lessons from Art School.
Till then, good luck & happy writing!
Genius! Pure Genius! The best selling authors (obviously) know what makes a good writer write; pure determination! This had such an impact on me because there I was still sort of believing that fairy dust would be sprinkled and I would find myself with the next great novel in my hands. Negative! You sit down and actually have to force your muse to work with you! I love and agree with all these author quotes! :) How happy I am to share them with you! :) yay! For the storytelling experience of others who have not only came before us as authors, but who have came before us and succeeded! Onward to the writing process, it's our job you know! -S.M. Bjarnson
