For When You Need Encouraging Words

Most of my posts are instructional posts on how to craft your novel. I wanted to create this post to give you some words of encouragement.

Writing a novel is difficult. It is time consuming and takes a lot of work, dedication, and drive. there may be times that you’ll feel overwhelmed or a bit discouraged.

There is no instruction in this post. It contains quotes from some famous writers along with some encouraging words of my own.

I hope these quotes give you a few smiles and a little push forward on those days when you need it most.

Scripturient (adj.) having a consuming passion to write

“I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.” ~ Toni Morrison

To me, there’s nothing quite like finishing a novel, novella, or even a short story and reading it to yourself as if it were someone else’s work. It’s so fulfilling and satisfying that it makes me eager to pick up my pen and write something else. I usually can’t believe I was capable of, as I say it, “sounding like a real author.” It gives me so much encouragement and a sense of accomplishment.

“Write until it becomes as natural as breathing. Write until not writing makes you anxious.” ~ Christina Katz

I can’t believe how much this quote rings true for me. When I first started writing, I was mostly filled with anxious thoughts…”What if I’m not good enough to do this?” Now, because I decided to keep writing despite those thoughts, if I miss one day of writing, I truly feel like something is missing. It’s a great feeling.

“Writing is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights, but you make the whole trip that way.” ~ E.L. Doctorow

There are times, many times actually, that when I’m drafting a novel, the task seems daunting, to say the very least. I don’t know exactly what I want to happen to every character on every page. That’s when I remember this quote and it really rings true. Remember the question, “How do you eat an elephant?” “One bite at a time.” Funny, yes, but that’s exactly how you write a book. Simply one page at a time. When you get stuck, write another section and eventually, it will all get done. And, you’ll enjoy the process.

Quotes That Speak for Themselves

“A real writer doesn’t just want to write; a real writer has to write.” ~ Unknown

“You are a writer the moment you start writing, not when you’ve sold your first book.” ~ Rob Bignell

And, my absolute favorite!

“Someday you’re going to be someone’s favorite author.”

To me, that quote right there is enough to keep me writing day after day. It’s fun for me to imagine the possibility that I’m out and about one day and I overhear someone talking about one of my books. Fantasy thought? Maybe. But, if you don’t dream, you stop growing.

Consider the words in this post to be my personal pep talk to you. I hope you found it inspiring and motivating.

Happy Writing!

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