Writing Quote #25

"I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning and took out a comma. In the afternoon, I put it back in."

- Oscar Wilde

Writing Quote #24

"Every writer must acknowledge and be able to handle the unalterable fact that he has, in effect, given himself a life sentence in solitary confinement. The ordinary world of work is closed to him -- and that if he's lucky!"

- Peter Straub

Writing Quote #23

"Most people don't realize that writing is a craft. You have to take your apprenticeship in it like anything else."

- Katherine Ann Porter

Writing Quote #22

"The reader has certain rights. He bought your story. Think of this as an implicit contract. He's entitled to be entertained, instructed, amused; maybe all three. If he quits in the middle, or puts the books down feeling his time has been wasted, you're in violation."

- Lary Niven

Writing Quote #21

"My stories run up and bite me in the leg. I respond by writing them down - everything that goes on during the bite. When I finish, the idea lets go and runs off."

- Ray Bradbury

Writing Quote #20

"Words are the most powerful drug used by mankind."

- Rudyard Kipling

Writing Quote #19

The two most engaging powers of an author are to make new things familiar, and familiar things new."

- Samuel Johnson

Writing Quote #18

"It's none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way."

- Ernest Hemingway

Writing Quote #17

"Put weather in."

- Joseph Hansen

Writing Quote #16

"The first thing you have to consider when writing a novel is your story, and then your story--and then your story!"

- Ford Madox Ford

Writing Quote #15

"Some editors are failed writers, but so are most writers."

- T. S. Eliot

Writing Quote #14

"Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."

- E. L. Doctorow

Writing Quote #13

"You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send that work out again and again, while you're working on another one. If you have talent, you will receive some measure of success - but only if you persist."

- Isaac Asimov

Writing Quote #12

"A young musician plays scales in his room and only bores his family. A beginning writer, on the other hand, sometimes has the misfortune of getting into print."

- Marguerite Yourcenar

Writing Quote #11

"Pay attention to the sound of words."

- Dave Wolverton

Writing Quote #10

"Art is the manipulation of someone else's imagination."

- Sol Saks

Writing Quote #9

"It's hard for me to believe that people who read very little - or not at all in some cases - should presume to write and expect people to like what they have written. Can I be blunt on this subject? f you don't have the time to read, you don't have the time - or the tools - to write. Simple as that."

- Stephen King

Writing Quote #8

"I get up in the morning, torture a typewriter until it screams, then stop.

- Clarence Budington Kelland

Writing Quote #7

"The expert at anything was once a beginner."

- Rutherford B. Hayes

Writing Quote #6

"Live out of your imagination, not your history."

- Stephen Covey

Writing Quote #5

"The difference between reality and fiction? Fiction has to make sense."

- Tom Clancy

Writing Quote #4

'It takes most of us a long time to learn our craft. So keep at it. Don't give up."

- Jacqueline Briskin

Writing Quote #3

"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by."

- Douglas Adams

Writing Quote #2

"Writing is easy. You just sit down at the typewrite and open a vein."

- Red Smith

Hi, friends. Here's the second installment of Writing Quotes. I wanted to mention that, though I try to verify the various quotes and sources, I don't always get it right. If you happen to notice that the quote I provided was merely a paraphrase of what was really said, or that I attributed the wrong source with the quote, please let me know. Thank you.

Regards,

Michael Colwill

Writing Quote #1

"You can only write, 'Somebody wants something, something else is in their way of getting it.

- Aaron Sorkin

I'm trying something new here, friends. I've come across so many great quotes on writing and English that I thought I'd start sharing some of them with you. Not all of them represent my personal views on the writing business. I hope that some of these will help to begin a conversation on their content.

Please let me know if you like this addition to Kanteker's Craft.

Regards,

Michael Colwill

Japan Pic of the Day

Rihoko, the kids, and I traveled to Yokohama to visit some good friends while we were in Japan. On our way we had some time to kill in Atami station. Christopher and I were waiting for Rihoko and Nanami when we spotted these maiko (apprentice geisha), standing outside of the station gates. There were several people going up to the ladies and having their picture taken. As Christopher and I walked closer to the barrier dividing the inside of the station from the exterior the three ladies noticed us and started waving at my four-year-old son. I took the opportunity to snap a picture.

Maiko

Japan Pic of the Day

Here is a shinkansen (bullet train) which sped through Atami station while we were waiting for its slower version to arrive and take us for the first leg of our trip back to the States.

Shinkansen

Shinkansen

Japan Pic of the Day

Here is a picture of us just before having dinner on my father-in-law's birthday. Sorry, my kids were in the other room. From left to right are Tetsuya Tanaka, Sakahe Tanaka, me, and Rihoko Colwill. Note the tempura waiting for us to dig in.

Otoosan's birthday dinner.

Japan Pic of the Day

Sakura at Mishima Taisha.

Japan Pic of the Day

Japanese translation of some of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books.

Japan Pic of the Day

These tsunami warning signs were found near the lighthouse pier in Ajiro.

Tsunami Warning Sign

Tsunami Warning Sign

Japan Pic of the Day

This is my favorite Japanese dish. Tempura, prepared by my mother-in-law. We enjoyed this delicious meal to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday.

Tempura

Japan Pic of the Day

Mt. Fuji
Taken by my father-in-law, Tetsuya Tanaka.

Japan Pic of the Day

Ramen Restaurant

Japan Pic of the Day

I love Japanese cars. This new Subaru R2 caught my eye one day when we were walking through Ajiro.

Subaru R2

Subaru R2

Japan Pic of the Day

Japanese Translation of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.

Japan Pic of the Day

Green Tea from Shizuoka...in Shizuoka.

Japan Pic of the Day

I took this picture while visiting Mishima Taisha (Mishima Shrine) with my family. The sakura (cherry blossoms) were everywhere. This is one of the lamps around the grounds of the shrine, surrounded by sakura.

Lamp post in Mishima Taisha