Thursday, July 27, 2006

A great quote

I'm currently reading Phillip Roth's Everyman. While I'm not sure that I would recommend the book--it's a little heavy on exposition, light on scene for my taste (which, ironically, is the major problem in my own work)--I did just come across a brilliant line. The main character is talking to his painting students and he says, "Amateurs wait for inspiration. The rest of us get to work." I love that because really, if we all sat around waiting for something to inspire us, to be in the mood for writing/editing/what have you, then we'd be doing much more waiting than writing. The quote also makes a point that writing is a lot more work than most people imagine. It's not like the inspiration goddess comes and annoints us everyday and we just type her words. Best Blogger Tips

5 comments:

DJPare said...

I love the inspiration goddess! She's the best!

And, I think that might be Philip Roth. The only one of his novels that I've tried, I put down after 100 pages, and never picked back up, for the very same reason...

Idiot Cook said...

LOVE this quote, Bug. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Ah, the inspiration goddess...I feel like some days mine has taken off and is standing at a truck stop in Tulsa, wearing a big floppy hat, a boa, and smoking a cigar while holding a sign that reads: Palm Springs or Bust.

January said...

Just popping in while on vacation. Great quote and so very true. The inspiration goddess and I are meeting up at Starbucks when I get back!

Hope you are well.

Writer Bug said...

Erin, LOL. That's such a great image! I love it. And Jan, hope you're having a great vacation! Reading about your week is making me pine for my vacation at the end of August. Only a few more weeks!