James A. Michener, on writing:

I love writing.

I love the swirl of words as they tangle with human emotions.

- James A. Michener.

Erma Bombeck, on dedication:

When I stand before God at the end of my life,

I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say,

'I used everything You gave me'.

- Erma Bombeck.

Voltaire, on writing:

Writing is the painting of the voice.

- Voltaire.

Herta Muller, on writing:

I have always written only for myself - to clarify things,

to clarify things with myself,

to understand in an inner way what is actually happening.

- Herta Muller.

Wallace Stevens, on writing and imagination:

In the world of words, the imagination is one of the forces of nature.

- Wallace Stevens.

Erica Jong, on writing:

All writing problems are psychological problems.

Blocks usually stem from the fear of being judged.

If you imagine the world listening, you'll never write a line.

That's why privacy is so important.

You should write first drafts as if they will never be shown to anyone.

- Erica Jong.

Desiderius Erasmus, on books:

When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes.

- Desiderius Erasmus.

Judy Blume, on writing:

The best books come from someplace inside.

You don't write because you want to, but because you have to.

- Judy Blume.

Napoleon Hill, on imagination and writing:

First comes thought;

then organization of that thought, into ideas and plans;

then transformation of those plans into reality.

The beginning, as you will observe, is in your imagination.

- Napoleon Hill.

Vickie Karp, on reading and writing:

When we read, we start at the beginning and continue until we reach the end.

When we write, we start in the middle and fight our way out.

- Vickie Karp.

Introvert insight:

I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.

– Henry David Thoreau.
 
Don’t think of introversion as something that needs to be cured.

– Susan Cain.
 
I don’t have time for superficial friends.

I suppose, if you’re really lonely, you can call a superficial friend, but otherwise, what’s the point?

– Courtney Cox.
 
Silence is only frightening to people who are compulsively verbalizing.

– William S. Burroughs.

Farley Mowat, on writing:

I write every day.

I'm always in the process of writing my last book, until the next one.

- Farley Mowat.

Lauren B. Davis, on writing:

If you are a real writer, then just surrender to the writer's life, all of it, even the bad stuff.

When you do that, the beauty appears:

the peace, the meaning, the joy, the fulfillment,

the sense that you are doing what you were born to do

and what could be better, in the end, than that?

- Lauren B. Davis.

Albert Einstein, on imagination:

Imagination is everything.

It is the preview of life's coming attractions.

- Albert Einstein.

Kimberly Willis Holt, on writing:

Write every day.

Make writing a part of your life, but also don't be afraid of learning from others because I think you can.

I still try to think of myself as a beginner because that way I can keep on learning.

- Kimberly Willis Holt.

Harold Ross, on writing:

I asked Ring Lardner the other day how he writes his short stories,

and he said he wrote a few widely separated words or phrases on a piece on paper

and then went back and filled in the spaces.

- Harold Ross.

Jhumpa Lahiri, on writing:

Writing is one of the most assertive things a person can do.

- Jhumpa Lahiri.

Stan Lee, on writing:

To me, writing is fun.

It doesn't matter what you're writing, as long as you can tell a story.

- Stan Lee.

Anne McCaffrey, on writing:

That's what writing is all about, after all,

making others see what you have put down on the page

and believing that it does, or could, exist

and you want to go there.

- Anne McCaffrey.

Enrique Jardiel Poncela, on writing:

When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing.

- Enrique Jardiel Poncela.