Quote for Writers #167 - William Carlos Williams

167. A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“I think all writing is a disease. You can’t stop it.” — William Carlos Williams

Dixon says: Most authors I know don't write for fame, or fortune, or to attract groupies. They write because they must. Period.

Saying for Writers #166 - Finding Forrester

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Write your first draft with your heart. Re-write with your head.” -- From the movie Finding Forrester.

One year ago, author and writing instructor (and former writer for Wolf Blitzer's show) John DeDakis was a featured presenter at the Flathead Writer Writers Conference, and took this photo at Avalanche Lake in Glacier National Park. Fond memories of a terrific conference live on, but all one million acres of Glacier Park are locked up due to the government shut-down. Next conference will be September 27/28, 2014 in Kalispell, Montana.

Saying for Writers #165 - Samuel Johnson

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“The greatest part of a writer’s time is spent in reading, in order to write. A man will turn over half a library to make one book.” — Samuel Johnson

Saying for Writers #164

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Every secret of a writer’s soul, every experience of his life, every quality of his mind, is written large in his works.” — Virginia Woolf

Saying for Writers #163 - The Road to Hell

A Couple of Quotes which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

I’ve seen this Stephen King quotation several times in the past week: “The road to hell is paved with adverbs.”

There’s a similar one by Philip Roth that I also enjoy: “The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress.”

There are some forest fires in the Missoula region - near Frenchtown and Superior - but so far NW Montana around Kalispell has been lucky and escaped unscathed. However, the woods all around us are tinder dry, and if we go a few more weeks without some serious rainfall, all bets are off.

Saying for Writers #162 - Hunter S Thompson

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Not a wasted word. This has been a main point to my literary thinking all my life.” — Hunter S. Thompson

Don't let the snow and ice fool you. My friend Sue Haugan took this photo in NW Montana on June 25th.

Saying for Writers #161 - Stephen King

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“The road to hell is paved with adverbs.” – Stephen King

This stretch of the Northern Rockies can be seen from my neighborhood. Well, if you stand on my roof...

The photo was taken in the springtime, but it's still nice and cool up on top.

Saying for Writers #160 - Tom Clancy

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“I do not over-intellectualize the production process. I try to keep it simple: Tell the damned story.” — Tom Clancy

Bear grass is not a grass and has nothing to do with bears, but it is everywhere you look in the higher altitudes of NW Montana. Every 5-10 years, there's an explosion of the plant, and this is one of those years. Naturally, this has nothing to do with the above literary quote...

Saying for Writers #159 - Andre Gide

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“The most beautiful things are those that madness prompts and reason writes.” — Andre Gide

A photo of Synder Lake in pristine Glacier National Park, taken by Kalispell friend Sue Haugan.

Saying for Writers #158 - Samuel Johnso

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“The two most engaging powers of an author are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.” – Samuel Johnson

Saying for Writers #157 - William S Burroughs

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Cheat your landlord if you can and must, but do not try to shortchange the Muse. It cannot be done. You can’t fake quality any more than you can fake a good meal.” — William S. Burroughs

Burroughs' breakout novel was Junkie. The author of over twenty-five other novels, short story collections, essay collections, and interview collections, he was one of the most prominent figures of the Beat Generation. Some consider him the most innovative writer of the past century.

This is a photo of Glacier National Park, snug against the Canadian border in NW Montana. The air is so pure there, scientists use it to compare environments across the rest of the planet. You should come visit - and then go back home.

Saying for Writers #156 - Ray Bradbury

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Let the world burn through you. Throw the prism light, white hot, on paper.” — Ray Bradbury

Living in Montana within sight of the Continental Divide, I never tire of views of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains. This photo was taken by local friend Sherri Gerek.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part VI

This is Day Six (and Last) of One-Sentence Writing Tips Week, with Facebook writers and other book lovers sharing writing and publishing advice with a dash of panache and a pinch of brevity.

Jennie Gardner Spallone: Hire a developmental editor, not just a copy editor, to look over your manuscript before you submit it to a publisher.

Mark Terry: Think more, write less.

Troy Wilkinson: Write about something you dreamed of as a child, before you knew it wasn't possible.

Kristen Wood: Only in humility can we ever truly learn and only in learning can we ever truly write.

Finally, my favorite one-sentence tip from last year, by RomCom author Kathy Dunnehoff: Say ‘yes’ to caffeine.

Thanks to all the kind folks who participated this week. Hope you had fun.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part V

This is Day Five of One-Sentence Writing Tips Week, with Facebook writers and other book lovers showing they can be both profound and concise.

J.T. Sather: Writing a book is the easy part, selling it however...not so much.

Paul M. Schofield: Write, write, write...right?

Laura Schultz: Pay close attention to everything and everyone around you, as some of them could become great characters.

Literary agent Michael Snell: Eschew obfuscation and sesquipedalian anfractuosities.

Screenwriter Mike Snyder: Most writers are banned from TV or movie sets because they insist every last word is deathless prose; that's just not gonna happen, at least not in North America.

Unless your genial host gets flooded by last-minute submissions, these one-sentence tips will end on Saturday. Tomorrow’s scheduled tipsters: Jennie Gardner Spallone, Mark Terry, Troy Wilkinson and Kristen Wood.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part IV

This is Day Four of One-Sentence Writing Tips Week, with FB writers and other book lovers combining advice with brevity.

Jackie Pelham: It will never see daylight if you stick it in a drawer, so submit, submit, submit.

Jimmy Pudge: You need at least one asshole in your story for it to be good.

Freddie Remza: Read dialogue aloud to be sure it sounds natural.

Dixon Rice: Find ways to get extra eyes on your work before it’s submitted or published – but not anyone you sleep with.

Linda Robinson: How to cook a novel: stir together a house of lives, a lot of love, tons of troubles, wonderful words, and a rash of revisions, then 'beat' well and bake until done.

These one-sentence tips will continue Friday and Saturday. Tomorrow’s featured folks are J.T. Sather, Paul M. Schofield, awesome Laura Schultz, lit agent Michael Snell and screenwriter Mike Snyder.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part III

This is Day Three of One-Sentence Writing Tips Week, with FB writers and other book lovers offering concise writing or publishing suggestions. (I’m going to let Lucinda slide on the extra periods, just because I’m that kinda guy.)

L.C. Hayden: Never say never.

Danny Johnson: Go ahead and leave that manuscript in the drawer -- your children will sell it when you're gone.

Vickie Johnstone: Set your imagination free.

Fifi Leigh: Expose the truth through an educational but fictional story.

Lucinda Hawks Moebius: The. Best way. To be a better writer is to write.

These one-sentence tips will continue all week. Tomorrow’s glory belongs to Jackie Pelham, Jimmy Pudge, Freddie Remza, Linda Robinson and yours truly.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part II

This is Day Two of One-Sentence Writing Tips Week - Facebook writers and other book lovers boiling down their writing or publishing suggestions into one simple sentence. Okay, sometimes a compound sentence.

Jonnie Comet: No good writers are purely Romantic since they believe in the hard work of critiquing, editing, and revising; all art is deliberate and that’s what makes it 'art.'

J.M. Cornwell: Read, listen, write, and read some more.

Valerie Douglas: Just write!

Jacquelynn Gagne: Books are judged by their covers and writers by our words.

Linda Lee Greene: Get your head out of your arus and use your thesaurus!

These one-sentence tips will continue all week. Tomorrow’s turn in the barrel: LC Hayden, Danny Johnson, Vickie Johnstone, Fifi Leigh and Lucinda Hawks Moebius.

One-Sentence Writing Tips, Part I

I invited Facebook writers and other book lovers to share their concise suggestions for achieving literary glory. Or at least getting published somewhere, somehow. Whatever. Their one-sentence writing tips will appear here all week.

J.C. Andrijeski: When it comes to writing, don't listen to other people...except when you really need to listen to other people.

Maxine Arnold: Finish, finish, finish.

Greta Burroughs: There's more to being a writer than just writing a book.

Lynne Cantwell: Read – a lot.

Connie Travisano Colon: Never let the reader detect you or it will bring them out of your story.

On Part II tomorrow, we’ll hear from Jonnie Comet, J.M. Cornwell, Valerie Douglas, Jacquelynn Gagne and Linda Lee Greene.

Saying for Writers #155 - Leigh Brackett

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Plot is people. Human emotions and desires founded on the realities of life, working at cross purposes, getting hotter and fiercer as they strike against each other until finally there’s an explosion — that’s Plot.” — Leigh Brackett

The Montana Rockies captured by friend Sherri Gerek.

One-Sentence Writing Tips from my Facebook friends will be featured here on the Wredheaded Writer blog all next week -- if you feel inspired, there's still room for more.

Saying for Writers #154 - Annie Dillard

A Quote which Might (or Might Not) Inspire You to Write:

“Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now.” — Annie Dillard