E. L. Doctorow once said that "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." You don't have to see where you're going, you don't have to see your destination or everything you will pass along the way. You just have to see two or three feet ahead of you. This is right up there with the best advice about writing, or life, I have ever heard.
– Anne Lamott
The connection she establishes with me (the reader) is mind-blowing. And her wit is stupendous. I find myself laughing out loud on more than one occasion, as I read the book.
And of course, scattered throughout are gold nuggets of wisdom which I hope my mind has somehow clawed on to and will regurgitate back to me when I need it.
That our project has crashed is not a reflection of our worth as human beings. It's just a mistake. It's a problem - and a problem can be solved.
– Steven Pressfield
The hard part is framing the problem. If and when we can frame it, it stops being a monster. It stops being an unknown. This is obviously easier said than done.
But it is important. It is not a character flaw that is exhibited in the failure of the project. You do not need to move to the Himalayas and meditate on your sins and come back wiser. Shit happens.
Frame the problem. From being an unknown, it becomes well defined.
Now, solve it.
True discipline is remembering and recovering - inventing if necessary - what interests you. If it doesn't interest you, how could it possibly interest anyone else?
— Verlyn Klinkenborg
A great rule for what to write about. A great rule for what to work on. A great rule for what kinda work I should be doing in my company.
So many books to read. So many authors and books that I have never heard about. Previously, I used to get overwhelmed by it. Now, I am just excited. There's an endless treasure trove that I can dive into for the rest of my life.
If that's not the best news in the world, I don't know what is.