1. "The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress" - Philip Roth
Why it matters-
If you never finish writing and resist showing it to anyone out of fear, you are in the wrong business. I know it’s scary. I also know starting that next project, instead of finishing the one you’re on, is so much more appealing—but don’t do it. Resist. For accomplishing a goal is the best way to lead yourself into tackling another.
2. "We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master." - Ernest Hemingway
Why it matters-
As you sit there telling yourself that your work is crap, you are ignoring the fact that every single author is on a journey. Treat yourself like a young student. I will bet you would never tell a child they are stupid when they are trying to learn (or you really shouldn’t), so why beat yourself up about it? Remind yourself that authors, even Hemingway, always have something new to learn until they leave us. That includes you, so get learning!
3. "If I had not existed someone else would have written me, Hemingway, Dostoyevsky, all of us." - William Faulkner
Why it matters-
I think we all dream of writing something so epic that it lasts forever. At times, nothing we come up with seems original enough. We get excited about a story, tell a loved one, and they inevitably say something like, “that reminds me of”. How disappointing! I can almost hear your balloon of excitement deflating. Your loved ones aren’t trying to discourage you, they just live in a world of story. The human experience has a clear pattern, and that’s what we use to create stories. Every story has already been told; every story but yours. You are what makes the story unique, not the plot.
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