It's no secret that one of my guilty pleasures - although, can it be called guilty if everyone knows about it? - is Criminal Minds. Yes, the stories are sometimes gruesome and I still haven't quite forgiven them for killing off Hotche's ex-wife. But all in all I love the mind games they play. The figuring out of the crime.
What I love more than that are the quotes that the agents say at the beginning and end of each show. I like how those quotes tie in to the story...and I like knowing quotes. I'm kind of a geek that way. But as I was watching a few weeks ago I started thinking about my favorite writerly quotes.
I love the Nora Roberts saying, 'You can't edit a blank page..' Meaning, of course, that we need to write in order to do anything.
I get all *happy sigh* when I think about the Mark Twain quote, 'Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.' Because we all need to surround ourselves with people who, even if they think we're nuts, support us along the way.
And there is this from Pearl S. Buck, 'I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.'
But I think the quote I like the most is from Barbara Kingsolver, "Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer." Because isn't that the truth? We have to figure out what we have to say before we'll be able to do more than imitate.
Are you a quotation lover - whether about writing or life or...whatever? What's your favorite quote?
What I love more than that are the quotes that the agents say at the beginning and end of each show. I like how those quotes tie in to the story...and I like knowing quotes. I'm kind of a geek that way. But as I was watching a few weeks ago I started thinking about my favorite writerly quotes.
I love the Nora Roberts saying, 'You can't edit a blank page..' Meaning, of course, that we need to write in order to do anything.
I get all *happy sigh* when I think about the Mark Twain quote, 'Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.' Because we all need to surround ourselves with people who, even if they think we're nuts, support us along the way.
And there is this from Pearl S. Buck, 'I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.'
But I think the quote I like the most is from Barbara Kingsolver, "Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer." Because isn't that the truth? We have to figure out what we have to say before we'll be able to do more than imitate.
Are you a quotation lover - whether about writing or life or...whatever? What's your favorite quote?
I love quotations, but never remember any to be of use in conversations. I'd never heard of Buck's quote before...LOve it!
ReplyDeleteI can never remember them in conversation, either...it's usually later when the quotes hit me.
ReplyDeleteI can never remember them, either, though I like them really well. Writing-wise, Nora's blank page reference and "Don't give up. Never, never give up," or any paraphrase thereof are my favorites. Good subject, Kristi!
ReplyDeletethanks for coming by, Liz!
DeleteI am a quote lover! Here is one of my favorites:
ReplyDeleteThe future belongs to those who believe in their dreams. ~Eleanor Roosevelt
Great post, Kristina!
Love that one, Jennifer - thanks for stopping by!!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI'm a quote whore. If you look on my Pinterest page you'll see I have more quotes pinned than anything else. Hmmm. But to choose one? I just can't, but I'll give it a whirl.
ReplyDelete"Silence is golden but duct tape is silver" - Unknown
"How you climb up the mountain is just as important as how you get down the mountain. And so it is with life, which for many of us becomes one big gigantic test followed by one big gigantic lesson. In the end, it all comes down to one word. Grace. It's how you accept winning and losing, good luck and bad luck, the darkness and the light." - philosophy
If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. STEPHEN KING
I *love* the quote about climbing the mountain, Sharon! And I don't think I've heard that one. Thanks for sharing!!
DeleteI love Oscar Wilde's “I have spent most of the day putting in a comma and the rest of the day taking it out.” My deep empathy for this quote is because English is not my native language and grammar is a constant challenge for me.
ReplyDeleteThere's another quote I really like and I can't remember the exact wording, but its idea is: better regret something you've done, than regret something you didn't.
I love the regret quote, Denyse, it's on my list of favorites! Oscar was a wise, wise man. English *is* my first language, but years of bastardized TV journalism writing caused me to forget some of the basic rules. I *think* I've gotten them all now. ;)
DeleteI don't often think about quotes, but one I do remember and love is from Stephen King: “Good books don't give up all their secrets at once.” I also love the one by Nora Roberts you mentioned.
ReplyDeleteIntriguing post, Kristina!
Thank you, Mae! I like the King quote, too...I try to remember that while I'm peeling back the emotional layers of my hero and heroine.
DeleteExcellent topic. Two of mine are:
ReplyDelete"Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn't permanent." - Jean Kerr
and
“Doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt.” - Shakespeare
Love both of those, Allison - definite keepers! I don't think I've heard the one from Jean Kerr before. Thanks for sharing!!
DeleteI can't ever remember any, but I love to read them.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I think I should compile my favorite quotes in a book so I can flip through it whenever I want, D'Ann..
DeleteMy favorite personal saying is, "If it's to be, it's up to me." I don't know who first said it, but once I heard it - it stuck. It's been my mantra ever since.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great one, Sheri!
DeleteI keep a file on my computer of quotes I love and transfer some of them to a journal where I use them as writing prompts. My favorite varies. Right now it's between "Writing is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights but you make the whole trip that way." (E.L. Doctorow) and "Don't compromise yourself. You're all you've got." (Janis Joplin)
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've heard either of those, Peggy! Love them both, especially the one from Janis!
DeleteI have a quote I keep on my fridge: "Fear is that little darkroom where negatives are developed." Michael Pritchard. I've also seen it, "Fear is a darkroom where negatives are developed." Usman B. Asif. I don't know which one came first.
ReplyDeleteJust came across this one from one of my Fb friends. "To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong." Joseph Chilton Pearce. Man, I must be creative because I'm wrong a lot!
LOL, Carol, me, too. I love both of those quotes!
DeleteOne of my favorite quotes is from romance writer Judi McCoy: "You can fix crap; you can't fix nothing." You gotta write or you got nothing. Keeps me writing some days. Great post, Kristi!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jenna! Judi and Nora sound like they have a lot in common - we should take notes!! ;)
DeleteI just read one today via twitter by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson author): "And sharing a manuscript without revising it is like playing a guitar without tuning it. Really bad idea."
ReplyDelete