Quotes have always been a big thing in my life, they have always been like a moment suspended in time, like a clearing of the clouded water and given me a moment of thought. A moment to catch my breath and look into myself, as if that person is speaking to me personally. I love quotes, the ones that make you think, or that leave you in an awe of its profoundness. They always feel so intimate, as if it was written just for you. I feel that is why people often get quotes tattooed on their bodies or paint them across their walls.
As a writer quotes are like an old friend, someone you revisit from time to time, who always know the right thing to say when you need it most. Some authors have a gift for creating such friends, and there are a few I live by, and always come back to when I need them.
"Do not go gentle into that good night, rage, rage against the dying of the light."
This quote was written by Dylan Thomas for his father who was battling cancer. I fell in love with this quote while reading the book Matched by Ally Condie, and have always kept it with me when I needed something to inspire me. (At one point I was going to get it as a tattoo! Still might!) When times are rough and things get dark, always keep fighting, no matter how tired or sick you may be. Rage against quitting, against failing, against society and anyone else who tells you not to follow your dreams! You are that light, and you are the only one who can't keep it from being snuffed out.
"Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by poetry and literature."
This quote was spoken by Cassandra Clare, author of the Infernal Devices, Mortal Instruments, and Dark Artifices. When I read something that blows my mind, I always run around wanting to share it, wanting to show people and have them feel as I did when I read it. Ninety percent of the time they say 'oh, that's nice.' And I tell myself that it's okay because I am privileged to be moved so much by art. Some people don't get to see emotions from a single sentence, and that's sad, but do not doubt yourself! Be grateful for your love of the written word, that something so small can move you because it means you live passionately, and fully.
"There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."
This Quote is written by the infamous Ernest Hemingway, which I think everyone has heard of. This saying speaks to me on such a personal level because I always felt like the writing I did when I was sad or upset, was always my best. Whenever I felt like I was bleeding because of my pain, or writing a sad scene in a book, I always felt like my emotions were actually being conjured from my fingers into the letters. Bottom line is- don't be afraid to bleed, to write what you are most passionate about, even if you think it might make others uncomfortable, or sad, or angry, write it. Someone will want to read it.
"Keep your face toward the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you."
This quote was written by Walt Whitman- an amazing man. When being a writer and being an author, you will make mistakes and you will probably piss people off. How you feel isn't always what other's beliefs and writing I feel is like putting yourself in the hands of others and letting them devour you as they please. So Keep your face to the sunshine, to the positive, and don't focus so much on the bad. There will always be dark times, and shadows following you, but if you focus on the sun, they will always just fall behind you.
I hope some of these quotes helped with motivating you to write, or gave you a little boost of encouragement if you were needing it. I always believe in helping one another, and whether these authors knew it, a lot of them have been helping writers like me with there words since I can remember, and they will help others long after they are all gone.