The quick pain of truth can pass away, but the slow eating agony of a lie is never lost.
Abandon the idea that you are ever going to finish. Lose track of the 400 pages and write just one page for each day; it helps. Then, when it gets finished, you are always surprised.
- Topic: Persistence, Writing
- Photo: Jeffrey Benjamin
More Quotes from John Steinbeck
Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.
Man, unlike any other thing organic or inorganic in the universe, grows beyond his work, walks up the stairs of his concepts, emerges ahead of his accomplishments.
This is the law: The purpose of fighting is to win. There is no possible victory in defense. The sword is more important than the shield and skill is more important than either. The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental.
It is a hard thing to leave any deeply routined life, even if you hate it.
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We can do anything we want to if we stick to it long enough.
The secret of success is conviction and persistence.
Against all odds and despite all the obstacles, we are going to make it.
Continuous effort — not strength or intelligence — is the key to unlocking our potential.
Money grows on the tree of persistence.
Once you say you're going to settle for second, that's what happens to you in life.
Real excellence does not come cheaply. A certain price must be paid in terms of practice, patience, and persistence—natural ability notwithstanding.
Every word has consequences. Every silence, too.
If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write.
I kept always two books in my pocket: one to read, one to write in.
A good writer possesses not only his own spirit but also the spirit of his friends.
Read, read, read. Never stop reading. And when you can't read anymore… write.
