Good Writing

I came across this on Google+ and had to repost it. Good advice from Amanda Patterson.

1. “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very’; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” ~ Mark Twain

2. “If writing seems hard, it’s because it is hard. It’s one of the hardest things people do.” ~ William Zinsser

3. “Writing well means never having to say, ‘I guess you had to be there.’ ” ~ Jef Mallett

4. “Writing gives you the illusion of control, and then you realize it’s just an illusion, that people are going to bring their own stuff into it.” ~ David Sedaris

5. “There’s nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” ~ Red Smith

6. “Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia.” ~ E.L. Doctorow

7. “I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.” ~ James Michener

8. “Easy reading is damn hard writing.” ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne

9. “If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster.” ~ Isaac Asimov

10. “The road to hell is paved with adverbs.” ~ Stephen King

11. “Ink and paper are sometimes passionate lovers, oftentimes brother and sister, and occasionally mortal enemies.” ~ Terri Guillemets

12. “Write drunk, edit sober.” ~ Ernest Hemingway