To shift the structure of a sentence alters the meaning of that sentence, as definitely and inflexibly as the position of a camera alters the meaning of the object photographed.
Joan DidionRead
When I'm working on a book, I constantly retype my own sentences. Every day I go back to page one and just retype what I have. It gets me into a rhythm.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Revisiting and retyping your work helps create a writing rhythm.
Joan Didion emphasizes the importance of engaging with your own writing repeatedly in order to foster a natural flow and rhythm in the creative process. By revisiting the beginning of her work each day, she cultivates a deep familiarity with her sentences, helping her to maintain a cohesive style and momentum in her writing endeavors.
Themes
WritingCreativityPracticeEditingRhythm
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, the instructor quotes Didion to encourage students to embrace revision.
More from Joan Didion
All quotes →The truth is, it's easier for me to write than talk... to express the state I'm in at any time.
Joan DidionRead
Memories are what you no longer want to remember.
Joan DidionRead
It was clear, for example, in 1988 that the political process had already become perilously remote from the electorate it was meant to represent.
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I mean maybe I was holding all the aces, but what was the game?
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Do not whine... Do not complain. Work harder. Spend more time alone.
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Similar quotes
One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary, looking for long words because you're maybe a little bit ashamed of your short ones. This is like dressing up a household pet in evening clothes. The pet is embarrassed and the person who committed this act of premeditated cuteness should be even more embarrassed.
Stephen KingRead
As to the adjective: when in doubt, strike it out.
Mark TwainRead
You most likely need a thesaurus, a rudimentary grammar book, and a grip on reality. This latter means: there's no free lunch. Writing is work. It's also gambling. You don't get a pension plan. Other people can help you a bit, but essentially you're on your own. Nobody is making you do this: you chose it, so don't whine.
Margaret AtwoodRead
I consider the process of gestation just as important as when you're actually sitting down putting words to the paper.
Wole SoyinkaRead
Write the best book you can, the one that demands to be written, no matter what genre it is. Even a trend the trades tell you has gone stale can be revitalized by a superb piece of writing. It'll never be revitalized by someone jumping on a trend bandwagon.
Jonathan MaberryRead
If you interrupt the writing of fast narrative with too much introspection and self-criticism, you will be lucky if you write 500 words a day and you will be disgusted with them into the bargain. By following my formula, you write 2,000 words a day and you aren’t disgusted with them until the book is finished, which will be in about six weeks.
Ian FlemingRead