It's not a matter of learning lines. It's a matter of getting into the ideas and the will of the person. It's a matter of, 'What does he want to do? What does he want to achieve?'
Max Von SydowRead
I have a vast 'bone pile' of stillborn or abandoned poems along with jottings and wisps from the great beyond that I tend to scan. Sometimes that leads somewhere, and sometimes the Muse is just on sabbatical.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Creativity involves many failed attempts and inspiration that may come and go.
Maxine Kumin's quote reflects the reality of the creative process, emphasizing that artists often produce many unsatisfactory works, akin to a 'bone pile' of poems that never fully come to life. It highlights the unpredictable nature of inspiration, where sometimes creativity flows freely, while at other times, the artist may feel a lack of motivation or creative block, suggesting that both persistence and patience are essential in the pursuit of artistic expression.
Themes
CreativityInspirationPoetryProcessFailure
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared in a writing workshop to encourage aspiring poets.
Similar quotes
I never plot out my novels in terms of the tone of the book. Hopefully, once a story is begun it reveals itself
Alice HoffmanRead
When a man understands the art of seeing, he can trace the spirit of an age and the features of a king even in the knocker on a door.
Victor HugoRead
Leave America and you'll find that the consumers in many other countries enjoy watching advertising. Not because the products are better, but because the ads are produced to be entertaining. Sometimes they are funny. Sometimes they are dramatic. Sometimes they are just beautiful.
Simon SinekRead
There are wonderfully talented actresses. It's a really rich field. There isn't as rich a field of material.
Meryl StreepRead
The default mode of modern writing about art is to despise any notion of singularity as so much overheated genius-fetishism.
Simon SchamaRead