After I won the Newbery Medal for 'From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,' children all over the world let me know that they liked books that take them to unusual places where they meet unusual people.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Finish. The difference between being a writer and being a person of talent is the discipline it takes to apply the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair and finish. Don't talk about doing it. Do it. Finish.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Discipline and action are key to achieving your goals, especially in writing.
This quote by E. L. Konigsburg emphasizes that talent alone is not enough to succeed; it requires the discipline to commit to the task and see it through to completion. Rather than merely discussing intentions or plans, the focus should be on taking concrete actions and finishing what one starts, highlighting the importance of perseverance in any creative endeavor.
Themes
DisciplineWritingFinishTalentAction
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, to encourage participants to complete their stories.
More from E. L. Konigsburg
All quotes →The essential problems remain the same... The kids I write about are asking for the same things I wanted. They want two contradictory things. They want to be the same as everyone else, and they want to be different from everyone else. They want acceptance for both.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
I'm not sure that love and like aren't like cats and dogs: One can't grow up to be the other, but they can be taught to live under the same roof.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
I think most of us are outsiders. And I think that's good because it makes you question things.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Art comes from a visceral need and is usually generated by something I have seen; writing comes from something that happens in my head and my heart.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Every now and then, a person must do something simply because he wants to, because it seems to him worth doing. And that does not make it worthless or a waste of time.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Similar quotes
Coach Graham rode you pretty hard, didn't he?" he said. I could barely muster a "yeah." That's a good thing," the assistant told me. When you're screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore, it means they've given up on you.
Randy PauschRead
You seldom, if ever, get lucky sitting down.
Zig ZiglarRead
You become what you believe. You are where you are today in your life based on everything you have believed.
Oprah WinfreyRead
Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand - and melting like a snowflake.
Francis BaconRead
Difficulty, my brethren, is the nurse of greatness - a harsh nurse, who roughly rocks her foster children into strength and athletic proportion.
William C. BryantRead
Most of us have never allowed ourselves to want what we truly want because we can't see how it's going to manifest.
Jack CanfieldRead