Don't ever write just for a trend or fad, because it's a moving target, and by the time you get your work out there, the trend or fad is gone. Dig deep; don't be afraid to write fiercely. Expose your heart.
Jane YolenRead
If you give up at the first rejection or the first bad review, you will never make it in publishing.
Interpretation
Perseverance in the face of rejection is crucial for success.
This quote emphasizes the importance of resilience in the journey towards success, particularly in the field of publishing. Jane Yolen suggests that facing setbacks, such as rejection or negative feedback, is a natural part of the process and that giving up too soon will prevent one from achieving their goals.
In practice
During a motivational speech for aspiring writers.
Don't ever write just for a trend or fad, because it's a moving target, and by the time you get your work out there, the trend or fad is gone. Dig deep; don't be afraid to write fiercely. Expose your heart.
I don't care whether the story is real or fantastical. I tell the story that needs to be told.
What makes a good book? Scholars and critics have been debating that question for decades. I like books that touch my head and my heart at the same time.
Just write. If you have to make a choice, if you say, 'Oh well, I'm going to put the writing away until my children are grown,' then you don't really want to be a writer. If you want to be a writer, you do your writing... If you don't do it, you probably don't want to be a writer, you just want to have written and be famous—which is very different.
I believe that culture begins in the cradle . . .To do without tales and stories and books is to lose humanity's past, is to have no star map for our future.
Childrens books change lives. Stories pour into the hearts of children and help make them what they become.
If you don't give up, you still have a chance. And when you are small, you have to be very focused and rely on your brain, not your strength.
I don't know. Only God knows where the story ends for me, but I know where the story begins. It's up to us to choose, whether we win or lose and I choose to win.
If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.
My motivation is tomorrow, just one day at a time, right?
If you scared to take chances, you'll never have the answers...
You get what you think about, whether you want it or not. Commit to thinking about what you want, rather than how impossible or difficult that dream may seem.
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