Unfinished manuscripts are the bane of many writers’
business. Don’t ask us how many nearly complete NaNoWriMo (National Novel
Writing Month) novels or potential bestsellers are gathering dust on our desks.
You surely don’t want to hear about the flurry of first drafts that lie fallow
in our file cabinets.
Finishing is everything, when it comes to good writing.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), a famous American
poet, summed this concept up neatly:
“Great
is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending.”
Longfellow’s most
famous works included Evangeline, Paul Revere's Ride, The Song of Hiawatha and The Wreck of the Hesperus.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was one of the Fireside Poets
group, which apparently also included William Cullen Bryant, Oliver Wendell
Holmes, James Russell Lowell, and John Greenleaf Whittier.
Classic wordsmith Longfellow offered another piece of wise advice
for writing (or any life pursuit), when he said this:
“A
single conversation across the table with a wise man is better than ten years
mere study of books.”
Mentoring makes a massive impact, especially when one has
the opportunity to learn from a masterful writer. Wouldn’t we all love such a
chance?
Image/s:
A to Z Blogging Challenge
promo logo – fair use
Graphic adapted from
public domain image
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Truer words on writing have probably never been said! I love starting things, the first few sentences especially, because all the possibility in the world is right there.
ReplyDeleteAnd then you tighten and tighten, and this thing is trying to take shape, and it gets all the tougher.