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Wednesday

Quintilian: Famous writers from A to Z on writing




Here’s a quirky question for writers. How quickly do you crank out copy? Do you believe the speed at which you ply your proverbial quill to construct quantity can affect quality?



Consider this quote from the First Century BC Classical Roman writer and speaker Marcus Fabius Quintilian (also known as Quintilianus), who authored such famous works as the Institutes of Oratory (Institutionis Oratoriae):

“Write quickly and you will never write well; write well, and you will soon write quickly.”

On the other hand, Quintilian didn’t exactly espouse procrastination or dawdling. Here’s another telling quote:

“Whilst we deliberate how to begin a thing, it grows too late to begin it.”

It seems, at least according to Quintilian, that the blank page should not stay blank for long, but a skilled writer won’t fill it too hastily, either.


Image/s:
A to Z Blogging Challenge promo logo – fair use
Graphic adapted from public domain image

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1 comment:

  1. Yes...I agree completely ....and yes again, experiencing this everyday...during this challenge !!
    Maya Varde from
    About books and certain other things

    ReplyDelete

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