“Never say never.”
Charles Dickens

A few words of wisdom from well-known writers about writing…

At this point in time, having just published my seventh book, A Bahamian Odyssey, I’m fairly certain that this will be my last book. When I was younger, I had a “bucket list” item of writing and publishing a book some day. Now that I’ve accomplished this goal seven times, I think I’ve said all I want to say. Despite my certainty about this, however, I’m reminded by the great author Charles Dickens to “Never say never.”

Prior to publishing any of my books, I don’t think I had a specific motivation for my desire to write and publish. It was just something I wanted to do. Through my writing journey, I’ve come to a clear understanding of what motivates me to write. I mentioned this in the Introduction to my book The Ambassador of 38th Avenue, where I quoted a line from John Steinbeck’s short story, Tularecito. In that piece, he wrote, “After the bare requisites of living and reproducing, man wants most to leave some record of himself, a proof, perhaps, that he really existed.” I can relate to this.

In his book, The Courage to Write: How Writers Transcend Fear, author Ralph Keyes reaffirms this belief. He tells us, “One of the most fundamental of human fears is that our existence will go unnoticed.” Of course, publishing any number of books is no guarantee that a writer will be remembered, but it might increase the possibility.

For most writers, I would think, having a story to share would be the most basic reason for diving into the waters of writing and publishing. As William Faulkner once said, “If a story is in you, it has to come out.”  Poet Maya Angelou sounds a more urgent call. She wrote, “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

We all have a story to tell. We all have experiences which, if we took the time to write about them, might be of interest to others. Some of these stories might provide the insight and wisdom a reader needs to deal with something in his or her own life. In her book, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath, Ms. Plath states, “Everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it.” Yes, writing takes courage.

Chilean-American author Isabel Allende said quite simply, “Write what should not be forgotten.” This, perhaps, more than anything else, is what prompted me to write A Bahamian Odyssey.

In his book, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, legendary author Stephen King spells out pretty clearly what writing is and what it is not. He wrote, “Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it’s about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well.” It is certainly my hope that my writing, to some degree, has enriched the lives of those who have read what I’ve written. I know, for sure, that writing has enriched my own life.

W. Somerset Maugham was an English writer known for his plays, novels, and short stories. He once mentioned something I think is worth sharing. He wrote, “There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” In other words, there is no one, tried and true, failsafe recipe for writing a good book. Authors have tremendous freedom in how they present their stories. Recognizing this is liberating, because enables me to embrace the wisdom of John Steinbeck, who said, “And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.”

Author Jodi Picoult offers these simple words about getting started with writing your own story. She said, “You can’t edit a blank page.”