---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So, it's a continual process of trial and…"
description: "\"So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I find things and I throw it out and start again, but I keep writing it over again.\" — Edward ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png"
---

#  So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I…

![“So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I find things and I throw it out and start again, but I keep writing it over again.” quote by Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png)

> “So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I find things and I throw it out and start again, but I keep writing it over again.”

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Creative work involves continual trial, error, and revision.

**In simple terms:** Writing is a cycle of trying and re‑trying.

Key Takeaway

Embrace iterative process.

Themes

creativity process perseverance

Mood

inspirational realistic

Type

creative motivational

When to use this quote

- writing workshops
- product development
- research experiments

Key Concepts

literary theory self‑reflection

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you handle repeated failure?
- What keeps you motivated to restart?

A Different Perspective

May cause frustration and burnout.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Continual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/continual/) [Continual Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/continual-process-1703116/) [Error Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/error-things-3599665/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Trial and error](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trial-and-error/) [Trials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trials/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [Life is a continual process of remaking ourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-a-continual-process-of-remaking-ourselves/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life is a continual process of arrival into who we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-popova/life-is-a-continual-process-of-arrival-into-who-we-are/)

[Maria Popova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-popova/)

> [“Development never truly ends, as our brains evolved to evolve...we are adapted to adapt, to continually redefine normality, transforming ones space of possibility with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beau-lotto/development-never-truly-ends-as-our-brains-evolved-to-evolve-we-are/)

[Beau Lotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beau-lotto/)

> [Ideas do not always come in a flash but by diligent trial-and-error experiments that take time and thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-k-kao/ideas-do-not-always-come-in-a-flash-but-by-diligent-trial-and-error/)

[Charles K. Kao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-k-kao/)

> [You show me a successful complex system, and I will show you a system that has evolved through trial and error.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-harford/you-show-me-a-successful-complex-system-and-i-will-show-you-a-system/)

[Tim Harford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-harford/)

> [I do have more directorial control over animation, because it's like trial and error: If something doesn't work, you can always go back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mamoru-oshii/i-do-have-more-directorial-control-over-animation-because-it-s-like/)

[Mamoru Oshii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mamoru-oshii/)

> [ Only ... from personal experience \[can a man\] take the necessary measures without a preliminary process of trial and error. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-donitz/only-from-personal-experience-can-a-man-take-the-necessary-measures/)

[Karl Donitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-donitz/)

> [In contrast, markets - oft mythologized as "natural" are the most unnatural things going. Libertarians will tell you "market laws are laws of nature",…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/in-contrast-markets-oft-mythologized-as-natural-are-the-most/)

[David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/)

> [Starting a startup is a process of trial and error. What guided the founders through this process was their empathy for the users. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-livingston/starting-a-startup-is-a-process-of-trial-and-error-what-guided-the/)

[Jessica Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-livingston/)

> [You still want to be thoughtful about what you do, no doubt, but you have to learn through trial-and-error experimentation as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/you-still-want-to-be-thoughtful-about-what-you-do-no-doubt-but-you/)

[Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/)

> [The fossil record implies trial and error, the inability to anticipate the future, features inconsistent with a Great Designer (though not a Designer of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-fossil-record-implies-trial-and-error-the-inability-to-anticipate/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [Cities are an immense laboratory of trial and error, failure and success, in city building and city design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/cities-are-an-immense-laboratory-of-trial-and-error-failure-and/)

[Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/)

> [You don't learn from a situation where you do something well. You enjoy it and you give yourself credit, but you don't really learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-farrell/you-don-t-learn-from-a-situation-where-you-do-something-well-you/)

[Suzanne Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-farrell/)

> [science progresses by trial and error, and when it is forbidden to admit error there can be no progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/science-progresses-by-trial-and-error-and-when-it-is-forbidden-to/)

[Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/)

> [Effective leaders are made, not born. They learn from trial and error, and from experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/effective-leaders-are-made-not-born-they-learn-from-trial-and-error/)

[Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/)

## More by Edward Hirsch

> [And my experience is the best titles, for me, emerge in the process of writing. They don't usually come at the very beginning and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/and-my-experience-is-the-best-titles-for-me-emerge-in-the-process-of/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [“I did not know the work of mourning Is like carrying a bag of cement Up a mountain at night The mountaintop is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-did-not-know-the-work-of-mourning-is-like-carrying-a-bag-of-cement/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [“Fall" Fall, falling, fallen. That’s the way the season Changes its tense in the long-haired maples That dot the road; the veiny hand-shaped leaves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/fall-fall-falling-fallen-that-s-the-way-the-season-changes-its-tense/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [I find great consolation in having a lot of poetry books around. I believe that writing poetry and reading it are deeply intertwined. I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-find-great-consolation-in-having-a-lot-of-poetry-books-around-i/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [I had feelings that I didn't know what to do with, and I felt better when I started writing them. I thought of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-had-feelings-that-i-didn-t-know-what-to-do-with-and-i-felt-better/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [I think in terms of educating a group of readers, MFA programs are very good. I just think the model of MFA programs in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-think-in-terms-of-educating-a-group-of-readers-mfa-programs-are/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [“Jonson wrote a poem and called his son His best piece of poetrie A lovely line a little loathsome I loved that poem once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/jonson-wrote-a-poem-and-called-his-son-his-best-piece-of-poetrie-a/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [After my grandfather died I went down to the basement of my family house where my family kept books, anthologies and things and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/after-my-grandfather-died-i-went-down-to-the-basement-of-my-family/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [It does demand a certain space in order to read it and I think that space is somewhat threatened by the lack of attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/it-does-demand-a-certain-space-in-order-to-read-it-and-i-think-that/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [...I put down these memorandums of my affections in honor of tenderness, in honor of all of those who have been conscripted into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-put-down-these-memorandums-of-my-affections-in-honor-of-tenderness/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [Poetry is a vocation. It is not a career but a calling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/poetry-is-a-vocation-it-is-not-a-career-but-a-calling/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [You're shadowed by your own dream, especially as you get older, of trying to create something that will last in poetry. And so, you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/you-re-shadowed-by-your-own-dream-especially-as-you-get-older-of/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [The attention deficit disorder of the culture is very distressing in America now and I think it puts a lot of things at risk,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/the-attention-deficit-disorder-of-the-culture-is-very-distressing-in/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [Now, as I've gotten older I've been able to write more quickly. Sometimes I get in the space of something and I can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/now-as-i-ve-gotten-older-i-ve-been-able-to-write-more-quickly/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [Poetry takes courage because you have to face things and you try to articulate how you feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/poetry-takes-courage-because-you-have-to-face-things-and-you-try-to/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

[Explore all 222 Edward Hirsch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

## More Errors quotes

> [It is easier to perceive error than to find truth, for the former lies on the surface and is easily seen, while the latter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-easier-to-perceive-error-than-to-find-truth-for-the-former-lies/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Effective leaders are made, not born. They learn from trial and error, and from experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/effective-leaders-are-made-not-born-they-learn-from-trial-and-error/)

[Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/)

> [“I saw the errors I had made and assumed full responsibility for everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-saw-the-errors-i-had-made-and-assumed-full-responsibility-for/)

[Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/)

> [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/)

[Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/)

> [It is an error common to many artists, who strive merely to avoid mistakes, when all our efforts should be to create positive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-steichen/it-is-an-error-common-to-many-artists-who-strive-merely-to-avoid/)

[Edward Steichen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-steichen/)

> [Truth is error burned up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-o-brown/truth-is-error-burned-up/)

[Norman O. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-o-brown/)

> [But a most pernicious error widely prevails that Scripture has only so much weight as is conceded to it by the consent of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/but-a-most-pernicious-error-widely-prevails-that-scripture-has-only/)

[John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/)

> [An important finding is that by determining the genome sequences of an entire family, one can identify many DNA sequencing errors and thus greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/an-important-finding-is-that-by-determining-the-genome-sequences-of/)

[Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/)

> [It is often sadly remarked that the bad economists present their errors to the public better than the good economists present their truths. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-hazlitt/it-is-often-sadly-remarked-that-the-bad-economists-present-their/)

[Henry Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-hazlitt/)

> [Developing fewer features allows you to conserve development resources and spend more time refining those features that users really need. Fewer features mean fewer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/developing-fewer-features-allows-you-to-conserve-development/)

[Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/)

> [Tachyon OPC+ is a natural extension of our market-winning Tachyon platform, giving customers a clear path to minimizing the OPC error budget and producing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/tachyon-opc-is-a-natural-extension-of-our-market-winning-tachyon/)

[Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/)

> [It is not to everyone's taste that truth should be pronounced pleasant. But at least let no one believe that error becomes truth when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-not-to-everyone-s-taste-that-truth-should-be-pronounced/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [To avoid being drawn into error, keep a firm grip on the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/to-avoid-being-drawn-into-error-keep-a-firm-grip-on-the-truth/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [Over immense periods of time the intellect produced nothing but errors. A few of these proved to be useful and helped to preserve the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/over-immense-periods-of-time-the-intellect-produced-nothing-but/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [But to me all sciences seem vain and full of error that are not born of experience, mother of all certainty, and do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/but-to-me-all-sciences-seem-vain-and-full-of-error-that-are-not-born/)

[Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/)

[Browse all 2,404 Errors quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I find things and I throw it out and start again, but I keep writing it over again.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Edward Hirsch"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and-error-and-then-i-find-things/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Errors"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and-error-and-then-i-find-things/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/edward-hirsch-1614_errors_so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and_2822453.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“So, it's a continual process of trial and error and then I find things and I throw it out and start again…” — Edward Hirsch",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Edward Hirsch",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "So, it's a continual process of...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and-error-and-then-i-find-things/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/so-it-s-a-continual-process-of-trial-and-error-and-then-i-find-things/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```