--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All attempts at gaining literary polish…" description: "\"All attempts at gaining literary polish must begin with judicious reading, and the learner must never cease to hold this phase uppermost. In many cases..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/h-p-lovecraft-1408_books_all-attempts-at-gaining-literary-polish_303413.jpg" --- # All attempts at gaining literary polish must begin with… ![“All attempts at gaining literary polish must begin with judicious reading, and the learner must never cease to hold this phase uppermost. In many cases, the usage of good authors will be found a more effective guide than any amount of precept.” quote by H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/h-p-lovecraft-1408_books_all-attempts-at-gaining-literary-polish_303413.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/h-p-lovecraft-1408_books_all-attempts-at-gaining-literary-polish_303413.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/h-p-lovecraft-1408_books_all-attempts-at-gaining-literary-polish_303413.jpg) > “All attempts at gaining literary polish must begin with judicious reading, and the learner must never cease to hold this phase uppermost. In many cases, the usage of good authors will be found a more effective guide than any amount of precept.” [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Improving writing skill hinges on reading quality literature and keeping that practice as a priority over other methods. **In simple terms:** Read good books to become a better writer. Key Takeaway Read widely, keep learning. Themes writing learning literary development Mood reflective inspirational Type advice literary When to use this quote - writing workshops - self‑study - literature courses - editing practice Key Concepts reading modeling skill acquisition Questions to Reflect On - How do you choose which authors to emulate? - What balance between reading and writing works for you? A Different Perspective Reading alone cannot replace active writing practice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Good authors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-authors/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) ## Related quotes > [The good author is he who contemplates without marked joy or excessive sorrow the adventures of his soul amongst criticisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-good-author-is-he-who-contemplates-without-marked-joy-or/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Good authors mature over time: it does take awhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-k-morgan/good-authors-mature-over-time-it-does-take-awhile/) [Richard K. Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-k-morgan/) > [There are so many good authors; there's no shortage of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-calment/there-are-so-many-good-authors-there-s-no-shortage-of-them/) [Jeanne Calment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-calment/) > [Let us hope that good authors who are bad Christians will find salvation through the books they write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julien-green/let-us-hope-that-good-authors-who-are-bad-christians-will-find/) [Julien Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julien-green/) > [You don't expect me to know what to say about a play when I don't know who the author is, do you? . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-don-t-expect-me-to-know-what-to-say-about-a-play-when-i-don-t/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I think I have done well, if I have acquired a new word from a good author; and my business with him is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-think-i-have-done-well-if-i-have-acquired-a-new-word-from-a-good/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Fundamentally a good author has his or her own sense of style. There is a natural, deep voice, and that voice is present from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/fundamentally-a-good-author-has-his-or-her-own-sense-of-style-there/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [I think a diversity of expression can only be good, so I think the more that people write about their experience, use their imagination…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-powers/i-think-a-diversity-of-expression-can-only-be-good-so-i-think-the/) [Kevin Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-powers/) > [Good authors mature over time: it does take awhile. Travel abroad and learn to live in other cultures. That's one of the things about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-k-morgan/good-authors-mature-over-time-it-does-take-awhile-travel-abroad-and/) [Richard K. Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-k-morgan/) > [For such kind of borrowing as this, if it be not bettered by the borrowers, among good authors is accounted Plagiarè.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/for-such-kind-of-borrowing-as-this-if-it-be-not-bettered-by-the/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [A good author, and one who writes carefully, often discovers that the expression of which he has been in search without being able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/a-good-author-and-one-who-writes-carefully-often-discovers-that-the/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [There is bad in all good authors: what a pity the converse isn't true!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/there-is-bad-in-all-good-authors-what-a-pity-the-converse-isn-t-true/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but that's the only way you can do anything really good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/get-it-down-take-chances-it-may-be-bad-but-that-s-the-only-way-you/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [Good authors, too, who once knew better words Now use only four-letter words Writing prose - Anything goes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-porter/good-authors-too-who-once-knew-better-words-now-use-only-four-letter/) [Cole Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-porter/) > [“An attentive reader will always learn more, and more quickly, from good authors than from life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herv-le-tellier/an-attentive-reader-will-always-learn-more-and-more-quickly-from-good/) [Hervé Le Tellier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herv-le-tellier/) ## More by H. P. Lovecraft > [It is the night-black Massachusetts legendry which packs the really macabre "kick". Here is material for a really profound study in group-neuroticism; for certainly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-is-the-night-black-massachusetts-legendry-which-packs-the-really/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [“Sounds—possibly musical—heard in the night from other worlds or realms of being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/sounds-possibly-musical-heard-in-the-night-from-other-worlds-or/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Very few minds are strictly normal, and all religious fanatics are marked with abnormalities of various sorts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/very-few-minds-are-strictly-normal-and-all-religious-fanatics-are/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism & Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-s-not-a-bad-idea-to-call-this-cthulhuism-yog-sothothery-of-mine/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [The appeal of the spectrally macabre is generally narrow because it demands from the reader a certain degree of imagination and a capacity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/the-appeal-of-the-spectrally-macabre-is-generally-narrow-because-it/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [There are probably seven persons, in all, who really like my work; and they are enough. I should write even if I were the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/there-are-probably-seven-persons-in-all-who-really-like-my-work-and/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Nothing is really typical of my efforts... I'm simply casting about for better ways to crystallise and capture certain strong impressions (involving the elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/nothing-is-really-typical-of-my-efforts-i-m-simply-casting-about-for/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Thus I began my systematic though half-bewildered tour of Innsmouth's narrow, shadow-blighted ways. Crossing the bridge and turning toward the roar of the lower…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/thus-i-began-my-systematic-though-half-bewildered-tour-of-innsmouth-s/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Of what use is it to please the herd? They are simply coarse animals - for all that is admirable in man is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/of-what-use-is-it-to-please-the-herd-they-are-simply-coarse-animals/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [“How little does the earth self know life and its extent! How little, indeed, ought it to know for its own tranquility!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/how-little-does-the-earth-self-know-life-and-its-extent-how-little/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [The trees grew too thickly, and their trunks were too big for any healthy New England wood. There was too much silence in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/the-trees-grew-too-thickly-and-their-trunks-were-too-big-for-any/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Plots may be simple or complex, but suspense, and climactic progress from one incident to another, are essential. Every incident in a fictional work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/plots-may-be-simple-or-complex-but-suspense-and-climactic-progress/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Searchers after horror haunt strange, far places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/searchers-after-horror-haunt-strange-far-places/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Cosmic terror appears as an ingredient of the earliest folklore of all races and is crystallised in the most archaic ballads, chronicles, and sacred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/cosmic-terror-appears-as-an-ingredient-of-the-earliest-folklore-of/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Truth is of no practical value to mankind save as it affects terrestrial phenomena, hence the discoveries of science should be concealed or glossed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/truth-is-of-no-practical-value-to-mankind-save-as-it-affects/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) [Explore all 244 H. P. Lovecraft quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "All attempts at gaining literary polish must begin with judicious reading, and the learner must never cease to hold this phase uppermost. In many cases, the usage of good authors will be found a more effective guide than any amount of precept.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "H. P. 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