Goal Quote by Jane Smiley

You can't really succeed with a novel anyway; they're too big. It's like city planning. You can't plan a perfect city because there's too…

— Gore Vidal

The hard part about writing a novel is finishing it.

— Ernest Hemingway

You have this ambition to make something perfect, exactly right. Of course, necessarily, it fails in some way and you have to accept that…

— Gregory Crewdson

“Novel writing is mostly triage (this now, that later) and obstinacy. Trying something, and when that doesn't work, trying something else. Welcoming clutter Surrendering…

— Richard Russo

Maybe other writers have perfect first drafts, but I am not one of them. I always try to get the book as tight as…

— Sarah Dessen

“After writing, there is the letting go part. Perfection is a myth; as we all get better by day. Allow yourself to grow in…

— Uma Nnenna

Many writers are afraid of writing something bad, so they dont try or give up when their efforts dont lead to a masterpiece right…

— Lauren Tarshis

Every first draft sucks, so when you have your favorite novel, and you're like, 'Wow, this is a masterpiece,' and then you write your…

— Tomi Adeyemi

Perfection is an unattainable goal. It isn't going to be perfect. Just get words down on paper, and when you stumble to what you…

— Laurell K. Hamilton

When you are young, hone your craft and write shorter pieces instead of novels, because it's really hard to finish a novel.

— Laini Taylor

Novel writing, like so many things in life, is an iterative process. You come at it again and again, working at it like you…

— Kameron Hurley

If you're having trouble finishing a book, it might be that you're trying to fix it as you go. Just finish the story, no…

— Kimberly Willis Holt