--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...the imagination works not so much…" description: "\"“...the imagination works not so much through inspiration as through perseverance. One must slog through the false starts, spot the wrong words and hol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/kathleen-norris-7283_creativity_the-imagination-works-not-so-much-throug_3065989.png" --- # ...the imagination works not so much through inspiration… ![“...the imagination works not so much through inspiration as through perseverance. One must slog through the false starts, spot the wrong words and hold out for the right ones, and above all, be vigilant about staying on the path of revision, no matter how uncomfortable or even painful the journey…” quote by Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/kathleen-norris-7283_creativity_the-imagination-works-not-so-much-throug_3065989.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/kathleen-norris-7283_creativity_the-imagination-works-not-so-much-throug_3065989.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/kathleen-norris-7283_creativity_the-imagination-works-not-so-much-throug_3065989.png) > ““...the imagination works not so much through inspiration as through perseverance. One must slog through the false starts, spot the wrong words and hold out for the right ones, and above all, be vigilant about staying on the path of revision, no matter how uncomfortable or even painful the journey might become.”” [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) ## 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 demands perseverance more than fleeting inspiration; disciplined effort yields true expression. **In simple terms:** Perseverance beats inspiration. Key Takeaway Practice consistently. Themes creativity discipline perseverance Mood determined inspirational Type educational motivational When to use this quote - writing - painting - musical composition Key Concepts writing process artistic development Questions to Reflect On - How can we sustain perseverance? - What role does inspiration still play? A Different Perspective May cause burnout if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Imagination Works](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination-works-2057933/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Inspiration Perseverance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration-perseverance-3828529/) [Perseverance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perseverance/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Works Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/works-inspiration-5164147/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Wrong words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong-words/) ## Related quotes > [Enthusiasm, if fueled by inspiration and perseverance, travels with passion and its destination is excellence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/enthusiasm-if-fueled-by-inspiration-and-perseverance-travels-with/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [An awakened imagination works with a purpose. It creates and conserves the desirable, and transforms or destroys the undesirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neville-goddard/an-awakened-imagination-works-with-a-purpose-it-creates-and-conserves/) [Neville Goddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neville-goddard/) > [My imagination works well because I didn't have a boob tube for a baby-sitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cree-summer/my-imagination-works-well-because-i-didn-t-have-a-boob-tube-for-a/) [Cree Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cree-summer/) > [Sometimes imagination works like an addiction, it let you escape the reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shubhanshu-tiwari/sometimes-imagination-works-like-an-addiction-it-let-you-escape-the/) [Shubhanshu Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shubhanshu-tiwari/) > [“You know what, your imagination works faster than your mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simona-panova/you-know-what-your-imagination-works-faster-than-your-mind/) [Simona Panova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simona-panova/) > [All meaningful and lasting change starts first in your imagination and then works its way out. Imagination is more important than knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/all-meaningful-and-lasting-change-starts-first-in-your-imagination/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I've got no problem being on my own. I like the way my imagination works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-hince/i-ve-got-no-problem-being-on-my-own-i-like-the-way-my-imagination/) [Jamie Hince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-hince/) > [Everyone knows English is my second language and my vocabulary is not as broad as it is in Spanish, and because of this, sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-pablo-galavis/everyone-knows-english-is-my-second-language-and-my-vocabulary-is-not/) [Juan Pablo Galavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-pablo-galavis/) > [That moment when you're singing a song and realize you've been singing the wrong words the whole time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-williamson/that-moment-when-you-re-singing-a-song-and-realize-you-ve-been/) [Jordan Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-williamson/) > [That's the problem in politics. One wrong word and it's over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/that-s-the-problem-in-politics-one-wrong-word-and-it-s-over/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I didn't intend. The word "intend" is the wrong word for what I do. It's just that it's something you do, and you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/i-didn-t-intend-the-word-intend-is-the-wrong-word-for-what-i-do-it-s/) [Grace Paley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-paley/) > [The wrong words are impossible when there are no words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/the-wrong-words-are-impossible-when-there-are-no-words/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [This is how moths speak to each other. They tell their love across the fields by scent. There is no mouth, the wrong words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/this-is-how-moths-speak-to-each-other-they-tell-their-love-across-the/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“I don’t know who said a picture is worth a thousand words, but whoever said it is wrong. Words and pictures should not, cannot,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-brandt/i-don-t-know-who-said-a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-words-but-whoever/) [Anne Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-brandt/) > [“You know when I said I didn't need you?" I asked. He lifted one brow. "I was so wrong.I can't find words to express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-jensen/you-know-when-i-said-i-didn-t-need-you-i-asked-he-lifted-one-brow-i/) [Melissa Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-jensen/) ## More by Kathleen Norris > [One may have been a fool, but there's no foolishness like being bitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/one-may-have-been-a-fool-but-there-s-no-foolishness-like-being-bitter/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [The ordinary activities I find most compatible with contemplation are walking, baking bread, and doing laundry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/the-ordinary-activities-i-find-most-compatible-with-contemplation-are/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [“At its Greek root, "to believe" simply means "to give one's heart to." Thus, if we can determine what it is we give our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/at-its-greek-root-to-believe-simply-means-to-give-one-s-heart-to-thus/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [In any free society, the conflict between social conformity and individual liberty is permanent, unresolvable, and necessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/in-any-free-society-the-conflict-between-social-conformity-and/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [Before you begin a thing, remind yourself that difficulties and delays quite impossible to foresee are ahead. If you could see them clearly, naturally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/before-you-begin-a-thing-remind-yourself-that-difficulties-and-delays/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [When you are unhappy, is there anything more maddening than to be told that you should be contented with your lot?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/when-you-are-unhappy-is-there-anything-more-maddening-than-to-be-told/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [“I was vaguely attracted to both library science and accounting, for the way that these disciplines impose order on chaos.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/i-was-vaguely-attracted-to-both-library-science-and-accounting-for/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [Hate is all a lie, there is no truth in hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/hate-is-all-a-lie-there-is-no-truth-in-hate/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [“Well, they tell us meat isn't good for us anyway!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/well-they-tell-us-meat-isn-t-good-for-us-anyway/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [None of us knows what the next change is going to be, what unexpected opportunity is just around the corner, waiting a few months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/none-of-us-knows-what-the-next-change-is-going-to-be-what-unexpected/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [Laundry, liturgy and women's work all serve to ground us in the world, and they need not grind us down. Our daily tasks, whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/laundry-liturgy-and-women-s-work-all-serve-to-ground-us-in-the-world/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [The demon of acedia -- also called the noonday demon -- is the one that causes the most serious trouble of all. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/the-demon-of-acedia-also-called-the-noonday-demon-is-the-one-that/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [Only Christ could have brought us all together, in this place, doing such absurd but necessary things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/only-christ-could-have-brought-us-all-together-in-this-place-doing/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [“In choosing a bare bones existence, we are enriched, and can redefine success as an internal process rather than an outward display of wealth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/in-choosing-a-bare-bones-existence-we-are-enriched-and-can-redefine/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) > [“Poetry was a discipline grounded in experience that drew its life and worth from a source much greater than oneself, and as it realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-norris/poetry-was-a-discipline-grounded-in-experience-that-drew-its-life-and/) [Kathleen Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) [Explore all 93 Kathleen Norris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-norris/) ## More Creativity quotes > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“The Soviet “creative intelligentsia” - that is, people accustomed to thinking one thing, saying another and doing a third - is as a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-amalrik/the-soviet-creative-intelligentsia-that-is-people-accustomed-to/) [Andrei Amalrik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-amalrik/) > [It’s so important to create in your own voice, to hold onto what makes you unique, and have faith in your vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/it-s-so-important-to-create-in-your-own-voice-to-hold-onto-what-makes/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-rock-pile-ceases-to-be-a-rock-pile-the-moment-a-single-man/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [You don't get lucky. You create lucky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/you-don-t-get-lucky-you-create-lucky/) [Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“You are the end of beauty and creativity one must have created so far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/you-are-the-end-of-beauty-and-creativity-one-must-have-created-so-far/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Jonah Lehrer is one of the most talented explainers of science that we’ve got. What a pleasure it is to follow his investigation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/jonah-lehrer-is-one-of-the-most-talented-explainers-of-science-that/) [Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/) > [If you've got creativity, imagination, and intelligence, and you want to be hypnotised, then there's no reason you shouldn't be able to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-barry/if-you-ve-got-creativity-imagination-and-intelligence-and-you-want-to/) [Keith Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-barry/) > [“I believe in magic. As a writer, I create them on blank paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonnia-kemmer/i-believe-in-magic-as-a-writer-i-create-them-on-blank-paper/) [Sonnia Kemmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonnia-kemmer/) > [Creativity is like chasing chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-niemann/creativity-is-like-chasing-chickens/) [Christoph Niemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-niemann/) > [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/) [David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/) > [You always hear actors say, 'Theater is my first love,' and it is. It's a time when you really get to do what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-landecker/you-always-hear-actors-say-theater-is-my-first-love-and-it-is-it-s-a/) [Amy Landecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-landecker/) > [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 13,625 Creativity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...the imagination works not so much through inspiration as through perseverance. 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