--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even at the worst of times, when nothing…" description: "\"Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at least we're doing something that we genuinel..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/melissa-scott-59208_clumsy_even-at-the-worst-of-times-when-nothing_3216298.jpg" --- # Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when… ![“Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at least we're doing something that we genuinely love. There's no other reason to work this hard, except that love.” quote by Melissa Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/melissa-scott-59208_clumsy_even-at-the-worst-of-times-when-nothing_3216298.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/melissa-scott-59208_clumsy_even-at-the-worst-of-times-when-nothing_3216298.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/melissa-scott-59208_clumsy_even-at-the-worst-of-times-when-nothing_3216298.jpg) > “Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at least we're doing something that we genuinely love. There's no other reason to work this hard, except that love.” [Melissa Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-scott/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even when circumstances are terrible and work feels difficult, the only true motivation is genuine love for what you do. **In simple terms:** Love drives effort despite hardship. Key Takeaway Let love be your primary motivator. Themes passion resilience purpose Mood determined hopeful Type inspirational reflective When to use this quote - creative projects - writing - entrepreneurship - personal challenges Key Concepts intrinsic motivation creative fulfillment Questions to Reflect On - What do you love most about your work? - How can love be balanced with realistic goals? A Different Perspective Love alone may not sustain long‑term success without practical planning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clumsy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clumsy/) [Clumsy Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clumsy-ideas-6028419/) [Doing Genuinely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-genuinely-6028421/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-feel-608972/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Prose Clumsy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose-clumsy-6028418/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Stale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stale/) [Stale Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stale-doing-6028420/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Worst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The hardest part about writing any song is, what do you write? And how do I rewrite things? 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The night before I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-am-very-very-old-fashioned-and-clumsy-i-use-those-long-reporter/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Conservatives say the government can't end poverty by force, but they believe it can use force to make people moral. Liberals say government can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/conservatives-say-the-government-can-t-end-poverty-by-force-but-they/) [Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/) > [Democracy is the worst form of government. It is the most inefficient, the most clumsy, the most unpractical… It reduces wisdom to impotence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-briffault/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-it-is-the-most-inefficient/) [Robert Briffault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-briffault/) > [Early on a difficult climb, especially a solo climb, you’re hyper-aware of the abyss pulling at your back, constantly feeling its call, its immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/early-on-a-difficult-climb-especially-a-solo-climb-you-re-hyper-aware/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [At 15 I was very clumsy, big feet and my footwork wasn't great. I was definitely not quick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-de-minaur/at-15-i-was-very-clumsy-big-feet-and-my-footwork-wasn-t-great-i-was/) [Alex de Minaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-de-minaur/) ## More by Melissa Scott > [“Technology has its place…We respect and honor the past, but we know we can't completely re-create it, nor do we want to do so.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-scott/technology-has-its-place-we-respect-and-honor-the-past-but-we-know-we/) [Melissa Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-scott/) > [Writing isn't generally a lucrative source of income; only a few, exceptional writers reach the income levels associated with the best-sellers. Rather, most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-scott/writing-isn-t-generally-a-lucrative-source-of-income-only-a-few/) [Melissa Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-scott/) > [“You know damn well that's not how the wire works, and if you weren't afraid of it, you'd have one yourself. 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It is the most inefficient, the most clumsy, the most unpractical… It reduces wisdom to impotence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-briffault/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-it-is-the-most-inefficient/) [Robert Briffault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-briffault/) > [Conservatives say the government can't end poverty by force, but they believe it can use force to make people moral. Liberals say government can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/conservatives-say-the-government-can-t-end-poverty-by-force-but-they/) [Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/) > [I am very, very old-fashioned and clumsy. I use those long reporter notebooks. This is what a troglodyte I am. The night before I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-am-very-very-old-fashioned-and-clumsy-i-use-those-long-reporter/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [You should not translate for more than two hours at a time. After that, you lose your edge, the language becomes clumsy, rigid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/you-should-not-translate-for-more-than-two-hours-at-a-time-after-that/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Are you ready to put the ‘fun’ in Fall Fun Fest?” he says as I slap his palm. “I can at least put the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-mills/are-you-ready-to-put-the-fun-in-fall-fun-fest-he-says-as-i-slap-his/) [Emma Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-mills/) > [The underlying crime in Watergate was a clumsy, third-rate burglary in an election campaign that turned out to be a landslide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-t-conway-iii/the-underlying-crime-in-watergate-was-a-clumsy-third-rate-burglary-in/) [George T. Conway III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-t-conway-iii/) > [I readily admit that I have such a great respect for what happens in the human soul that I would be afraid of disturbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/i-readily-admit-that-i-have-such-a-great-respect-for-what-happens-in/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [“His life was a constant war with insensate objects that fell apart, or attacked him, or refused to function, or viciously got themselves lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/his-life-was-a-constant-war-with-insensate-objects-that-fell-apart-or/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [But at the same time, in reality, what a difference there is between the world today, and what it used to be! And with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/but-at-the-same-time-in-reality-what-a-difference-there-is-between/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [Im not a perfect girl. My hair doesnt always stay in place & I spill things alot. Im pretty clumsy & sometimes I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-not-a-perfect-girl-my-hair-doesnt-always-stay-in-place-i-spill/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A diary is more or less the work of a man of clay whose hands are clumsy and in whose eyes there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/a-diary-is-more-or-less-the-work-of-a-man-of-clay-whose-hands-are/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [Believe it or not, I'm a bit clumsy with technology. It's probably why I'm so excited about the touchscreen - even an idiot can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/believe-it-or-not-i-m-a-bit-clumsy-with-technology-it-s-probably-why/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [“Yet it is true that there was an absent mindedness about her which sometimes made her clumsy; she was apt to think of poetry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/yet-it-is-true-that-there-was-an-absent-mindedness-about-her-which/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) [Browse all 245 Clumsy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clumsy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at least we're doing something that we genuinely love. 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