--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of…" description: "\"Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of time avoiding the work at hand. The most common way to avoid writing is by procrastination. This is the writer's..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/walter-mosley-2810_avoiding_many-writers-in-waiting-spend-a-lot-of-t_649059.png" --- # Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of time avoiding the… ![“Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of time avoiding the work at hand. The most common way to avoid writing is by procrastination. This is the writer's greatest enemy. There is little to say about it except that once you decide to write every day, you must make yourself sit at the desk or table…” quote by Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/walter-mosley-2810_avoiding_many-writers-in-waiting-spend-a-lot-of-t_649059.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/walter-mosley-2810_avoiding_many-writers-in-waiting-spend-a-lot-of-t_649059.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/walter-mosley-2810_avoiding_many-writers-in-waiting-spend-a-lot-of-t_649059.png) > “Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of time avoiding the work at hand. The most common way to avoid writing is by procrastination. This is the writer's greatest enemy. There is little to say about it except that once you decide to write every day, you must make yourself sit at the desk or table for the required period whether or not you are putting down words. Make yourself take the time even if the hours seem fruitless. Ideally, after a few days or weeks of being chained to the desk, you will submit to the story that must be told.” [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Procrastination hinders writers; disciplined daily writing forces progress despite perceived fruitlessness. **In simple terms:** Writing daily beats procrastination. Key Takeaway Commit to a daily writing schedule. Themes discipline procrastination creativity habit productivity Mood motivational practical Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - author deadlines - creative blocks - self‑imposed limits Key Concepts psychology writing process motivation Questions to Reflect On - What small step can you take today to write? - How does routine affect your creativity? A Different Perspective Habit formation can feel forced, reducing intrinsic motivation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Avoid Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avoid-writing-697737/) [Avoiding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avoiding/) [Avoiding Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avoiding-work-3423546/) [Chained](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chained/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Desks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desks/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Every day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-day/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Hours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods/) [Procrastination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procrastination/) [Procrastination Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procrastination-writer-5195581/) [Seems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seems/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Submit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submit/) [Tables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tables/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Avoiding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-avoiding-2650423/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Week](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/week/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Procrastination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-procrastination-5195580/) ## Related quotes > [We're on Twitter for one of the two reasons: We're either avoiding work or we've nothing better to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/we-re-on-twitter-for-one-of-the-two-reasons-we-re-either-avoiding/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [“If you’re out of ideas, wash the dishes. Take a really long walk. Stare at a spot on the wall for as long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-re-out-of-ideas-wash-the-dishes-take-a-really-long-walk-stare/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [It annoys me when my coworkers are running around and avoiding work while I'm avoiding work at my desk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-annoys-me-when-my-coworkers-are-running-around-and-avoiding-work/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is too short to spend your time avoiding failure,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bloomberg/life-is-too-short-to-spend-your-time-avoiding-failure/) [Michael Bloomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bloomberg/) > [I've spent a long time avoiding painting and dealing with it from a distance. But as I get older, I'm more comfortable with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-ve-spent-a-long-time-avoiding-painting-and-dealing-with-it-from-a/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [“Procrastinating is number one of my Stupid List. You still end up exactly where you didn't want to be, doing exactly what you didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/procrastinating-is-number-one-of-my-stupid-list-you-still-end-up/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Procrastinating is number three on my Stupid List. You still end up exactly where you didn't want to be, doing exactly what you didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/procrastinating-is-number-three-on-my-stupid-list-you-still-end-up/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [My resolution is to spend more time avoiding friends and family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-resolution-is-to-spend-more-time-avoiding-friends-and-family/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love reading; it's a great way to avoid writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kushner/i-love-reading-it-s-a-great-way-to-avoid-writing/) [Tony Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kushner/) > [As a writer, I need an enormous amount of time alone. Writing is 90 percent procrastination: reading magazines, eating cereal out of the box,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rudnick/as-a-writer-i-need-an-enormous-amount-of-time-alone-writing-is-90/) [Paul Rudnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rudnick/) > [I'm always writing. A friend of mine once said, 'You avoid re-writing by writing.' Which is kind of a good point, because re-writing seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-crowe/i-m-always-writing-a-friend-of-mine-once-said-you-avoid-re-writing-by/) [Cameron Crowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-crowe/) > [If you are destined to become a writer, you can't help it. If you can help it, you aren't destined to become a writer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-harington/if-you-are-destined-to-become-a-writer-you-can-t-help-it-if-you-can/) [Donald Harington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-harington/) > [I have been, earlier in my life, a lazy writer. I'd spend three hours at the gym to avoid writing, or I'd just find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-susan-rapp/i-have-been-earlier-in-my-life-a-lazy-writer-i-d-spend-three-hours-at/) [Emily Susan Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-susan-rapp/) > [I tend to avoid writing music about initial reactions to situations, like frustration or anger. I’d rather wait till I go through the problem,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/i-tend-to-avoid-writing-music-about-initial-reactions-to-situations/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) > [Write to exhaustion so that you can no longer manage to avoid writing the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elissa-schappell/write-to-exhaustion-so-that-you-can-no-longer-manage-to-avoid-writing/) [Elissa Schappell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elissa-schappell/) ## More by Walter Mosley > [“It’s a continual revelation when you come to understand that the only thing you can expect in return for your own dignity is hatred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/it-s-a-continual-revelation-when-you-come-to-understand-that-the-only/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I think that it's important to try to keep reality. I think that Gabriel Garcia Marquez speaks a lot about reality in his magical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-think-that-it-s-important-to-try-to-keep-reality-i-think-that/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [There's many things that I am. And all of those things come together at some point. If somebody wants to limit me, you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/there-s-many-things-that-i-am-and-all-of-those-things-come-together/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I'm almost completely without family and it's a very odd feeling in life. I have no children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-m-almost-completely-without-family-and-it-s-a-very-odd-feeling-in/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [“I find books in used-book stores, chain and independent stores, on friends’ shelves and being read by some woman sitting opposite me on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-find-books-in-used-book-stores-chain-and-independent-stores-on/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [“That was why so many Jews back then understood the American Negro; in Europe the Jew had been a Negro for more than a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/that-was-why-so-many-jews-back-then-understood-the-american-negro-in/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [“If there's another writer, like Ross McDonald or Raymond Chandler, and all they're writing are mysteries, they won't be accepted," he said. "And that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/if-there-s-another-writer-like-ross-mcdonald-or-raymond-chandler-and/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [Losing my parents really set me adrift in more ways than one. It's not just losing them. It's losing the possibility of family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/losing-my-parents-really-set-me-adrift-in-more-ways-than-one-it-s-not/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I've always loved science fiction. I think the smartest writers are science fiction writers dealing with major things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-ve-always-loved-science-fiction-i-think-the-smartest-writers-are/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I believe that a writer has to tell what they think is the truth in a human experience. The truth of the human experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-believe-that-a-writer-has-to-tell-what-they-think-is-the-truth-in-a/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I laugh, that there's a certain kind of cyclical nature to life and that I don't have to worry because whatever isn't there right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/i-laugh-that-there-s-a-certain-kind-of-cyclical-nature-to-life-and/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [When I turned 59, I looked at that as the first day of my 60th year, so I've been 60 for the last 365…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/when-i-turned-59-i-looked-at-that-as-the-first-day-of-my-60th-year-so/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [“The government isn't real," he replied. He might have been talking about Santa Claus or God. "I don't owe anything to anyone who in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/the-government-isn-t-real-he-replied-he-might-have-been-talking-about/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [Susan Straight finds LA's secret heart in Between Heaven and Here and with a sleight of hand only the masters have, she creates an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/susan-straight-finds-la-s-secret-heart-in-between-heaven-and-here-and/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [“Damn, Easy,” the intrepid sideman said. “Trouble got your name tattooed on the inside’a his eyelids. He be studyin’ you in his sleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/damn-easy-the-intrepid-sideman-said-trouble-got-your-name-tattooed-on/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) [Explore all 149 Walter Mosley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) ## More Avoiding quotes > [Because after you've crossed some lines, you just keep crossing them. And there's no escaping from constant escape. Distracting ourselves. Avoiding confrontation. Getting past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/because-after-you-ve-crossed-some-lines-you-just-keep-crossing-them/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Exactly. So, what can't you take? Decide which of the two options is harder, and do the other. That way, no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/exactly-so-what-can-t-you-take-decide-which-of-the-two-options-is/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [I've always been a very restless person. I work hard, spend too much time looking after my son, I dance like a mad thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-ve-always-been-a-very-restless-person-i-work-hard-spend-too-much/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“What I'm trying to say is that I spent the last four months learning to be alone, avoiding the world, hating pretty much anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-cremer/what-i-m-trying-to-say-is-that-i-spent-the-last-four-months-learning/) [Andrea Cremer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-cremer/) > [ I can hardly believe what these 12 caricatures \[about Prophet Muhammad\] have caused in the world. We Danes feel like we have been placed… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anders-fogh-rasmussen/i-can-hardly-believe-what-these-12-caricatures-about-prophet-muhammad/) [Anders Fogh Rasmussen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anders-fogh-rasmussen/) > [I know a bit about taxation and the remarkable effort that goes in to avoiding it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rinder/i-know-a-bit-about-taxation-and-the-remarkable-effort-that-goes-in-to/) [Robert Rinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rinder/) > [When you are in hard labor, remember that the length of labor is usually proportional to the number of people around. Avoid the presence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-odent/when-you-are-in-hard-labor-remember-that-the-length-of-labor-is/) [Michel Odent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-odent/) > [I don't believe in happy endings. Children have got to face death sooner or later. Granny and Grandpa die, dogs die, cats die, gerbils…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-briggs/i-don-t-believe-in-happy-endings-children-have-got-to-face-death/) [Raymond Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-briggs/) > [Resisting and avoiding pain sucks energy-and time. The more you let yourself feel those minute-and-a-half hells, the quicker you'll start feeling those minute-and-a-half happinesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-newman/resisting-and-avoiding-pain-sucks-energy-and-time-the-more-you-let/) [Leigh Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-newman/) > [Reading is sometimes an ingenious device for avoiding thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-helps/reading-is-sometimes-an-ingenious-device-for-avoiding-thought/) [Arthur Helps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-helps/) > [A day can really slip by when you're deliberately avoiding what you're supposed to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/a-day-can-really-slip-by-when-you-re-deliberately-avoiding-what-you/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [When someone starts Ignoring you, just back off without staying there with them Just to know the reason for avoiding..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vishak/when-someone-starts-ignoring-you-just-back-off-without-staying-there/) [Vishak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vishak/) > [You know what takes effort? Being kind, being patient, being respectful, telling someone how you feel politely instead of just avoiding them for six…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-tapper/you-know-what-takes-effort-being-kind-being-patient-being-respectful/) [Jake Tapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-tapper/) > [It's all about being flexible, and avoiding choices whenever possible. Choices suck, they are inherently limiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-armstrong/it-s-all-about-being-flexible-and-avoiding-choices-whenever-possible/) [Craig Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-armstrong/) > [In my personal life I'm very conservative. I've been married to the same person for nearly 50 years, I'm scrupulous about paying bills, avoiding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/in-my-personal-life-i-m-very-conservative-i-ve-been-married-to-the/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) [Browse all 713 Avoiding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avoiding/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Many writers-in-waiting spend a lot of time avoiding the work at hand. The most common way to avoid writing is by procrastination. This is the writer's greatest enemy. There is little to say about it except that once you decide to write every day, you must make yourself sit at the desk or table for the required period whether or not you are putting down words. Make yourself take the time even if the hours seem fruitless. 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