--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You abandon most readily those works that…" description: "\"“You abandon most readily those works that have no destination other than your own wishes; there is no editor or producer standing there waiting for th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-saroyan-1743_finished-work_you-abandon-most-readily-those-works-tha_1008309.jpg" --- # You abandon most readily those works that have no… ![“You abandon most readily those works that have no destination other than your own wishes; there is no editor or producer standing there waiting for them... I've told every young writer I know to do the job all the way through even if they think it's no good. Then they'll have the precedent of…” quote by William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-saroyan-1743_finished-work_you-abandon-most-readily-those-works-tha_1008309.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-saroyan-1743_finished-work_you-abandon-most-readily-those-works-tha_1008309.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/645/william-saroyan-1743_finished-work_you-abandon-most-readily-those-works-tha_1008309.jpg) > ““You abandon most readily those works that have no destination other than your own wishes; there is no editor or producer standing there waiting for them... I've told every young writer I know to do the job all the way through even if they think it's no good. Then they'll have the precedent of having finished work.”” [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Finishing a piece, even imperfect, builds discipline and a record of completed work, which fuels future creativity. **In simple terms:** Finish work to build habit and confidence. Key Takeaway Complete projects to develop skill. Themes discipline completion creativity Mood determined reflective Type advice motivational When to use this quote - writing practice - personal projects - academic assignments - creative workshops Key Concepts habit formation self‑efficacy Questions to Reflect On - How does finishing imperfect work affect your confidence? - What criteria decide when to move on? A Different Perspective Perfectionism can stall progress; not all drafts merit full completion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) [Abandon Readily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon-readily-2174080/) [Finished work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finished-work/) [Having Finished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-finished-2174081/) [Told Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/told-young-905774/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Young Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-writer/) ## Related quotes > [I don't remember ever having finished a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-hall/i-don-t-remember-ever-having-finished-a-book/) [Bridget Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-hall/) > [The programme has ended, something has finished, and he has a sense of something having finished its course, and then all of a sudden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atom-egoyan/the-programme-has-ended-something-has-finished-and-he-has-a-sense-of/) [Atom Egoyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atom-egoyan/) > [“This is what drives a young writer out of his head, this feeling that nothing is being said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/this-is-what-drives-a-young-writer-out-of-his-head-this-feeling-that/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“The Word of God is a hub where stories of hope are told, from the young to the old.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/the-word-of-god-is-a-hub-where-stories-of-hope-are-told-from-the/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [“he'd told her that young girls were always happiest with older men. Innocence and experience make for a perfect marriage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/he-d-told-her-that-young-girls-were-always-happiest-with-older-men/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [I was told from a very young age that I wasn't gonna be anything. That I wasn't gonna amount to a single thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-white/i-was-told-from-a-very-young-age-that-i-wasn-t-gonna-be-anything-that/) [Shaun White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-white/) > [They say your to young to fall in love but truth be told your never too young to die... think about that! Live each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/they-say-your-to-young-to-fall-in-love-but-truth-be-told-your-never/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [I always told my young umpires, 'Don't get mad. Whatever you do, don't show it. But no matter how long it takes, get even.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-harvey/i-always-told-my-young-umpires-don-t-get-mad-whatever-you-do-don-t/) [Doug Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-harvey/) > [My dad told me when I was very young, that I should not get married before 30. His only advice to me was to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushant-singh-rajput/my-dad-told-me-when-i-was-very-young-that-i-should-not-get-married/) [Sushant Singh Rajput](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushant-singh-rajput/) > [When you're starting off as a young writer, you look at all the stuff that's gone before and the stuff that's influenced you, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/when-you-re-starting-off-as-a-young-writer-you-look-at-all-the-stuff/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I should think just about every young writer - which I was at the time - would be influenced by HPL. As an American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-lumley/i-should-think-just-about-every-young-writer-which-i-was-at-the-time/) [Brian Lumley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-lumley/) > [The young writer should learn to spot them: words that at first glance seem freighted with delicious meaning, but that soon burst in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-young-writer-should-learn-to-spot-them-words-that-at-first-glance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think the path for a young writer might be one that says, "I have to accept myself, this is what I am. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/i-think-the-path-for-a-young-writer-might-be-one-that-says-i-have-to/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [Let the writer take up surgery or bricklaying if he is interested in technique. There is no mechanical way to get the writing done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-bricklaying-if-he-is-interested-in/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [“And if I am asked today to advise a young writer who has not yet made up his mind what way to go, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/and-if-i-am-asked-today-to-advise-a-young-writer-who-has-not-yet-made/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) ## More by William Saroyan > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [The basic truth of all things, as nearly as we may ever dream of determining and knowing this truth, is form, that which is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/the-basic-truth-of-all-things-as-nearly-as-we-may-ever-dream-of/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“This is a hell of a night. I don't want to leave it just to go to sleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/this-is-a-hell-of-a-night-i-don-t-want-to-leave-it-just-to-go-to-sleep/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Americans still believe they are cut out to be successful-in everything: love, love-making, luck, luck-giving, money-making, sense-making, cancer-avoiding, clothes-wearing, car-driving, and so on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/americans-still-believe-they-are-cut-out-to-be-successful-in/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [I can't decide for you whether or not you have got to write, but if anything in the world, war, or pestilence, or famine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-can-t-decide-for-you-whether-or-not-you-have-got-to-write-but-if/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [He paints for the blind, and we are the blind, and he lets us see for sure what we saw long ago but weren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/he-paints-for-the-blind-and-we-are-the-blind-and-he-lets-us-see-for/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [I am interested in madness. I believe it is the biggest thing in the human race, and the most constant. How do you take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-am-interested-in-madness-i-believe-it-is-the-biggest-thing-in-the/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Two years ago your father died, Ulysses. But as long as we are alive, as long as we are together, as long as two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/two-years-ago-your-father-died-ulysses-but-as-long-as-we-are-alive-as/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Cowards are nice, they're interesting, they're gentle, they wouldn't think of shooting down people in a parade from a tower. They want to live,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/cowards-are-nice-they-re-interesting-they-re-gentle-they-wouldn-t/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [In the time of your life, live - so that in that good time there shall be no ugliness or death for yourself or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/in-the-time-of-your-life-live-so-that-in-that-good-time-there-shall/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [San Francisco is a world to explore. It is a place where the heart can go on a delightful adventure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/san-francisco-is-a-world-to-explore-it-is-a-place-where-the-heart-can/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [Even after you've won fame and fortune, every time you write you've got to write, there's no shortcut, you have to start your career…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/even-after-you-ve-won-fame-and-fortune-every-time-you-write-you-ve/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose history is ended, whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/i-should-like-to-see-any-power-of-the-world-destroy-this-race-this/) [WILLIAM SAROYAN](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [There could be no extreme vanity in my recognition of myself, if in fact there could be any at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/there-could-be-no-extreme-vanity-in-my-recognition-of-myself-if-in/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [“This sense of being out of time has driven thousands of people from their homes into moving-picture theaters where new universes appear before them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/this-sense-of-being-out-of-time-has-driven-thousands-of-people-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) [Explore all 207 William Saroyan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) ## More Abandon quotes > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) [Kenan Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenan-malik/) > [The purpose of a spirit filled life is to demonstrate the supernatural power of our living God so that the unsaved multitudes will abandon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-l-osborn/the-purpose-of-a-spirit-filled-life-is-to-demonstrate-the/) [T.L. Osborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-l-osborn/) > [However, however, if the goal is to abandon America's free enterprise economy, if the goal is to convert America into a submissive member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/however-however-if-the-goal-is-to-abandon-america-s-free-enterprise/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [I would leave at once, but it would be cruel to abandon a lady in a foreign land with a maniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-would-leave-at-once-but-it-would-be-cruel-to-abandon-a-lady-in-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [When we fall utterly, something gathers us up. But our falling must be without reservation, without expectation, without hope, though not hopeless. You cant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-housden/when-we-fall-utterly-something-gathers-us-up-but-our-falling-must-be/) [Roger Housden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-housden/) > [every subjective phenomenon is essentially connected with a single point of view, and it seems inevitable that an objective, physical theory will abandon that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/every-subjective-phenomenon-is-essentially-connected-with-a-single/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/can-you-dissolve-your-ego-can-you-abandon-the-idea-of-self-and-other/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Every great thing starts with an idea, followed by a doubt and finally a resolve to abandon or pursue. Victory is a treacherous journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dane-cook/every-great-thing-starts-with-an-idea-followed-by-a-doubt-and-finally/) [Dane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dane-cook/) > [Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/those-who-have-been-once-intoxicated-with-power-and-have-derived-any/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't give up because things are hard, but work harder, when you think of giving up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/don-t-give-up-because-things-are-hard-but-work-harder-when-you-think/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Sex is not the ultimate high, but the ultimate high hangs out around sex. The ultimate high is the dance with another person, played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/sex-is-not-the-ultimate-high-but-the-ultimate-high-hangs-out-around/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I care so deeply about this matter that I'm willing to take on the legal penalties, to sit in this prison cell, to sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-care-so-deeply-about-this-matter-that-i-m-willing-to-take-on-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) [Browse all 1,142 Abandon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“You abandon most readily those works that have no destination other than your own wishes; there is no editor or producer standing there waiting for them... I've told every young writer I know to do the job all the way through even if they think it's no good. 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