Week 14 Lab: My advice from Advice to Writers

"For me, the fun part is just being at home and writing in my sweatpants. And then being like, “I wrote a poem and I like it.” There’s nothing that compares to that. Nothing. Not The New Yorker, not The New York Times. I feel like that’s something that sometimes gets lost in our culture, where everything’s about building a brand before you even have an established creative process. Please, don’t be a poet unless the number one thing you like to do is write poems. And read poems."
-ADA LIMÓN

This is great advice that I could add to my life. So many times I get frustrated about something I'm doing because I don't think it will please others or mean something to others. For example, I find it hard sometimes to practice guitar because when I make mistakes I think I'm a failure because people I want to play for in the future won't like that. Or, that picture I just took doesn't look good because of X reason, so I won't post it on social media. But I enjoy both of those activities on my own. It is when I let the opinions of others influence me is the time I lose the joy in doing it.

In essence, it is best to enjoy things on a personal level and enjoy something for what it is. We humans like to make things more complicated and combine a bunch of stuff, where, some of the most joyful moments are in the simplicities.

"Persist. If you stop, then you’re removing yourself from the conversation. You have to keep going and weather rejection until you find the person who will open the door for you. You have to hold up your end of the bargain. Become the best writer you can because nobody owes you anything; you owe that to yourself."
-JESMYN WARD

A great inspirational quote. Nothing comes easy. Reminds me of the quote "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take" in the way that if you want something, you can't get it unless you try. And if you want it bad enough, try until you get it (persistence). I also like the part of improving oneself.

"It is a silver morning like any other. I am at my desk. Then the phone rings, or someone raps at the door. I am deep in the machinery of my wits. Reluctantly I rise, I answer the phone or I open the door. And the thought which I had in hand, or almost in hand, is gone. Creative work needs solitude. It needs concentration, without interruptions. It needs the whole sky to fly in, and no eye watching until it comes to that certainty which it aspires to, but does not necessarily have at once. Privacy, then. A place apart — to pace, to chew pencils, to scribble and erase and scribble again."
-MARY OLIVER

I get so easily distracted. This quote describes me so well because it takes me so much longer to get something down if I keep the tv on or play music or leave my phone next to me. I also find myself enjoying my work more if I remove those other distractions which is ironic because I usually allow them because I think they will make work bearable or serve as good breaks. However, my mind is much happier when it has less to think about and the good feelings I get from being productive.

Love all of these quotes!

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