I’m reading (well, listening to the audiobook of) Neil Gaiman’s collection of non-fiction The View From The Cheap Seats and it’s packed with excellent writerly thoughts.
I love this (from his Newbery Award Acceptance speech in 2009):
‘Sometimes fiction is a way of coping with the poison of the world in a way that lets us survive it. ‘
That sums up the power of reading fiction so well (there’s a reason he earns the big bucks!).
Also, I found this quote super-inspiring and I wanted to share it:
So, if you’re struggling with your story or feeling as if the hard work isn’t worth it or feeling silly for ‘wasting your time’ making stuff up, remember this: Someone out there needs the story you are writing.