50 Affirmations for Writers

November 28, 2022

When you’re feeling stuck with a particular sentence, paragraph, page or chapter. It can be tempting to procrastinate or feel discouraged as a writer. I like to rely on a few writing quotes or mantras for affirmations for writers to give me a much-needed boost to work on my writing assignment or task.

50 Affirmations for Writers and Writing Quotes to Help You Move Past Creative Blocks and Procrastination

Here are some of my favorite writing affirmations. Some are writing proverbs, others are writing quotes. If there isn’t an attribution, it doesn’t mean I came up with it on my own–I couldn’t find the original source.

1. Write without fear. Edit without mercy.
2. Not writing is just as important as writing. 
3. This work can be the next bestseller.
4. It always starts with just one word.
5. Every blank page is an opportunity for greatness.
6. “Until we can manage time, we can manage nothing else.” (Peter Drucker, management consultant)
7. “Action is the foundational key to all success.” (Picasso, Spanish painter) 
8. “The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” (Stephen Covey, American educator, author and businessman)
9. Every act of discipline creates more freedom for my future.
10. The best time to start something new is right now.
11. I may stumble, but I never stay on the ground.
12. I am unafraid to try and fail. I welcome the growth that comes from these experiences.
13. No excuses. Just results.
14. The fact that establishing a writing career is challenging is also what makes it worthwhile. The best things in life are the ones you have to work for.
15. Decisions create confidence.
16. When I let go of who I am, I become who I might be. When I let go of my identity as a struggling writer, I become a successful writer.
17. Failure is opportunity to grow.
18. Writing is a personal, individual journey. I will not be able to follow another author’s path and expect the same experience.
19. Imperfect action is better than procrastination
20. My results come from an aligned place within me
21. Every perceived failure provides an opportunity to learn and grow.
22. A challenge does not mean the end.
23. Just because this story has been told before, readers have not heard MY story.
24. Every writing session is a learning opportunity.
25. This idea was no coincidence, I am meant to tell this story.
26. Action will destroy your procrastination. – Og Mandino
27. The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action. – Alexander Graham Bell
28. Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today because if you enjoy it today, you can do it again tomorrow. –James A. Michener
29. If you have goals and procrastination you have nothing. If you have goals and you take action, you will have anything you want. – Thomas J. Vilord
30. Waiting is a trap. There will always be reasons to wait – The truth is, there are only two things in life, reasons and results, and reasons simply don’t count. – Robert Anthony
31. Success is not obtained overnight. It comes in installments; you get a little bit today, a little bit tomorrow until the whole package is given out. The day you procrastinate, you lose that day’s success. – Israelmore Ayivor
32. Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work. – Stephen King
33. Follow effective actions with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action. – Peter Drucker
34. “Begin doing what you want to do now.” – Marie Beynon Ray
35. “One of these days, is none of these days.” – Proverb
36. “The search for the perfect venture can turn into procrastination. Your idea may or may not have merit. The key is to get started.” – Unknown
37. “We are so scared of being judged that we look for every excuse to procrastinate.” – Erica Jong
38. “Time wasted is existence; used is life.” – Edward Young
39. “A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” – Richard Bach
40. “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” – Maya Angelou
41. “[As a writer] you have to have the three D’s: drive, discipline and desire. If you’re missing any one of those three, you can have all the talent in the world, but it’s going to be really hard to get anything done.” – Nora Roberts
42. “Words are a lens to focus one’s mind.” – Ayn Rand
43. “Half my life is an act of revision.” – John Irving
44. “Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.”– Larry L. King, W
45. “The first sentence can’t be written until the final sentence is written.” –Joyce Carol Oates, WD
46. “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or tools) to write. Simple as that.” – Stephen King
47.  “Most writers regard the truth as their most valuable possession, and therefore are most economical in its use.” – Mark Twain
48. “Writing, to me, is simply thinking through my fingers.”– Isaac Asimov
49. “It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.”– Ernest Hemingway
50. “Writing is like a ‘lust,’ or like ‘scratching when you itch.’ Writing comes as a result of a very strong impulse, and when it does come, I, for one, must get it out.”– C.S. Lewis
51. “A word after a word after a word is power.”– Margaret Atwood

What’s your favorite affirmation for writers or writing quote from this list–or that you refer to for inspiration?

Tags: article writing advice, freelance writer, freelance writing, freelance writing tips, freelancer, productivity, writing advice, writing tips

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