“Write first with a pen. It’s too easy on the computer to change a word, then forget what it was. Also, don’t get too social. Write for whatever holy thing you believe in, not for your poetry workshop fellows. And dare once in a while to throw a poem away. The main thing is to know that your craving…”— Mary Oliver, writersalmanac.orgTagged: Writing, How to be a writer
“All my dogs talked, and so they talk in the book. I’ve always had a dog, usually two — once four, which was one too many. Three could find me on the couch, one in my lap and one to either side.”— Mary Oliver, writersalmanac.orgTagged: Dogs, Pets
“I was very careful never to take an interesting job. Not an interesting one. I took lots of jobs. But if you have an interesting job you get interested in it. I also began in those years to keep early hours. … If anybody has a job and starts at 9, there’s no reason why they can’t get up at 4:30 or 5…”— Mary Oliver, writersalmanac.orgTagged: Writing, How to be a writer