While I’m not officially participating in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), I do think it gives many writers just the boost they need and a chance to solidify a consistent writing process, using helpful tools like scheduling, tracking, and accountability. So all month, my quotes will focus on some element of process and commitment.

“The writing process is an amorphous, wiggly, glob with a million arms and as soon as I feel like I’ve caught hold of one, it slips out of my hands. … What we need to learn is one of the most important aspects of both being a creative person and also surviving a very difficult business: we must learn to be flexible about our vision. We must also learn to be flexible about the process of how we get from Point A to Point Be [sic]. We have to allow the unruly manuscript to take us down a path you’ve never been before, if that’s what it needs. Some paths are more arduous than others, but that still doesn’t make them wrong if the end result is a polished book that you love. The fact of the matter is, the writing process IS mysterious and I’d dare to say, it’s even a little magical. Don’t fight it. Fly with it. Even if you have to start at the end to get anywhere.”
– historical novelist Heather Webb, on Writer Unboxed in a post tellingly titled “Your Writing Process Says You’re A Failure”