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George Orwell Quotes about Writing - Page 2

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To write or even speak English is not a science but an art. There are no reliable words.... Whoever writes English is involved in a struggle that never lets up even for a sentence.

To write or even speak English is not a science but an art. There are no reliable words.... Whoever writes English is involved in a struggle that never lets up even for a sentence.

Art, Struggle, Writing

George Orwell (1968). “The Collected Essays, Journalism, and Letters of George Orwell: As I please, 1943-1945”

Good novels are not written by orthodoxy-sniffers, nor by people who are conscience-stricken about their own orthodoxy. Good novels are written by people who are not frightened.

Writing, People, Political

George Orwell, Sonia Orwell, Ian Angus (1968). “The Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell: An age like this, 1920-1940”, Harvill Secker

The four great motives for writing prose are sheer egoism, esthetic enthusiasm, historical impulse, and political purpose.

Writing, Political, Historical

A scrupulous writer in every sentence that he writes will ask himself. . . What am I trying to say? What words will express it?...And he probably asks himself. . . Could I put it more shortly? But you are not obliged to go to all this trouble. You can shirk it by simply throwing open your mind and letting the ready-made phrases come crowding in. They will construct your sentences for you

Writing, Mind, Trying

Modern writing at its worst does not consist in picking out words for the sake of their meaning and inventing images in order to make the meaning clearer. It consists in gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else, and making the results presentable by sheer humbug. The attraction of this way of writing is that it is easy.

Writing, Order, Long

George Orwell (1970). “A Collection of Essays”, p.164, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

By the time you have perfected any style of writing, you have always outgrown it.

Writing, Style

George Orwell (2009). “Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays”, p.231, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

He was conscious of nothing except the blankness of the page in front of him, the itching of the skin above his ankle, the blaring of the music, and a slight booziness caused by the gin.

Writing, Skins, Ankles

George Orwell, A.M. Heath (2003). “Animal Farm and 1984”, p.111, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

All writers are vain, selfish and lazy, and at the very bottom of their motives lies a mystery.

Selfish, Lying, Writing

1946 'Why I Write'.

From a very early age, perhaps the age of five or six, I knew that when I grew up I should be a writer. Between the ages of about seventeen and twenty-four I tried to abandon this idea, but I did so with the consciousness that I was outraging my true nature and that sooner or later I should have to settle down and write books.

Book, Writing, Should Have

George Orwell (1970). “A Collection of Essays”, p.309, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness.

Struggle, Book, Writing

George Orwell (1970). “A Collection of Essays”, p.316, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Money, money, all is money! Could you write even a penny novelette without money to put heart in you?

Writing, Heart, Pennies

George Orwell (1987). “Keep the Aspidistra Flying”, Harvill Secker

For after all, what is there behind, except money? Money for the right kind of education, money for influential friends, money for leisure and peace of mind, money for trips to Italy. Money writes books, money sells them. Give me not righteousness, O lord, give me money, only money.

Book, Writing, Giving

George Orwell (1987). “Keep the Aspidistra Flying”, Harvill Secker

I do not think one can assess a writer's motives without knowing something of his early development. His subject matter will be determined by the age he lives in ... but before he ever begins to write he will have acquired an emotional attitude from which he will never completely escape.

Attitude, Writing, Emotional

George Orwell (1970). “A Collection of Essays”, p.311, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Do you remember writing in your diary," he said, "that it did not matter whether I was a friend or an enemy, since I was at least a person who understood you and could be talked to? You were right. I enjoy talking to you. Your mind appeals to me. It resembles my own mind except that you happen to be insane.

Writing, Talking, Mind

George Orwell (1983). “1984”, p.556, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Writing a novel is agony.

Writing, Agony, Novel

It is also true that one can write nothing readable unless one constantly struggles to efface one's own personality. Good prose is like a windowpane.

Struggle, Writing, Personality

George Orwell (2009). “Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays”, p.231, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

[You write out of the] desire to seem clever, to be talked about, to be remembered after death, etc., etc., etc. It is humbug to pretend this is not a motive and a strong one.

Strong, Clever, Writing

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