Scholars look for final truths they will never find. Creative writers concern themselves with possibilities that are always there to the receptive.

A creative writing class may be one of the last places you can go where your life still matters.

I think it's better if you write poems that look like you.

If you want to communicate, use the telephone

Think small.... If you can't think small, try philosophy or social criticism.

Rub a half potato on your wart and wrap it in a damp cloth. Close your eyes and whirl three times and throw. Then bury rag and spud exactly where they fall.

Never write a poem about anything that ought to have a poem written about it.

Assuming you can write clear English sentences, give up all worry about communication. If you want to communicate, use the telephone.

You owe reality nothing and the truth about your feelings everything.

Say nothing and just make music and you'll find plenty to say.

Maximum sentence length: seventeen words. Minimum:one No semicolons. Semicolons indicate relationships that only idiots need defined by punctuation. Besides, they are ugly. Make sure each sentence is at least four words longer or shorter than the one before it.

An act of imagination is an act of self-acceptance.

A good creative-writing teacher can save a good writer a lot of time.