“If there is magic in story writing, and I am convinced there is, no one has ever been able to reduce it to a recipe that can be passed from one person to another. The formula seems to lie solely in the aching urge of the writer to convey something he feels important to the reader. If the writer has that urge, he may sometimes, but no means always, find the way to do it. You must perceive the excellence that makes a good story good or the errors that makes a bad story. For a bad story is only an ineffective story.” John Steinbeck
ronovanwrites 
I love that quote by John Steinbeck. And it’s so true. Though the writing tips and advice found online and in books can help with the writing process. Ultimately, it’s the writer’s desire to writer their story and tell it well, that really matters. Thanks for sharing.
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We can learn grammar, punctuation and form but without the imagination you have nothing different. That of course is only my opinion.
Good quote.
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If Steinbeck had been a comedy writer.. would his book have been titled, The Grapes of Laughs?
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Reblogged this on mira prabhu and commented:
A bad story is only an ineffective story – John Steinback.
The truth is that a great writer can make even a lousy story compulsively readable…and a poor story-teller can mess up a tale of great potential. Thank you Ronovan Hester!
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Every story needs a magician to make it come alive. Thanks Ronovan for that excellent quote and the writeup.
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As someone who has written his share of ineffective stories, I can only second Steinbeck’s perceptive quote. When I cook, I invariably follow a recipe, even if it is a familiar concoction. When I write a story, poem or essay, I am adrift in a river, seeking both the turbulence and the calm, occasionally scrambling in to the shore, grabbing hold of a low hanging branch of a tree, or a clump of earth, anything to steady myself, to measure where I am, how grounded I am.
Oft times, I simply drift in my overly long metaphorical current.
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Ron, I love this Steinbeck quote about magic. I so hope that everyone understands that magic is something that our words convey to our readers. Magic is a shared experience with the writer and his/her readers. You totally understand that. Love it! ❤
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You can learn the rules, you can’t learn the magic.
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Great quote. Always had Steinbeck as a hero.
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