Home / Authors / Lydia Davis

Lydia Davis

Lydia Davis Quotes

Writer

Lydia Davis is an American writer born on July 15, 1947. Known for her concise and refined style, Davis is renowned for her short story writing. Her works have won numerous literary awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry and the MacArthur Genius Grant.

Filter quotes by topic

All Writing Ifs Thinking Way Form May Stories Want Feels Language Long Narrative People Persons Translators Trying Believe Certain Difficult Ends

Famous Lydia Davis Quotes

“The translator ... Peculiar outcast, ghost in the world of literature, recreating in another form something already created, creating and not creating, writing words that are his own and not his own, writing a work not original to him, composing with utmost pains and without recognition of his pains or the fact that the composition really is his own.”

World Writing Facts Pain Form Literature Creating Originals Ghost Recognition Peculiar Composition Composing Outcast Translators Writing Words

Author:Lydia Davis

“If I was writing about an academic or a more difficult person, I would use the Latinate vocabulary more, but I do think Anglo-saxon is the language of emotion.”

Ifs Thinking Writing Persons Use Language Difficult Emotion Academic Vocabulary Anglo Saxon

Author:Lydia Davis

“I don't believe a good poet is very often deliberately obscure. A poet writes in a way necessary to him or her; the reader may then find the poem difficult.”

Way Writing Believe May Difficult Poet Reader Don't Believe Obscure

Author:Lydia Davis

“Part of my mind is working on how to end the thing while I'm going on. You need at least two brains to write.”

Needs Writing Mind Two Ends Brain Of My Mind

Author:Lydia Davis

“The style developed over decades, really, but I started out writing pretty traditional stories, then became impatient. It was a writer named Russell Edson who showed me that one could write in any way at all.”

Way Writing Stories Style Decades Traditional Impatient

Author:Lydia Davis

“That's the interesting thing about writing. You can start late, you can be ignorant of things, and yet, if you work hard and pay attention you can do a good job of it.”

Ifs Writing Hard Jobs Can Do Interesting Pay Attention Hard Work Late Ignorant Pay Attention Good Job Interesting Things

Author:Lydia Davis

“I worked more intensively hour after hour when I was starting out [writing]. More laboriously. I'd say quantity is important as well as quality, and if you're not producing enough, make a schedule and stick to it.”

Ifs Writing Wells Important Enough Hours Quality Sticks Starting Quantity Schedules Starting Out After Hours

Author:Lydia Davis

“I think a lot of what goes into writing can be taught - not mixing metaphors, etc.”

Thinking Writing Taught Metaphor Etc Mixing

Author:Lydia Davis

“Because I'm not writing all the time (thank goodness), my mind is sometimes pleasantly blank.”

Writing Mind Sometimes Goodness Blank

Author:Lydia Davis

“To observe the world carefully, to write a lot and often, on a schedule if necessary, to use the dictionary a lot, to look up word origins, to analyze closely the work of writers you admire, to read not only contemporaries but writers of the past, to learn at least one foreign language, to live an interesting life outside of writing.”

Ifs World Writing Looks Use Past Language Interesting Admire Look Up Schedules Dictionary Foreign Language Interesting Life

Author:Lydia Davis

“I think the close work I do as a translator pays off in my writing - I'm always searching for multiple ways to say things.”

Thinking Way Writing Pay Multiple Translators

Author:Lydia Davis

“I would recommend, definitely, developing a 'day job' that you like - don't expect to make money writing!”

Writing Jobs Developing Making Money Day Jobs

Author:Lydia Davis

“I do see an interest in writing for Twitter. While publishers still do love the novel and people do still like to sink into one, the very quick form is appealing because of the pace of life.”

People Writing Stills Form Interest Novel Pace Publishers Pace Of Life

Author:Lydia Davis

“I don't pare down much. I write the beginning of a story in a notebook and it comes out very close to what it will be in the end. There is not much deliberateness about it.”

Writing Ends Stories Notebook

Author:Lydia Davis

“I started writing the one-sentence stories when I was translating 'Swann's Way.' There were two reasons. I had almost no time to do my own writing, but didn't want to stop. And it was a reaction to Proust's very long sentences.”

Way Want Writing Long Two Reason Stories My Own Sentences Reactions Translate One Sentence Proust

Author:Lydia Davis

About the Author

Born: July 15, 1947
Known for: Writer
Quotes: 67

Related Topics

Writing Ifs Thinking Way Form May Stories Want Feels Language Long Narrative People Persons Translators Trying Believe Certain Difficult Ends

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

Break It Down: StoriesRelated source material

Can't and Won'tRelated source material

Varieties of Disturbance: StoriesRelated source material

Almost No Memory: StoriesRelated source material

Almost No MemoryRelated source material

Break It DownRelated source material

Essays OneRelated source material

Samuel Johnson Is IndignantRelated source material

Samuel Johnson Is Indignant: StoriesRelated source material

The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis Vol.IRelated source material

Similar Authors

William ZinsserBrowse related quotes
Elmore LeonardBrowse related quotes
George SaundersBrowse related quotes
Stephen KingBrowse related quotes
Paul AusterBrowse related quotes
Natalie GoldbergBrowse related quotes
Joyce Carol OatesBrowse related quotes
Flannery O'ConnorBrowse related quotes
Philip GerardBrowse related quotes
Sefi AttaBrowse related quotes