Few voices in American literature resonate with the depth, grace, and power of Maya Angelou. Rising to prominence with her groundbreaking 1969 memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou carved a space for herself as a writer, poet, and speaker whose words continue to inspire across generations.
While her body of work spans decades and mediums (from poetry to screenwriting to public speaking) it’s often the distilled wisdom found in quotes by Maya Angelou that leave the most lasting impression.
Whether offering insight on resilience, identity, or the complexities of love, her words remain a touchstone for those seeking clarity, courage, and truth.
Let’s dive into some Maya Angelou quotes on writing, perseverance, love, and life.
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Maya Angelou quotes on writing
“When I am writing, I am trying to find out who I am, who we are… But I’m also trying for the language. I’m trying to see how it can really sound.”
“The idea is to write it so that people hear it and it slides through the brain and goes straight to the heart.”
“I make writing as much a part of my life as I do eating or listening to music.”
“Poetry puts starch in your backbone so you can stand, so you can compose your life.”
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
“Creativity or talent, like electricity, is something I don’t understand but something I’m able to harness and use.”
“Making a decision to write was a lot like deciding to jump into a frozen lake.”
“Words are things… Some day we’ll be able to measure the power of words. I think they are things. They get on the walls. They get in your wallpaper. They get in your rugs, in your upholstery, and your clothes, and finally in to you.”
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
“Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him.”
“When I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.”
“Each time I write a book, every time I face that yellow pad, the challenge is so great. I have written eleven books, but each time I think, ‘Uh oh, they’re going to find out now. I’ve run a game on everybody and they’re going to find me out.”
“We need to remember that we are all created creative and can invent new scenarios as frequently as they are needed.”
“Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with shades of deeper meaning.”
“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”
“I don’t know about lying for novelists. I look at some of the great novelists, and I think the reason they are great is that they’re telling the truth. The fact is they’re using made-up names, made-up people, made-up places, and made-up times, but they’re telling the truth about the human being—what we are capable of, what makes us lose, laugh, weep, fall down, and gnash our teeth and wring our hands and kill each other and love each other.”
Maya Angelou quotes on perseverance
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”
“A person is the product of their dreams. So make sure to dream great dreams. And then try to live your dream.”
“Stepping onto a brand-new path is difficult, but not more difficult than remaining in a situation, which is not nurturing to the whole woman.”
“You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I’ll rise.”
“Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.”
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
“We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated. It may even be necessary to encounter the defeat, so that we can know who we are.”
“Life loves to be taken by the lapel and be told, ‘I am with you kid. Let’s go!'”
“Develop enough courage so that you can stand up for yourself and then stand up for somebody else.”
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”
“No matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.”
“Making a decision to write was a lot like deciding to jump into a frozen lake.”
“Not everything you do is going to be a masterpiece, but you get art there and you try and sometimes it really happens. The other times you’re just stretching your soul.”
Maya Angelou quotes on love
“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.”
“One must learn to care for oneself first, so that one can then dare to care for someone else.”
“Love is like a virus. It can happen to anybody at any time.”
“Never make someone a priority when all you are to them is an option.”
“Love costs all we are and will ever be. Yet it is only love which sets us free.”
“In a world so rife with vulgarity, with brutality and violence, love exists. I’m grateful to know that it exists.”
“My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done, to try and love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.”
“Love liberates. It doesn’t just hold, that’s ego. Love liberates.”
“Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.”
“If we are bold, love strikes away the chains of fear from our souls.”
“The human heart is so delicate and sensitive that it always needs some tangible encouragement to prevent it from faltering in its labor.”
“I don’t trust people who don’t love themselves and tell me, ‘I love you.’ … There is an African saying which is: Be careful when a naked person offers you a shirt.”
“The loss of young first love is so painful that it borders on the ludicrous.”
“If I am not good to myself, how can I expect anyone else to be good to me?”
“If you have only one smile in you, give it to the people you love.”
“Love heals. Heals and liberates. I use the word love, not meaning sentimentality, but a condition so strong that it may be that which holds the stars in their heavenly positions and that which causes the blood to flow orderly in our veins.”
Maya Angelou quotes on life
“Stormy or sunny days, glorious or lonely nights, I maintain an attitude of gratitude. If I insist on being pessimistic, there is always tomorrow. Today I am blessed.”
“Being free is being able to accept people for what they are, and not try to understand all they are or be what they are.”
“Life offers us tickets to places which we have not knowingly asked for.”
“The desire to reach for the stars is ambitious. The desire to reach hearts is wise.”
“Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst, and unsurprised by anything in between.”
“Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.”
“Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. But anger is like fire. It burns it all clean.”
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”
“Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.”
“Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.”
“Seek patience and passion in equal amounts. Patience alone will not build the temple. Passion alone will destroy its walls.”
“My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who and how you are, to astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness.”
“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead pursue the things you love doing and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off of you.”
“When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”
“Hate, it has caused a lot of problems in the world, but has not solved one yet.”
“Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances.”
“Life is going to give you just what you put in it. Put your whole heart in everything you do, and pray, then you can wait.”
“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”
“Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness.”
“Most people don’t grow up. Most people age. They find parking spaces, honor their credit cards, get married, have children, and call that maturity. What that is, is aging.”
“You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.”
“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.”
“In all my work, what I try to say is that as human beings, we are more alike than we are unalike.”
“What you’re supposed to do when you don’t like a thing is change it. If you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. Don’t complain.”
“When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.”
Let your own story be heard
Maya Angelou’s famous quotes remind us that words carry the power to heal, to challenge, and to transform. Her voice has guided countless readers toward deeper understanding and self-expression, and if her words have sparked something in you, perhaps it’s time to share your own story.
Whether you’re writing a memoir, poetry, or personal essays, your voice matters. At selfpublishing.com, we believe every writer deserves the tools and support to bring their book to life. That’s why we offer comprehensive courses, one-on-one coaching and book marketing assistance among other things.
Let Maya Angelou’s legacy be your inspiration, and let us help you take the next step on your writing journey.
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