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Quotes by Writer
"I do not think that life has any joy to offer so complete, so soul-filling as that which comes upon the imaginative lad, whose spare time is limited, but who is able to snuggle down into a corner with his book, knowing that the next hour is all his own. And how vivid and fresh it all is!"
70
"It is the neglect of timely repair that makes rebuilding necessary."
70
"The human comedy is always tragic, but since its ingredients are always the same - dupe, fox, straight, like burlesque skits - the repetition through the ages is comedy."
70
"It's not just other people we need to forgive. We also need to forgive ourselves. For all the things we didn't do. All the things we should have done."
70
"Closing your eyes isn't going to change anything. Nothing's going to disappear just because you can't see what's going on. In fact, things will even be worse the next time you open your eyes."
70
"_____________________I'm lost for words."
70
"A city like London is sociable in a sense that there are people gathering in bars and restaurants, concerts and lectures. Yet you can partake of all these experiences and never say hello to anyone new. And one of the things that all religions do is take groups of strangers into a space and say it is OK to talk to each other."
70
"There are times when it is best to be content with what one has, so as not to lose everything."
69
"First comes thought; then organization of that thought, into ideas and plans; then transformation of those plans into reality. The beginning, as you will observe, is in your imagination."
69
"We all have possibilities we don't know about. We can do things we don't even dream we can do."
69
"Well, now,if little by little you stop loving meI shall stop loving you little by little.If suddenlyyou forget medo not look for me,for I shall already have forgotten you."
69
"Sexuality poorly repressed unsettles some families; well repressed, it unsettles the whole world."
69
"You could hear him, literally, half a mile away when he opened up. He was at his peak then. He was, naturally, dying to get out of the place he was in, and he recorded for us his appeal for pardon to the governor."
69
"This story ["The Depressed Person"] was the most painful thing I ever wrote. It's about narcissism, which is a part of depression. The character has traits of myself. I really lost friends while writing on that story, I became ugly and unhappy and just yelled at people. The cruel thing with depression is that it's such a self-centered illness - Dostoevsky shows that pretty good in his "Notes from Underground". The depression is painful, you're sapped/consumed by yourself; the worse the depression, the more you just think about yourself and the stranger and repellent you appear to others."
69
"Etiquette means behaving yourself a little better than is absolutely essential."
69
"It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer."
69
"It is error only, and not truth, that shrinks from inquiry."
69
"It is commonly supposed that the art of pleasing is a wonderful aid in the pursuit of fortune; but the art of being bored is infinitely more successful."
69
"Take care of your health. Don't look for one quick fix to cure all your ailments. Take the time every day to help your mind, body, and soul heal. It is extremely important for your daily happiness to know that you are supporting your health instead of hurting it."
69
"A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody."
69
"I've always had difficulties with female characters."
69
"Could be. I'm a pretty dangerous dude when I'm cornered."Yeah, said the voice from under the table, "you go to pieces so fast people get hit by the shrapnel."
69
"For all that was happening to him, his voice was strong and inviting, and his mind was vibrating with a million thoughts. He was intent on proving that the word 'dying' was not synonymous with 'useless'."
69
"Much melancholy has devolved upon mankind, and it is detestable to me that might will triumph in the end."
69
"Eco sees the intellectual as an organizer of culture, someone who can run a magazine or a museum. An administrator, in fact. I think this is a melancholy situation for an intellectual."
69
"Of course, these were only dreams. How could a sensible woman leave a happy marriage? All the same, a seductive voice from afar kept breaking into her conjugal peace: it was the voice of solitude."
69
"You can feel the whole world and still feel lost in it. So many people are in pain-- no matter how smart or accomplished--they cry, they yearn, they hurt. But instead of looking down on things, they look up, which is where I should have been looking, too. Because when the world quiets to the sound of your own breathing, we all want the same things: comfort, love and a peaceful heart."
69
"Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning."
69
"Strangers are just family you have yet to come to know."
69
"Fat realized that one of two possibilities existed and only two; either Dr. Stone was totally insane " not just insane but totally so " or else in an artful, professional fashion he had gotten Fat to talk; he had drawn Fat out and now knew that Fat was totally insane."
69
"Listen to advice. You don't know how many writer's conferences I've taught at where at least half the audience fights all the conventions of the field."
69
"Nudity is the uniform of the other side... nudity is a shroud."
69
"Do anything rather than give yourself to reverie."
68
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