This quote is from Jeffery Archer's book, A Prisoner of Birth. The main character is Danny Cartwright and these were the words of advice he gave to an attorney who wanted to invest some money in a project; “I never advise friends to put money in anything, said Danny. 'It's a no-win situation - if they make a profit they forget that it was you who recommended it, and if they make a loss they never stop reminding you. My only advice would be not to gamble what you can't afford, and never to risk an amount that might cause you to lose a night's sleep.” Good advice!
And that was the reason for the success of so many of Rod Serling's "Twilight Zone" episodes and Roddenberry's early "Star Trek" stories. By setting the stories in some future alien world, they could illustrate the ills of our current society, with its racism, xenophobia, and intolerance. They said it was their intention to do so, in so many words.
I met a racist once back in Maryland (1970). I tried a plea for fairness but got nowhere. I recently reread Anne Frank because I was writing in first and I like this quote......“I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.” Anne Frank
This is a quote from Wilbur Smith's book titled; Rage. 'It is a strange paradox that a man gifted with too many talents can fritter them all away without developing a single one to its full'.
"Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own." --Jonathan Swift
“So you want to be a writer if it doesn’t come bursting out of you in spite of everything, don’t do it. unless it comes unasked out of your heart and your mind and your mouth and your gut, don’t do it. if you have to sit for hours staring at your computer screen or hunched over your typewriter searching for words, don’t do it. if you’re doing it for money or fame, don’t do it. if you’re doing it because you want women in your bed, don’t do it. if you have to sit there and rewrite it again and again, don’t do it. if it’s hard work just thinking about doing it, don’t do it. if you’re trying to write like somebody else, forget about it. if you have to wait for it to roar out of you, then wait patiently. if it never does roar out of you, do something else. if you first have to read it to your wife or your girlfriend or your boyfriend or your parents or to anybody at all, you’re not ready. don’t be like so many writers, don’t be like so many thousands of people who call themselves writers, don’t be dull and boring and pretentious, don’t be consumed with self- love. the libraries of the world have yawned themselves to sleep over your kind. don’t add to that. don’t do it. unless it comes out of your soul like a rocket, unless being still would drive you to madness or suicide or murder, don’t do it. unless the sun inside you is burning your gut, don’t do it. when it is truly time, and if you have been chosen, it will do it by itself and it will keep on doing it until you die or it dies in you. there is no other way. and there never was.” ― Charles Bukowski
Jeffrey Archer: The Sins of the Father "You see, the problem with being a bully is that on the flipside of that particular coin, you’ll find the imprint of a coward."
It is not the brains that matter most, but that which guides them — the character, the heart, generous qualities, progressive ideas. ― Fyodor Dostoevsky
I don't know if this is the best thread for it, but I wanted to share one of my favorite poems. --- As Kingfishers Catch Fire - Gerard Manley Hopkins As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies draw flame; As tumbled over rim in roundy wells Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell's Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name; Each mortal thing does one thing and the same: Deals out that being indoors each one dwells; Selves — goes itself; myself it speaks and spells, Crying Whát I dó is me: for that I came. I say móre: the just man justices; Keeps grace: that keeps all his goings graces; Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is— Chríst — for Christ plays in ten thousand places, Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his To the Father through the features of men's faces.
Well then I'm not going to do it. I always found this romantic but come on, we have to work when not in the mood as well. I tend to agree more with the 99% perspiration quote to be honest, which is a bit like the antithesis to the message of this poem.
Bukowski's message resonates with me; if I try to force myself, I come to dislike writing and don't write at all, which is not to my benefit. Of course, I can make myself do editing or revising whenever, which is nice! I have to feel inspired and motivated to create anything though. I force myself to do enough things in my daily life as it is, so I just want to enjoy the voluntary creative process. But everybody's different. One can find great writers quotes here in this thread taking either side of the matter. That's one of the reasons why I follow this thread.
I'm not against mad flashes of inspiration of course but often they come after and as a direct result of the tedious spade work.
“I was going through the hardest thing, also the greatest thing, for any human being to do; to accept that which is already within you, and around you.” “If you have no critics you'll likely have no success.” “People don't realize how a man's whole life can be changed by one book.” ― Malcolm X (There's a quote about his opinion on existential novels in Haley's autobiography that I want to find...)
“We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. So medicine, law, business, engineering... these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love... these are what we stay alive for.” ― Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass
Great writer? In terms of lasting influence, yes. I'll leave the rest for the Debate Room, but this is one hell of a quote:
