Author Archives · Universal Quotation

A man‘s ignorance sometimes is not only useful, but beautiful, while his knowledge, so called, is oftentimes worse than useless, besides being ugly. Which is the best man to deal with, he who knows nothing about a subject, and, what is extremely rare, knows that he knows nothing, or he who really knows something about it, but thinks that he knows all?
Henry David Thoreau

Published by the Editor in Henry David Thoreau

Tags: 1800s, Author, ignorance, knowledge, self awareness, Writer

2015-0104

You won’t find reasonable men on the tops of tall mountains.
Hunter S. Thompson

Published by the Editor in Hunter S. Thompson

Tags: 1900s, Author, bold, boldness, passion, Writer

2014-0531

The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.
Mark Twain

Published by the Editor in Mark Twain

Tags: 1800s, accuracy, American, Author, clever, language, precision, Writer

2014-0521

Saying that cultural objects have value is like saying that telephones have conversations.
Brian Eno

Published by the Editor in Brian Eno

Tags: 1900s, 2000s, Author, b. 1948, British, culture, Musician, value, Writer

2014-0504

In his highest flights, musical and architectural above all, for they are one, man gives the illusion of rivaling the order, the majesty and the splendor of the heavens.
Henry Miller

Published by the Editor in Henry Miller

Tags: 1900s, American, architecture, Author, music, The Colossus of Maroussi, Writer

2014-0428

There are no born masters of typography.
Jan Tschichold

Published by the Editor in Jan Tschichold

Tags: 1900s, Author, Book designer, design, German, graphic design, Typographer, Writer

2014-0412

How to write a good short story:
Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.
Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.
Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.
Every sentence must do one of two things—reveal character or advance the action.
Start as close to the end as possible.
Be a Sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them-in order that the reader may see what they are made of.
Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.
Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Published by the Editor in Kurt Vonnegut

Tags: 1900s, 2000s, advice, American, Author, list, storytelling, Writer, writing

2013-1001