Ralph Ellison
What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do? ― Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (Vintage International; 2nd edition March 14, 1995) Originally published 1952.
Category: Quote
William Saroyan
I do not know what makes a writer, but it probably isn’t happiness. — William Saroyan, The Bicycle Rider in Beverly Hills ( Charles Scribner’s Sons; 1st edition, January 1, 1952)
Herman Melville
We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects. ― Herman Melville
Pat Conroy
You get a little moody sometimes but I think that’s because you like to read. People that like to read are always a little fucked up. ― Pat Conroy, The Prince of Tides (Dial Press Trade Paperback; Reprint edition, October 1, 2002) Originally published January 1, 1986.
Marilyn Monroe
I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best. ― Marilyn Monroe
Donald Miller
… fear isn’t only a guide to keep us safe; it’s also a manipulative emotion that can trick us into living a boring life. — Donald Miller, A Million Miles In a Thousand Years ( Thomas Nelson Inc; 33265th edition, January 1, 2009)
Henry Miller
No man is great enough or wise enough for any of us to surrender our destiny to. The only way in which anyone can lead us is to restore to us the belief in our own guidance. ― Henry Miller
Annie Dillard
I think it would be well, and proper, and obedient, and pure, to grasp your one necessity and not let it go, to dangle from it limp wherever it takes you. — Annie Dillard, from “Living Like Weasels,” Teaching a Stone to Talk (HarperCollins, New York, 2009, Kindle Edition)
John O’Donohue
The geography of your destiny is always clearer to the eye of your soul than to the intentions and needs of your surface mind. — John O’Donohue, Eternal Echoes: Celtic Reflections on Our Yearning to Belong (Harper Perennial; Reprint edition, March 22, 2000)
Orhan Pamuk
I don’t want to be a tree; I want to be its meaning. — Orhan Pamuk, My Name is Red (Everyman’s Library; Reprint edition, November 2, 2010) Originally published January 1, 1998.
The Vale of Soul-Making 