Thoughts on Writing, Art, and Life

The A’s have it! Here are a few random thoughts on writing, art, and life by writers with a last name starting with A.

A common mistake people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools. — Douglas Adams, science fiction novelist

The grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love and something to hope for. — Joseph Addison, essayist

Do the things you know, and you shall learn the truth you need to know. — Louisa May Alcott, novelist

The writer has to take the most used, most familiar objects—nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs—ball them together and make them bounce. — Maya Angelou, poet

The object of art is to give life a shape. — Jean Anouilh, dramatist

Writing comes more easily if you have something to say. — Sholem Asch, novelist and dramatist

If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster. — Isaac Asimov, science fiction novelist

All good drama has two movements, first the making of the mistake, then the discovery that it was a mistake. — W. H. Auden, poet

All photos are accurate. None of them is the truth. — Richard Avedon, photographer