If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
I seem most instinctively to believe in the human value of creative writing, whether in the form of verse or fiction, as a mode of truth-telling, self-expression and homage to the twin miracles of creation and consciousness.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Creative writing serves as a powerful tool for self-expression and revealing truths about humanity.
In this quote, John Updike emphasizes the significance of creative writing, whether as poetry or narrative fiction, in illustrating the intrinsic value of human experience. He suggests that through this form of artistic expression, individuals can convey truths and reflect their consciousness, celebrating the dual wonders of creativity and awareness.
Themes
Creative WritingSelf-ExpressionTruthConsciousnessArt
In practice
Example use cases
Quotes about the importance of writing can inspire students in a creative writing class.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
John UpdikeRead
Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
John UpdikeRead
But it is just two lovers, holding hands and in a hurry to reach their car, their locked hands a starfish leaping through the dark.
John UpdikeRead
The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
John UpdikeRead
To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
John UpdikeRead
Similar quotes
Composing is improvisation slowed down.
Wayne ShorterRead
Films that are entertainments give simple answers but I think that's ultimately more cynical, as it denies the viewer room to think. If there are more answers at the end, then surely it is a richer experience.
Michael HanekeRead
Above all, I feel that the sounds of this world are so beautiful in themselves that if only we could listen to them properly, cinema would have no need for music at all.
Andrei TarkovskyRead
A surprising proportion of mathematicians are accomplished musicians. Is it because music and mathematics share patterns that are beautiful?
Martin GardnerRead
It's hard to be surprised by a film. It's hard to be surprised by another actor or by a director when you've seen enough and been around. So when I am, or when I forget that I'm watching someone's movie, or when I don't know how someone made a certain turn that I didn't expect . . . You know, I'm in.
Brad PittRead
I don't really need to be remembered. I hope the music's remembered.
Jeff BuckleyRead