Every island to a child is a treasure island.
P. D. JamesRead
Open your mind to new experiences, particularly to the study of other people. Nothing that happens to a writer – however happy, however tragic – is ever wasted.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Embrace diverse experiences and learn from them, as all events contribute to a writer's growth.
P. D. James emphasizes the importance of openness to new experiences and perspectives, especially in the context of writing. She suggests that every experience, whether joyous or sorrowful, contributes to a writer's understanding and creativity, implying that nothing is ever truly wasted if one is willing to learn from it.
Themes
ExperiencesWritingGrowthLearningPerspectives
In practice
Example use cases
During a writing workshop, I shared a quote by P. D. James to encourage participants to find value in all experiences.
More from P. D. James
All quotes →If from infancy you treat children as gods, they are liable in adulthood to act as devils.
P. D. JamesRead
I believe that political correctness can be a form of linguistic fascism, and it sends shivers down the spine of my generation who went to war against fascism.
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What a child doesn't receive he can seldom later give.
P. D. JamesRead
It was one of those perfect English autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life.
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The weekend break had begun with the usual resentment and had continued with half-repressed ill humour. It was, of course, his fault. He had been more ready to hurt his wife's feelings and deprive his daughter than inconvenience a pub bar full of strangers. He wished there could be one memory of his dead child which wasn't tainted with guilt and regret.
P. D. JamesRead
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