Do you know what a playwright is? A playwright is someone who lets his guts hang out on the stage.
Edward AlbeeRead
Few sensible authors are happy discussing the creative process--it is, after all, black magic.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The creative process is often mysterious and difficult to articulate, akin to 'black magic'.
In this quote, Edward Albee suggests that the act of creating art is a complicated and often enigmatic process that defies logical explanation. Authors and artists may struggle to discuss their own creative journeys, as they can feel like they are tapping into something mysterious and profound, much like a form of sorcery or black magic that cannot be fully understood or conveyed.
Themes
Creative ProcessArtMysteryExpressionCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
During a workshop on writing, someone might quote Albee to illustrate the challenges authors face when discussing their craft.
More from Edward Albee
All quotes βWhen a critic sets himself up as an arbiter of morality, a judge of the matter and not the manner of a work, he is no longer a critic; he is a censor.
Edward AlbeeRead
I am convinced that no one is fully educated without a full grounding in the arts.
Edward AlbeeRead
Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it.
Edward AlbeeRead
Remember one thing about democracy. We can have anything we want and at the same time, we always end up with exactly what we deserve.
Edward AlbeeRead
Your source material is the people you know, not those you don't know, but every character is an extension of the author's own personality.
Edward AlbeeRead
Similar quotes
Singing has always seemed to me the most perfect means of expression. It is so spontaneous. And after singing, I think the violin. Since I cannot sing, I paint.
Georgia O'KeeffeRead
I began taking liberties a long time ago; now it is standard practice for most directors to ignore the rules.
Michelangelo AntonioniRead
In the world of reality the more beautiful a work of art, the longer, we may be sure, was the time required to make it, and the greater the number of different minds which assisted in its development.
Lafcadio HearnRead
Acting is not about being someone different. It's finding the similarity in what is apparently different, then finding myself in there.
Meryl StreepRead
I have always noticed that in portraits of really great writers the mouth is always firmly closed.
Gertrude SteinRead
Man must speak, then sing, then dance. The speaking is the brain, the thinking man. The singing is the emotion. The dancing is the Dionysian ecstasy which carries away all.
Isadora DuncanRead