Category Archives: Quote of the Day

Quote of the day: Peter Hitchens on [emigrating to West Coast] Canada

Posted on 02/11/2012 by

‘I’ve a fondness for the Pacific North west of the USA, and imagine I’d feel much the same way about British Columbia round about Vancouver.  I became something of a Canadian nationalist while I lived in the USA (I particularly … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Peter Hitchens on World War I

Posted on 27/10/2012 by

‘I treasure the fantasy that at Christmas 1914, the truce in the trenches had spread and spread, across time and distance, until the soldiers of both armies, recognising the whole thing was futile and wrong, piled up their weapons, shook … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: crime novelist Martin Edwards on improving a manuscript by revision

Posted on 21/10/2012 by

‘Revision is, for me, a crucial part of the process.  Although, to an extent, I try to improve what I write as I go along, the reality (for me, anyway) is that until I’ve finished the book, it isn’t possible … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Donald DeMarco on tolerance

Posted on 16/10/2012 by

‘Tolerance can never advance a situation to its natural point of completion.  An artist should not “tolerate” an incomplete work of art, for example, but complete it.  Tolerance is not progressive.  It is the acceptance of the status quo until a better … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Pope Benedict XVI on politics

Posted on 14/10/2012 by

‘Wherever politics tries to be redemptive, it is promising too much.  Where it wishes to do the work of God, it becomes, not divine, but demonic.’ ~ Joseph, Cardinal Ratzinger; now Pope Benedict XVI

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Canada human rights watch: Ottawa Archbishop Terrence Prendergast on Canadian ‘human rights tribunals’

Posted on 13/10/2012 by

‘You are summoned to a tribunal where you cannot have a defense lawyer and you cannot record the proceedings nor have a witness present.  The people judging and prosecuting you have no legal qualifications.  The accusation is ambiguous, having to … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Pope Benedict XVI says ‘Being tepid is the greatest danger for Christians’

Posted on 12/10/2012 by

‘Being tepid is the greatest danger for Christians.  We pray that faith becomes like a fire in us and that it will set alight others.’ ~ Pope Benedict XVI

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Quote of the day: Peter Hitchens on Stephen Fry

Posted on 11/10/2012 by

‘Stephen Fry . . . has the voice, education and mannerisms of an English gentleman — but the opinions of a Trotskyite lunatic.’ ~ Peter Hitchens

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Quote of the day: Christopher Dawson on living faith renewing Christian tradition

Posted on 10/10/2012 by

‘Western man has not been faithful to his Christian tradition.  He has abandoned it not once, but again and again.  For since Christianity depends on a living faith and not merely on social tradition, Christendom must be renewed every fresh … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: Margery Allingham on planning your novel and controlling your characters

Posted on 07/10/2012 by

‘I don’t want it to be thought that I am one of those dear old ladies who just write down the first thing that comes into their heads and hope the finished page will be entertaining. Rather am I one … Continue reading →

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Peter Hitchens on Jimmy Savile, child molesting, and the hypocrisy of the BBC

Posted on 06/10/2012 by

‘I couldn’t stand Jimmy Savile.  But at least his death has helped uncover one of the grossest pieces of hypocrisy in modern times.  Compare and contrast: two great and respected institutions do nothing about child molesting in their midst.  When … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: James Scott Bell on self-editing, cutting and adding

Posted on 05/10/2012 by

‘We usually hear that it’s a good idea to cut in order to make our books more readable. That is not quite correct.  The idea is to cut the parts that don’t hold the reader to the page.  Clunky exposition, … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Jean Daniélou on ‘the mass of disputable theological opinions’

Posted on 04/10/2012 by

‘One of the greatest threats to religious life today is the mass of disputable theological opinions.  In minimizing the supernatural aspect of God’s gift, in minimizing everything that pertains to the action of the Spirit, it destroys the very base … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: Janice Law on ‘writing what you know’

Posted on 03/10/2012 by

‘One of the cliches of the writing business, and standard advice for young writers, is write what you know.  This is simply good sense, ignorance not being bliss in the writing game. The problem is that writing what you know is … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Peter Hitchens on the Christopher Hitchens Atheist Fan Club

Posted on 01/10/2012 by

‘For some of these people, since the very things they admire him for are the very things that I most specifically reject, the idea that I am closely related to him, have a similar education and background, is close to … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: Ray Bradbury, Alfred Hitchcock and James Scott Bell on why fiction is not real life

Posted on 28/09/2012 by

‘Fiction is not reality!  Fiction is the stylized rendition of reality for an emotional effect . . . Reality is boring.  Reality is not drama.  Reality is to be avoided at all costs.  “We must stay drunk on writing,” Ray … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: John le Carré and James Scott Bell on how to begin a novel

Posted on 27/09/2012 by

‘As John le Carré once put it, “The cat sat on the mat is not the beginning of a story.  The cat sat on the dog’s mat is.”  Begin your novel at the point of disturbance, because disturbance is conflict.’ ~ … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: Flannery O’Connor on Ayn Rand

Posted on 15/09/2012 by

‘I hope you don’t have friends who recommend Ayn Rand to you.  The fiction of Ayn Rand is as low as you can get re. fiction.  I hope you picked it up off the floor of the subway and threw … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: Flannery O’Connor on Christian writers and poorly written novels

Posted on 14/09/2012 by

‘Every day we see people who are busy distorting their talents in order to enhance their popularity or to make money that they could do without.  We can safely say that this, if done consciously, is reprehensible.  But even oftener, … Continue reading →

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Quote of the day: James F. McGrath explains Proverbs 10:17 to fundamentalists

Posted on 12/09/2012 by

‘Fundamentalism seems to me to be more about pride than anything else.  It is a well known fact that people who adhere to inerrancy draw very different conclusions about what Scripture means.  In spite of that, more often than not among … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: James Scott Bell on creating conflict and suspense

Posted on 03/09/2012 by

‘Conflict has long been recognised as the engine of story.  Without conflict there is no drama.  Without drama there is no interest.  Without interest there is no reader.  And no writing career . . . Suspense arises out of conflict … Continue reading →

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Writers’ quote of the day: Angie Abdou on the discipline of writing

Posted on 31/08/2012 by

‘The discipline of the writing life is much like the discipline of the athletic life.  Set your goal and work towards it every day, even (especially!) on the days it feels like work.  Don’t listen to the people who say … Continue reading →

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C. S. Lewis on how to remain an atheist

Posted on 30/08/2012 by

‘A young man who wishes to remain a sound atheist cannot be too careful of his reading. ~ C. S. Lewis

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G. K. Chesterton on gratitude

Posted on 29/08/2012 by
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Should fiction writers really “start with a hook” as American* thriller writer Linwood Barclay claims?

Posted on 28/08/2012 by

Here’s a quote from highly successful thriller writer Linwood Barclay: Some authors, when starting a novel, imagine a place first.  Others, a character starts taking shape in their head.  I start with a hook, a situation, a ‘what if.’  What … Continue reading →

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