The ability of writers to imagine what is not the self, to familiarize the strange and mystify the familiar, is the test of their power.

Quote by Toni Morrison

Topics: Writers Quotes

The unflattering reviews are painful for short periods of time; the badly written ones are...

The unflattering reviews are painful for short periods of time; the badly written ones are...

Everybody gets everything handed to them. The rich inherit it. I don't mean just inheritance...

Everybody gets everything handed to them. The rich inherit it. I don't mean just inheritance...

The body is ready to have babies. Nature wants it done then, when the body...

The body is ready to have babies. Nature wants it done then, when the body...

For a long time I was convinced that the conflict between Jewish people and black...

For a long time I was convinced that the conflict between Jewish people and black...

Birth, life, and death -- each took place on the hidden side of a leaf

Birth, life, and death -- each took place on the hidden side of a leaf

I'm a controversial figure. My friends either dislike me or hate me.

I'm a controversial figure. My friends either dislike me or hate me.

I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve...

I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve...

The loneliest woman in the world is the woman without a close woman friend.

The loneliest woman in the world is the woman without a close woman friend.

I don't think a female running a house is a problem, a broken family. It's...

I don't think a female running a house is a problem, a broken family. It's...

In this country American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.

In this country American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.

A sister can be seen as someone who is both ourselves and very much not...

A sister can be seen as someone who is both ourselves and very much not...

I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.

I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.

I don't think anybody cares about unwed mothers unless they're black or poor. The question...

I don't think anybody cares about unwed mothers unless they're black or poor. The question...

Everywhere, everywhere, children are the scorned people of the earth.

Everywhere, everywhere, children are the scorned people of the earth.

I'm not entangled in shaping my work according to other people's views of how I...

I'm not entangled in shaping my work according to other people's views of how I...

She is a friend of mind. She gather me, man. The pieces I am, she...

She is a friend of mind. She gather me, man. The pieces I am, she...

Make a difference about something other than yourselves.

Make a difference about something other than yourselves.

I suppose that writers should, in a way, feel flattered by the censorship laws. They...

I suppose that writers should, in a way, feel flattered by the censorship laws. They...

I wonder sometimes if the motivation for writers ought to be contempt, not admiration.

I wonder sometimes if the motivation for writers ought to be contempt, not admiration.

The profession of book-writing makes horse racing seem like a solid, stable business.

The profession of book-writing makes horse racing seem like a solid, stable business.