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James A. Michener

James A. Michener Quotes

Author

James A. Michener was an American author renowned for his epic novels, which are typically set against the backdrop of history and delve deeply into characters and events. Michener's writing style is characterized by its detailed descriptions and rich imagination, making him a favorite among readers.

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All Writing Men People Ifs Book Thinking World Knows Want Young Firsts Way Years Has Beens Jobs Ocean America Believe Children Might

Famous James A. Michener Quotes

“Things are going to go wrong, and I think we are false to life if we don’t portray it. But there is also the hope that some lucky clown is going to come along and stumble into the gold mine. And I think you are also entitled to hold out that hope.”

Ifs Thinking Mines Lucky Gold Entitled Clown

Author:James A. Michener

“I think young people ought to seek the experience that is going to knock them off center.”

People Thinking Young Ought

Author:James A. Michener

“For all its enormous range of space, climate, and physical appearance, and for all the internal squabbles, contentions, and strivings, what you northerners never appreciate...is that Texas is so big that you can live your life within its limits and never give a damn about what anyone in Boston or San Francisco thinks.”

“I think the bottom line is that if you get through a childhood like mine, it's not at all bad. Obviously, you come out a pretty tough turkey, and you have had all the inoculations you need to keep you on a level keel for the rest of your life. The sad part is, most of us don't come out.”

Ifs Thinking Needs Lines Levels Childhood Mines Tough Bottom Turkeys Bottom Line Rest Of Your Life Keel

Author:James A. Michener

“I think the crucial thing in the writing career is to find what you want to do and how you fit in. What somebody else does is of no concern whatever except as an interesting variation.”

Thinking Want Writing Doe Interesting Careers Fit Concern What You Want Crucial Variation

Author:James A. Michener

“I think young people ought to seek that differential experience that is going to knock them off dead center. I was a typical American school boy. I happened to get straight A's and be pretty good in sports. But I had no great vision of what I could be. And I never had any yearning.”

People Thinking School Young Sports Vision Boys Happened Ought Yearning Typical Great Vision

Author:James A. Michener

“Contrary to what people think, I slave over my books.”

People Thinking Book Slave Contrary

Author:James A. Michener

“You have to be eligible for luck to strike, and I think that's a matter of education and preparation, and character and all the other solid attributes that sometimes people laugh at.”

People Thinking Sometimes Matter Character Laughing Luck Strikes Preparation Attributes

Author:James A. Michener

“It heartens me to think of Verdi who composed thundering operas in his eighties; Michelangelo who did fine work in his ninetieth year, and Titian, who painted better than ever in his one hundredth.”

Thinking Years Work Fine Opera Eighty Verdi

Author:James A. Michener

“I am a humanist because I think humanity can, with constant moral guidance, create reasonably decent societies. I think that young people who want to understand the world can profit from the works of Plato and Socrates, the behaviour of the three Thomases, Aquinas, More and Jefferson - the austere analyses of Immanuel Kant and the political leadership of Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt.”

About the Author

Born: February 3, 1907
Died: October 16, 1997
Known for: Author
Quotes: 114

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Writing Men People Ifs Book Thinking World Knows Want Young Firsts Way Years Has Beens Jobs Ocean America Believe Children Might

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