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James Thurber Quotes

Cartoonist

James Thurber was a renowned American cartoonist and writer. Born on December 8, 1894, and died on November 2, 1961, Thurber is known for his humor and satire in his works, which have had a profound impact on American literature and cartoon art.

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Famous James Thurber Quotes

“Don't get it right, just get it written.”

Writing Comedy Written Inspirational Life

Book:James Thurber: Writings & Drawings (including The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

Source: James Thurber: Writings & Drawings (including The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

“Some American writers who have known each other for years have never met in the daytime or when both were sober.”

Writing Years Known Mets Sober Daytime American Writer

Author:James Thurber

“I never quite know when I'm not writing. Sometimes my wife comes up to me at a party and says, "Dammit, Thurber, stop writing." She usually catches me in the middle of a paragraph.”

Knows Writing Sometimes Party Wife Middle Come Up My Wife Never Quit Paragraph Catch Me Thurber

Book:Conversations with James Thurber

Source: Conversations with James Thurber

“I write humor the way a surgeon operates, because it is a livelihood, because I have a great urge to do it, because many interesting challenges are set up, and because I have the hope it may do some good.”

Way Writing May Challenges Interesting Urges Surgeons Livelihood

Author:James Thurber

“Editing should be, especially in the case of old writers, a counselling rather than a collaborating task. The tendency of the writer-editor to collaborate is natural, but he should say to himself, 'How can I help this writer to say it better in his own style?' and avoid 'How can I show him how I would write it, if it were my piece?'”

Ifs Should Writing Helping Shows Natural Cases Pieces Style Tasks Tendencies Editors Editing Collaborating Editing And Writing

Book:Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

Source: Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

“When all things are equal, translucence in writing is more effective than transparency, just as glow is more revealing than glare.”

Writing Justice Equal All Things Revealing Transparency Glare

Book:Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

Source: Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

“The act of writing is either something the writer dreads or actually likes, and I actually like it. Even re-writing's fun. You're getting somewhere, whether it seems to move or not.”

Writing Seems Moving Fun Likes Dread

Book:Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

Source: Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself

“I drew pictures rapidly and with few lines, because I had to write most of the pieces, too, and couldn't monkey long with the drawings. The divine urge was no higher than that.”

Writing Long Lines Pieces Divine Higher Drawing Urges Monkeys

Book:The Thurber letters: the wit, wisdom, and surprising life of James Thurber

Source: The Thurber letters: the wit, wisdom, and surprising life of James Thurber

“At forty my faculties may have closed up like flowers at evening, leaving me unable to write my memoirs with a fitting and discreet inaccuracy, or, having written them, unable to carry them to the publisher.”

Writing May Written Flower Leaving Memoir Evening Forty Faculty Publishers Leaving Me Fitting Discreet

Book:James Thurber: Writings & Drawings (including The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

Source: James Thurber: Writings & Drawings (including The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

“With sixty staring me in the face, I have developed inflammation of the sentence structure and definite hardening of the paragraphs.”

Writing Faces Comedy Structure Sentences Staring Birthday Sarcastic Sixty Definite Paragraph Sentence Structure

Author:James Thurber

About the Author

Born: December 8, 1894
Died: November 2, 1961
Known for: Cartoonist
Quotes: 193

Books & Sources

James Thurber: Writings & Drawings (including The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)Related source material

Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and HimselfRelated source material

Further fables for our timeRelated source material

Lanterns & LancesRelated source material

The Thurber letters: the wit, wisdom, and surprising life of James ThurberRelated source material

Many MoonsRelated source material

The 13 ClocksRelated source material

Thurber's Dogs: A Collection of the Master's Dogs, Written and Drawn, Real and Imaginary, Legends AllRelated source material

Writings and DrawingsRelated source material

Conversations with James ThurberRelated source material

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