Best elements & character Quotes | Short & Famous Sayings

“I always tell myself that when you're playing a character, pretend they're on trial and you're giving the best witness of their life. You really need to think about every element of the character and represent them properly, as if they were a real person. You want to give 100 percent of what they're worth and what they deserve as people.”

People Ifs Thinking Want Needs Giving Persons Real Character Elements Percent Deserve Trials Witness Real Person Give 100 Percent

Author:Pauley Perrette

“The most difficult part of any crime novel is the plotting. It all begins simply enough, but soon you're dealing with a multitude of linked characters, strands, themes and red herrings - and you need to try to control these unruly elements and weave them into a pattern.”

Needs Trying Enough Character Difficult Novel Crime Elements Red Patterns Theme Multitudes Linked Strands Unruly Herring Crime Novels Red Herrings

Author:Ian Rankin

“To build character of purpose and integrity is our high mark, and that cannot be done in a world where there are no adverse elements.”

World Done Character Christian Purpose Integrity Elements Mark Christian Inspirational Adverse

Author:Vance Havner

“There’s never a wrong idea. You just keep throwing stuff out and inevitably there are elements of different things that inspire a character or environment.”

Ideas Different Character Stuff Environment Inspire Elements Different Things Throwing Wrong Ideas

Author:John Lasseter

“New pressures are causing ever more people to find their main satisfaction in their consumptive role rather than in their productive role. And these pressures are bringing forward such traits as pleasure-mindedness, self-indulgence, materialism, and passivity as conspicuous elements of the American character.”

People Self Character Pleasure Roles Elements Pressure Satisfaction Productive Materialism Traits Consumerism Indulgence Overconsumption Passivity Self Indulgence American Character

Author:Vance Packard

“Each celestial body, in fact each and every atom, produces a particular sound on account of its movement, its rhythm or vibration. All these sounds and vibrations form a universal harmony in which each element, while having it’s own function and character, contributes to the whole.”

Whole Character Facts Body Form Sound Movement Produce Particular Elements Universal Accounts Function Harmony Rhythm Atoms Vibrations Celestial Celestial Bodies

Author:Pythagoras

“I embrace my blackness, just as I do my conservatism and my Christianity, but I don't want to be defined or pigeonholed by any one of the many elements that make up my character.”

Want Character Christianity Elements Embrace Defined Conservatism Blackness

Author:J. C. Watts

“It is a kind and wise arrangement of Providence that weaves our sorrows into the elements of character and that all the disappointments, and conflicts, and afflictions of life may, if rightly used, become the means of improvement, and create in us the sinews of strength.... the dross is left in the crucible, the baser metals are transmuted, and the character is enriched with gold.”

Ifs Kind May Mean Character Used Left Wise Sorrow Conflict Elements Gold Disappointment Improvement Metals Providence Arrangements Affliction Crucible Dross

Author:William Morley Punshon

“A dream inspiring a story is different than placing a description of a dream in a story. When you describe a character's dream, it has to be sharper than reality in some way, and more meaningful. It has to somehow speak to plot, character, and all the rest. If you're writing something fantastical, it can be a really deadly choice because your story already has elements that can seem dreamlike.”

Ifs Way Writing Different Character Stories Dream Reality Seems Choices Speak Elements Meaningful Description Plot

Author:Jeff VanderMeer

“One thing about beginning writers is that they don't really always know their own strengths and weaknesses - you might think you're bad at characterization, but that might really be because of some issue you're having with another element, which is making it hard for you to express character in a convincing way.”

Thinking Knows Way Hard Character Might Issues One Thing Elements Weakness Convincing Strength And Weakness Characterization Beginning Writers

Author:Jeff VanderMeer

“An important advance in the life of a people is the transformation of the religion of fear into the moral religion. But one must avoid the prejudice that regards the religions of primitive peoples as pure fear religions and those of the civilized races as pure moral religions. All are mixed forms, though the moral element predominates in the higher levels of social life. Common to all these types is the anthropomorphic character of the idea of God.”

Source: Einstein on Cosmic Religion and Other Opinions and Aphorisms

“Flaws reveal a lot about a character and who people are. The flawed elements of a character are where I find their humanity. Those are the things I tend to identify with - the weaknesses. I don't know why, but I identify with struggle more than with success.”

People Knows Character Humanity Struggle Elements Weakness Flaws Flawed

Author:Liev Schreiber

“I believe that during the intervention of NATO in Kosovo there is an element nobody can question: the air attacks, the bombs, are not caused by a material interest. Their character is exclusively humanitarian: What is at stake here are the principles, human rights which have priority above state sovereignty. This makes it legitimate to attack the Yugoslav Federation, although without the United Nations mandate.”

“We all recall the cruel stepmother in fairy tales. That archetype is often a necessary element in a fairy tale so that the heroine/hero can become a person of character and power. Stories of heroes and heroines often begin with a wound or loss or injustice and end with heroic acts of restoration.”

Source: The Power of Coincidence: How Life Shows Us What We Need to Know

“Speculative Philosophy is the endeavour to frame a coherent, logical, necessary system of general ideas in terms of which every element of our experience can be interpreted. By this notion of 'interpretation' I mean that everything of which we are conscious, as enjoyed, perceived, willed, or thought, shall have the character of a particular instance of the general scheme.”

Mean Ideas Philosophy Character Term Particular Elements Conscious Notion Instance Enjoyed Logical Interpretation Schemes Endeavour

Author:Charles Hartshorne

“Portugal was born in the shadow of the Catholic Church and religion, from the beginning it was the formative element of the soul of the nation and the dominant trait of character of the Portuguese people.”

People Soul Character Nations Born Church Elements Shadow Catholic Traits Dominant Catholic Church Portugal Portuguese

Author:Antonio de Oliveira Salazar

“The elements which determine the make of any particular sermon are three; the preacher, the material, and the audience; just as the character of any battle is determined by three elements; the gun (including the gunner), the ammunition, and the fortress against which the attack is made.”

Made Character Three Audience Particular Materials Battle Elements Gun Including Determine Determined Preacher Sermons Fortresses Ammunition Gunners

Book:The Joy of Preaching

Source: The Joy of Preaching

“All the writing elements are the same. You need to tell a good story... You've got good characters... People think there's some dramatic difference between writing 'Little Bear' and the 'Hunger Games,' and as a writer, for me, there isn't.”

People Thinking Needs Writing Littles Character Stories Games Differences Bears Elements Hunger Dramatic Good Story Good Character

Author:Suzanne Collins

“Every character I get to play has some element of who I am, but there's no fun in playing yourself. At least, for me, there isn't.”

Play Character Fun Elements Who I Am Playing Yourself

Author:Octavia Spencer

“In every character you play, as much as you hate to admit it as an actor, but there's an element of you that you bring to it.”

Play Character Hate Actors Elements

Author:Janet Montgomery

“I did ... learn an important distinction in graduate school: a speculation about who had syphilis when is gossip if it's about your friends, a plot element if it's about a character in a novel, and scholarship if it's about John Keats.”

Ifs Important Character School Novel Elements Distinction Plot Gossip Graduates Speculation Scholarship Graduate School Syphilis

Book:Second words: selected critical prose

Source: Second words: selected critical prose

“I always like to try different things, different genres; stories that have a dramatic element and can generate conflict which I find appealing; where the characters have to overcome obstacles. That kind of thing is challenging.”

Trying Kind Different Character Stories Challenges Conflict Elements Overcoming Obstacles Genre Dramatic Different Things Different Genres

Author:Clint Eastwood

“There is scarcely an aspect of the American character to which humor is not related, few which in some sense it has not governed. ... It is a lawless element, full of surprises.”

Character Humor Elements Aspect Surprise Related American Character

Author:Constance Rourke

“men change less than is imagined; their after life is only a kaleidescope combination of the elements of their character at the period of adolescence.”

Men Character Life Is Periods Elements Combination Adolescence

Book:Zoe: The History of Two Lives

Source: Zoe: The History of Two Lives

“When a novelist or screenwriter is looking for a subject, the element he's seeking is conflict. Conflict makes drama. Conflict produces great characters and memorable scenes. So war is a natural topic.”

War Character Natural Subjects Produce Drama Scene Conflict Elements Seeking Novelists Memorable Topics Screenwriters Great Character

Author:Steven Pressfield

“The last element in drama is high stakes. War, of course, is life and death - survival, not only for the story's characters, but often for the society itself. That's why I'm drawn to stories that are built around wars, even if they're not technically "war stories."”

Ifs War Character Stories Lasts Courses Drama Elements Survival Built Life And Death Stakes War Stories

Author:Steven Pressfield

“I think every individual, and every society, is perfected just in proportion to the combination, and cooperation, of masculine and feminine elements of character. He is the most perfect man who is affectionate as well as intellectual; and she is the most perfect woman who is intellectual as well as affectionate. Every art and science becomes more interesting, viewed both from the masculine and feminine points of view.”

“A lot of the characters I end up playing have a certain degree of glamour or sexiness, but I like it when you can have some other element that makes it much more interesting.”

Ends Character Certain Interesting Degrees Elements Glamour Sexiness

Author:Erin Cummings

“What could an unsanctified man do in Heaven, if by any chance he got there? Let that question be fairly looked in the face and fairly answered. No man can possibly be happy in a place where he is not in his element and where all around him is not congenial to his tastes, habits and character.”

Ifs Men Character Faces Heaven Chance Habit Taste Elements

Book:HOLINESS;BEING PLAIN PAPERS ON ITS NATURE, HINDRANCES, DIFFICULTIES AND ROOTS

Source: HOLINESS;BEING PLAIN PAPERS ON ITS NATURE, HINDRANCES, DIFFICULTIES AND ROOTS

“... But all the feelings that evoke in us the joy or the misfortune of a real person are only produced in us through the intermediary of an image of that joy or that misfortune; the ingeniousness of the first novelist was in understanding that, in the apparatus of our emotions, since the image is the only essential element, the simplification which consists of purely and simply suppressing the factual characters is a definitive improvement.”

Firsts Persons Real Character Feelings Joy Understanding Emotion Fiction Essentials Elements Improvement Novelists Misfortunes Evoke Factual Real Person Simplification Suppressing

Author:Marcel Proust

“A quick and sound judgment, good common sense, kind feeling, and an instinctive perception of character, in these are the elements of what is called tact, which has so much to do with acceptability and success in life.”

Kind Character Feelings Sound Common Elements Judgment Perception Common Sense Success In Life Politeness Tact Sound Judgment

Author:Charles Simmons

“When I can't immediately define the character, and there's an element of mystery to it and still a lot to be explored, that's when I say yes.”

Stills I Can Character Mystery Elements

Author:Leonardo DiCaprio

“We're interested in complex characters and he's a complex character, [J. Edgar] Hoover. I like these types of dramas. I've made a few of them and I'm also interested in power structures so it just has elements that fascinate me, and the more you learn about Hoover, the more polarizing you realize he is.”

Made Character Realizing Type Drama Elements Structure Complexes Hoover Complex Characters Polarizing J Edgar Hoover

Author:Brian Grazer

“Introduce your main characters and themes in the first third of your novel. If you are writing a plot-driven genre novel make sure all your major themes/plot elements are introduced in the first third, which you can call the introduction. Develop your themes and characters in your second third, the development. Resolve your themes, mysteries and so on in the final third, the resolution.”

Ifs Writing Firsts Character Novel Mystery Development Elements Majors Thirds Finals Driven Genre Theme Plot Resolve Resolution Introducing Introduction Main Characters

Author:Michael Moorcock

“Love is a very contradiction of all the elements of our ordinary nature -- it makes the proud man meek -- the cheerful, sad -- the high-spirited, tame; our strongest resolutions, our hardiest energy fail before it. Believe me, you cannot prophesy of its future effect in a man from any knowledge of his past character.”

“No president in history has been more vilified or was more vilivied during the time he was President than Lincoln. Those who knew him, his secretaries, have written that he was deeply hurt by what was said about him and drawn about him, but on the other hand, Lincoln had the great strength of character never to display it, always able to stand tall and strong and firm no matter how harsh or unfair the criticism might be. These elements of greatness, of course, inspire us all today.”

“Certain elements of today's ecological crisis reveal its moral character. First among these is the indiscriminate application of advances in science and technology. Many recent discoveries have brought undeniable benefits to humanity. Indeed, they demonstrate the nobility of the human vocation to participate responsibly in God's creative action in the world. Unfortunately, it is now clear that the application of these discoveries in the fields of industry and agriculture have produced harmful long-term effects.”

“A character to me can't be contrived. I don't like to contrive characters. They have to have an element of truth.”

Character Elements

Author:Jack Kirby

“A lot of people don't think about it, but the Bible has every horror element that you can imagine. It's got the devil, the Antichrist, Lucifer, and Satan - which are four different characters. It's got the end of the world. You've got zombies, giants, demon possession, a lot of murder.”

People Thinking World Different Ends Character Four Imagine Horror Elements Devil Murder Possession Satan Giants Demon Zombie End Of The World Lucifer Different Characters Antichrist

Author:Marilyn Manson

“I've made the decision to adhere to three general truths when it comes to my novels: There will be a love-story element to the story, the novel will be set in eastern North Carolina, and the characters will be likeable. Then, I make each novel unique through differences in voice, perspective, age and personalities of the characters, and of course, plot.”

Made Character Stories Age Three Courses Voice Differences Decision Novel Perspective Personality Elements Unique Love Story Plot Eastern Carolina North Carolina Likeable

Author:Nicholas Sparks

“I want to be careful to not stray too far away from what Batman is to me, but adding that element takes you in some directions that haven't been explored quite as much with the character.”

Want Character Havens Elements Careful Be Careful Far Away

Author:David Finch

“I've always used masks. I think it's a lot about the fact that masks often reveal a sort of subconscious element to a character. The mask is carved and given an expression or markings to reveal something, even though it's shielding the face. Even though it's hiding the face, it seems to reveal something underneath.”

Thinking Character Facts Seems Faces Used Given Expression Elements Mask Hiding Subconscious

Author:Dave McKean

“My stories usually begin with the characters and some elements of how power (personal, political, magical) functions in the world. The rest develops as I write, and research helps a great deal with that. If you're going to write about an agrarian economy, research agrarian economies. If your main character is starving, then you should know what it means for a malnourished body to break down.”

Ifs Knows World Should Writing Mean Character Helping Stories Body Political Deals Break Economy Elements Research Function Breaking Down Starving Main Characters

Author:Leigh Bardugo

“Finally, let us not forget the religious character of our origin. Our fathers were brought hither by their high veneration for the Christian religion. They journeyed by its light, and labored in its hope. They sought to incorporate its principles with the elements of their society, and to diffuse its influence through all their institutions, civil, political, or literary. Let us cherish these sentiments, and extend this influence still more widely; in full conviction that that is the happiest society which partakes in the highest degree of the mild and peaceful spirit of Christianity.”

Source: Speeches and Forensic Arguments

“For every role, I brought certain elements of the character. Even on White Collar over six years, I tried to keep the set fun and breezy and Howard Hawks-y and very of the tone of the show.”

Years Character Shows Certain Fun White Roles Elements Six Tone Collars Hawks White Collar Breezy

Author:Matt Bomer

“A character like Wonder Woman is so iconic and yet, over the course of her history, there have been lots of subtle changes. We couldn't stray too far from the comic book look, but you do have a certain amount of leeway in terms of how you interpret those elements for animation.”

Looks Has Beens Book Character Certain Courses Term Wonder Amount Elements Comic Subtle Comic Book Animation Iconic Wonder Woman

Author:Bruce Timm

“All films created by Walt Disney at the time of his major outpouring of work were carefully crafted to fit scenes, characters, moods and situations. If these elements changed in any way, songs - no matter how good they were - were discarded. Others were written for the new scenes. Many times, character songs were dropped because characters were dropped...sequences were dropped etc.”

Ifs Way Matter Character Film Song Situation Written Changed Fit Scene Elements Majors Mood Etc Sequence Discarded Walt

Author:Richard Sherman

“When I'm trying to imagine something, I have a few elements, a few ideas, maybe a certain actor or actress I want to create a certain type of character for, or maybe a certain place.”

Want Trying Ideas Character Certain Actors Imagine Type Elements Actresses

Author:Jim Jarmusch

“Education is character development, harmonious completion of human personality. But what the state accomplishes in this field is dull drill, extinction of natural feeling, narrowing of the spiritual field of vision, destruction of all the deeper elements of character in man. The state can train subjects...but it can never develop free men who take their affairs into their own hands; for independent thought is the greatest danger that it has to fear.”

“I write characters that are based on elements of people I know and experiences I've really had.”

People Knows Writing Character Elements

Author:Aziz Ansari

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