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There is nothing harder to estimate than a writer’s time, nothing harder to keep track of. There are moments—moments of sustained creation—when his time is fairly valuable; and there are hours and hours when a writer’s time isn’t worth the paper he is not writing anything on.

E. B. White

Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts.
E. B. WHITE

Fact Form Get Great Opinion Prejudice Saver Time
A right is a responsibility in reverse.
E. B. WHITE

Responsibility Reverse Right
Loneliness is a strange gift.
E. B. WHITE

Gift Loneliness Strange
Nauseous. Nauseated. The first means “sickening to contemplate”; the second means “sick at the stomach.” Do not, therefore, say “I feel nauseous,” unless you are sure you have that effect on others.
E. B. WHITE

Contemplate Country Eman People Person Place Second Sick Stomach
Reading is the work of the alert mind, is demanding, and under ideal conditions produces finally a sort of ecstasy.
E. B. WHITE

Alert Condition Demand Finally Ideal Mind Produce Read Sort Under Work
Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have.
E. B. WHITE

Being Close Come Democracy Formal Itself Religion Some
We’re born, we live a little while, we die. A spider’s life can’t help being something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies. By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heaven knows anyone’s life can stand a little of that.
E. B. WHITE

Anyone Born Eating Heaven Help Little Perhaps Something
Creation is in part merely the business of forgoing the great and small distractions.
E. B. WHITE

Business Creation Distraction Forgiving Great Merely Part Small
Is there anything in the universe more beautiful and protective than the simple complexity of a spider’s web?
E. B. WHITE

Anything Universal Beautiful Complexity Protective Simple Spider Web
Books hold most of the secrets of the world, most of the thoughts that men and women have had. And when you are reading a book, you and the author are alone together-just the two of you.
E. B. WHITE

Book Men Most Secret Women World
Well,” said Stuart, “a misspelled word is an abomination in the sight of everyone.
E. B. WHITE

Abomination Country Everyone Misspeklled People Person Sight Well
Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.
E. B. WHITE

Children Country Dearly Ever Forget Grandmother never New None People Peron Quote Spider
An editor is a person who knows more about writing than writers do but who has escaped the terrible desire to write.
E. B. WHITE

Desire Editor Escape More Person Terrible Write Writer
A poet dares be just so clear and no clearer… He unzips the veil from beauty, but does not remove it. A poet utterly clear is a trifle glaring.
E. B. WHITE

Beauty Clear Dare Poet Remove Unzip
We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it is only picking grapes or sorting the laundry.
E. B. WHITE

Even Give Grape Laundry Long Only Pick Run Sort Us
Extreme cold when it first arrives seems to generate cheerfulness and sociability. For a few hours all life’s dubious problems are dropped in favor of the clear and congenial task of keeping alive.
E. B. WHITE

Arrive Cold Extreme First General Life Problem Seem Sociability Subilious

There is nothing harder to estimate than a writer’s time, nothing harder to keep track of. There are moments—moments of sustained creation—when his time is fairly valuable; and there are hours and hours when a writer’s time isn’t worth the paper he is not writing anything on.

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There is nothing harder to estimate than a writer’s time, nothing harder to keep track of. There are moments—moments of sustained creation—when his time is fairly valuable; and there are hours and hours when a writer’s time isn’t worth the paper he is not writing anything on.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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