A WRITER'S WIT
Tears are summer showers to the soul.
Alfred Austin
Author of 
​Born May 30, 1835

Washington is a city of southern efficiency and northern charm.
​John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Author of Profiles in Courage
Born May 29, 1917

As a novelist, I feel lucky that I can traffic in nuance. I'm more interested in looking at how things change over time, at how people try and sometimes fail to make meaning out of their lives.
​Meg Wolitzer
​Author of ​The Interestings
​Born May 28, 1959

A WRITER'S WIT
I don’t think I’m essentially interested in children’s books. I’m interested in writing, and in pictures. I’m interested in people and in children because they are people.
​Margaret Wise Brown
Author of ​The Important Book
​Born May 23, 1910

When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth.
Arthur Conan Doyle
Author of ​The Hound of the Baskervilles
​Born May 22, 1859

The greatest magnifying glasses in the world are a man's own eyes when they look upon his own person. 
​Alexander Pope,  Poet
Author of "Rape of the Lock"
Born May 21, 1688

Writing is a miracle. You can travel anywhere in the world, to any time and any place—and still be home in time to have dinner.
​Mary Pope Osborne
Author of ​Dinosaurs Before Dark
​Born May 20, 1949

A WRITER'S WIT
We are the most powerful nation in the world, but we're not the only nation in the world. We are not the only people in the world. We are an important people, the wealthiest, the most powerful and, to a great extent, generous. But we are part of the world.
​​Studs Terkel
Author of ​Working
​Born May 16, 1912

I don't shy from controversy. I'm telling stories, and I'll tell whatever story seems like it wants to be told.
​Lauren Myracle
Author of ​Sticks and Stones
Born May 15, 1969

I often meet frustrated young writers who say they've only got so far and just can't finish a book. Even if you don't happen to use what you've worked on that day, it has taught you something and you'll be amazed when you might come back to it and use it again.
Eoin Colfer
Author of ​Artemis Fowl
Born May 14, 1965

I have said this many times, that there seems to be enough room in the world for mediocre men, but not for mediocre women, and we really have to work very, very hard.
Madeleine Albright
Author of Fascism: A Warning
Born May 13, 1937

A WRITER'S WIT
Many human beings say that they enjoy the winter, but what they really enjoy is feeling proof against it.
​Richard Adams
Author of ​Watership Down
​Born May 9, 1920

There’s only one thing worse than the man who will argue over anything,  and that’s the man who will argue over nothing.
Edward Gibbon
Author of The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Born May 8, 1737

The older books were quite light-hearted. But I think most of my novels do end on a deep note of pessimism. Shadows seem to be closing in. The final conclusion isn’t that life is wonderful and everything is bright and cheery and in the garden.
​Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Author of ​A Lovesong for India
​Born May 7, 1927

Courses in the humanities, in particular, often seem impractical, but they are vital, because they stretch your imagination and challenge your mind to become more responsive, more critical, bigger.
​Martha C. Nussbaum
Author of Justice for Animals: Our Collective Responsibility 
Born May 6, 1947

A WRITER'S WIT
We have to unclutter our brains from worries that maybe people don’t like us. Women tend to worry about popularity; it doesn't matter if they like you. They need to respect you. They need to show that respect for you in your pay check. And that needs to be okay.
​Mika Brzezinski, NBC News
Author of ​All Things at Once
Born May 2, 1967

It's really hard as a screenwriter, you feel like you have a vision and then you turn it over to a director and you have to let it go.
​Lorene Scafaria,  Screenwriter
Author of Under the Boardwalk
Born May 1, 1978