A Quote by James Wolcott

Telling writers to shut up is a sure way to keep them talking.

James Wolcott

Quote Topics

Keep Shut Shut Up Sure Talking Telling Them Up Way Writers

Quote Author

James Wolcott
American - Critic
Born: December 10, 1952

The way is shut. Then they halted and looked at him and saw that he lived still; but he did not look at them. The way is shut, his voice said again. It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. The way is shut.

J. R. R. Tolkien

It's a long haul bringing up our children to be good; you have to keep doing that — bring them up — and that means bringing things up with them: Asking, telling, sounding them out, sounding off yourself — finding, through experience, your own words, your own way of putting them together. You have to learn where you stand, and make sure your kids learn [where you stand], understand why, and soon, you hope, they'll be standing there beside you, with you.

Erik Erikson

It takes a lot to get people talking in airplanes. But once they start talking, you just can't shut them up.

Chuck Palahniuk

[NFL fans] wish they'd shut up and play football, and I think the vast majority of people, "Shut up and act! Shut up and sing! Shut up and star in your TV show! Just shut up and do what you do, but shut up!" I think they're wearing out their welcome.

Rush Limbaugh

I was a weird kid because I liked to be alone, but I craved attention. It was important for me to be cool, but I couldn't keep my mouth shut. So I was either talking for the sake of talking, or I was curled up with a book somewhere hiding from everyone.

Anthony Jeselnik

It's got too much hard work slapping them and telling them to shut up.

Jo Brand

As she left my room I knew I should shut up. But you know when you should shut up because you really should just shut up...but you keep on and on anyway? Well, I had that.

Louise Rennison

I think people talk too much anyway. Sometimes people are talking to me and in my mind I'm just like “shut up, shut up, shut upblah blah blah blah blaaaaah.

Ellen DeGeneres

If you don't like your wrinkles and you think Botox or surgery is going to fix it, do it and shut up. But don't keep talking about it.

Linda Gray

We need to stop telling each other to shut up. We need to get comfortable with the reality that no one is going to shut up.

Jon Lovett

The folks who know the truth aren't talking.... The ones who don't have a clue, you can't shut them up!

Tom Waits

I do have the feeling that other writers can't help you with writing. I've gone to writers' conferences and writers' sessions and writers' clinics, and the more I see of them, the more I'm sure it's the wrong direction. It isn't the place where you learn to write.

Nelson Algren

I don't want you folks to do a lot of talking. Just shut up and get out of the way.

Barack Obama

A lot of actors, you can't get them to shut up. Instead of listening and watching, they're always telling you something.

Mark Rylance

If you examine the history of any playwright of the past twenty - five or thirty years - I'm not talking about the comedy boys, I'm talking about the more serious writers - it seems inevitable that almost every one has been encouraged until the critics feel that they have built them up beyond the point where they can control them; then it's time to knock them down again.