A Quote by Stephen Sondheim

Friendship, obligation and greed are not good enough reasons to write anything. — © Stephen Sondheim
Friendship, obligation and greed are not good enough reasons to write anything.
Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies and cuts through to the essence of the evolutionary spirit.
Greed is good! Greed is right! Greed works! Greed will save the U.S.A.!
Because, you see, you only need one friend for a party. One is enough. Two is enough. Anything is enough.' ~pg 107; Adam on friendship
There are 6 reasons that a person does anything: Love, faith, greed, boredom, fear... revenge.
We do not respect people's beliefs, we evaluate their reasons. If my reasons are good enough for believing what I believe, you will helplessly believe what I believe. I will give you my reasons and reasons are contagious. That is what it is to be a rational human being.
One of the main reasons I wanted to write about female friendship is because it's so powerful and underestimated.
I, myself, write to change my life, to make it come out the way I want it to. But other people write for other reasons: to see more closely what it is they are thinking about, what they may be afraid of. Sometimes writers write to solve a problem, to answer their own question. All these reasons are good reasons. And that is the most important thing I'll ever tell you. Maybe it is the most important thing you'll ever hear. Ever.
Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works.
I define friendship as a bond that transcends all barriers. When you are ready to expect anything and everything from friends, good, bad or ugly... that's what I call true friendship.
I'm not writing anything out of some sense of obligation, or for marketing purposes. This is just what I prefer to write. Even though I write mostly for kids, I'm not out to teach a moral lesson or present a guidebook for life. My primary goal as a writer is to create fun, entertaining books that present interesting ideas and themes, so kids can have a break from the stresses of their lives. I got a fan letter once from a girl who said one of my books made her feel good about herself, and if there's anything I'm reaching for, it's that.
Friendship, if somebody holds out his hand toward you, you've got to reach and take it... There are too many people alone, and if you're lucky enough for somebody to want you as a friend, it's an obligation.
When one, abandoning greed, feels no greed for what would merit greed, greed gets shed from him - like a drop of water from a lotus leaf.
I can't decide for you whether or not you have got to write, but if anything in the world, war, or pestilence, or famine, or private hunger, or anything, can stop you from writing, then don't write . . . because if anything can even begin to keep you from writing you aren't a writer and you'll be in a hell of a mess until you find out. If you are a writer, you'll still be in a hell of a mess, but you'll have better reasons.
If you don't have to write songs, why write them? I've got enough where I don't really feel the urge to write anything additional.
I want you to forget all your insecurities. I want you to reject anyone of anything that's ever made you feel like you don't belong or don't fit in or made you fell like you're not good enough or pretty enough or thin enough or can't sing well enough or dance well enough or write a song well enough or like you'll never win a Grammy or you'll never sell out Madison Square Garden, you just remember that you're a goddamn superstar and you were born this way!
What do prisoners do? Write, of course; even if they have to use blood as ink, as the Marquis de Sade did. The reasons they write, the exquisitely frustrating restrictions of their autonomy and the fact that no one listens to their cries, are all the reasons that mentally ill people, and even many normal people write. We write to escape our prisons.
This site uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience. More info...
Got it!