Quotes about keep
page 20

“Maybe it was inertia -or worse, fear- that was keeping me in the same place.”

Jennifer Weiner (1970) American writer

Source: Certain Girls

“Don't just act because you can; act because it's the right thing to do. If you keep that in mind, you'll be all right.”

Brandon Sanderson (1975) American fantasy writer

Source: Steelheart

“He was like me - a kindred spirit crazy enough to keep on trying.”

Octavia E. Butler (1947–2006) American science fiction writer

“procrastination is the
art of keeping
up with yesterday”

Don Marquis (1878–1937) American writer

certain maxims of archy
archy and mehitabel (1927)

Funny, Art

“Our Ford himself did a great deal to shift the emphasise from truth and beauty to comfort and hapiness. Mass production demanded the shift. Universal happiness keeps the wheels steadily turning; truth and beauty can't.”

Aldous Huxley book Brave New World

Mustapha Mond, in Ch. 16
Source: Brave New World (1932)
Context: I'm interested in truth, I like science. But truth's a menace, science is a public danger. As dangerous as it's been beneficent. … It's curious … to read what people in the time of Our Ford used to write about scientific progress. They seemed to imagine that it could go on indefinitely, regardless of everything else. Knowledge was the highest good, truth the supreme value; all the rest was secondary and subordinate. True, ideas were beginning to change even then. Our Ford himself did a great deal to shift the emphasise from truth and beauty to comfort and hapiness. Mass production demanded the shift. Universal happiness keeps the wheels steadily turning; truth and beauty can't. And, of course, whenever the masses seized political power, then it was happiness rather than truth and beauty that mattered. Still, in spite of everything, unrestricted scientific resarch was still permitted. People still went on talking about truth and beauty as though they were sovereign goods. Right up to the time of the Nine Years' War. That made them change their tune all right. What's the point of truth or beauty or knowledge when the anthrax bombs are popping all around you? That was when science first began to be controlled — after the Nine Years' War. People were ready to have even their appetites controlled then. Anything for a quiet life. We've gone on controlling ever since. It hasn't been very good for truth, of course. But it's been very good for happiness. One can't have something for nothing. Happiness has got to be paid for.

Truth, Beauty, Universe, Happiness

“I look coolly in to the blue eyes of the person who is now my greatest opponent, the person who would keep me alive at his own expense. And I promise myself I will defeat his plan.”

Suzanne Collins book Catching Fire

Source: Catching Fire

Personality

“Lies are neither bad nor good. Like a fire they can either keep you warm or burn you to death, depending on how they're used.”

Max Brooks book World War Z

Source: World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War

Death, Dependency

“I've never had inner turmoil about all this. You find a lot of people these days who cannot stand to be alone. You could lock me up in solitary for weeks on end, and I'd keep myself amused.”

Keith Richards (1943) British rock musician, member of The Rolling Stones

People

“To keep on going, you have to keep up the rhythm.”

Haruki Murakami book What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

Source: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

“As life goes on it becomes tiring to keep up the character you invented for yourself, and so you relapse into individuality and become more like yourself everyday.”

Agatha Christie (1890–1976) English mystery and detective writer

Source: An Autobiography

Life

“The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer.”

Peter F. Drucker (1909–2005) American business consultant

Variant: There is only one valid definition of a business purpose: to create a customer.
Source: 1930s- 1950s, The Practice of Management (1954), p. 37

Business, Business

“Don't you know that four fifths of all our troubles in this life would disappear if we would just sit down and keep still?”

Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933) American politician, 30th president of the United States (in office from 1923 to 1929)

Life, Funny

“If you want the law to leave you alone, keep your hair trimmed and your boots shined.”

Louis L'Amour (1908–1988) Novelist, short story writer

Source: The Man Called Noon

Law

“The Government justifies keeping everyone else in poverty because people seem to work the hardest when they're right on the edge of survival.”

Margaret Peterson Haddix Among the Hidden

Source: Among the Hidden

People

“You ask Why to a lot of things and you wind up very unhappy indeed, if you keep at it. The poor girl's better off dead”

Ray Bradbury book Fahrenheit 451

Source: Fahrenheit 451

Girl, Dead

“The hands of Fate keep time on a heart-shaped watch."

- Harkat Mulds(The Trials of Death)”

Darren Shan book Trials of Death

Source: Trials of Death

Death, Fate, Time, Heart

“Are we all living like this? Two lives, the ideal outer life and the inner imaginative life where we keep our secrets?”

Jeanette Winterson book Sexing the Cherry

Source: Sexing the Cherry

Life, Secret, Imagination

“Just keep asking yourself: What would Jesus not do?”

Chuck Palahniuk book Choke

Source: Choke

“I keep coming back to you in my head, but you couldn't know that, and I have no carbons”

Adrienne Rich (1929–2012) American poet, essayist and feminist

“Good, old-fashioned ways keep hearts sweet, heads sane, hands busy.”

Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888) American novelist

Way, Fashion, Business, Heart

“Compassionate people ask for what they need. They say no when they need to, and when they say yes, they mean it. They're compassionate because their boundaries keep them out of resentment.”

Brené Brown (1965) US writer and professor

Source: Rising Strong

People

“Can you keep secrets? Can you know a thing and never say it again?”

Dan Brown book The Da Vinci Code

Source: The Da Vinci Code

Secret

“A drink a day keeps the shrink away.”

Edward Abbey (1927–1989) American author and essayist

Drink

“Because she was raw and uncertain, and she liked to keep all the messy parts of herself to herself…. As much as Lena liked to hide the mess and display the finished product, by this point she was all mess and no product.”

Ann Brashares book Sisterhood Everlasting

Source: Sisterhood Everlasting

Parting

“I stepped forward. Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted to keep his focus on me and not Annabeth. I think it’s polite for a guy to protect his girlfriend from instant incineration.”

Rick Riordan book The Demigod Files

Source: The Demigod Files

Guy, Fashion, Thinking

“What you should really be sorry for," he continued, "is that for the rest of my life, I'll have to avoid wine cellars to keep from thinking about you."
"Why? Was kissing me that bad?"
A devil-solf whisper. "No sweetheart. It was that good.”

Lisa Kleypas (1964) American writer

Source: Blue-Eyed Devil

Life, Kiss, Thinking, Wine

“God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.”

William Peter Blatty book The Exorcist

Source: The Exorcist

God

“keep your eye on the ball, even if you cannot see the ball.”

Tom Robbins Skinny Legs and All

Skinny Legs and All (1990)

“I seriously think I could have sat in the middle of the kitchen floor rubbing two sticks together over a pile of dynamite blocks and gasoline cans, and my parents would be oblivious, as long as I was keeping myself occupied.”

Jordan Sonnenblick (1969) American writer

Source: Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie

Thinking, Parent

“Music… will help dissolve your perplexities and purify your character and sensibilities, and in time of care and sorrow, will keep a fountain of joy alive in you.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945) German Lutheran pastor, theologian, dissident anti-Nazi

Music, Time, Help, Joy

“God surpasses our dreams when we reach past our personal plans and agenda to grab the hand of Christ and walk the path he chose for us. He is obligated to keep us dissatisfied until we come to him and his plan for complete satisfaction.”

Beth Moore (1957) American evangelist

Source: Breaking Free: Discover the Victory of Total Surrender

God, Dreams, Past, Christ

“Nobody home but She for Whom I Am the World. Can't go on like this, can't keep doing it.- Jericho Barrons”

Karen Marie Moning (1964) author

Source: Shadowfever

World, Home

“Children need close friends to help them grow up, to discover things about themselves and about life. They also need close friends to keep them sane”

Cecelia Ahern book Love, Rosie

Source: Love, Rosie

Life, Children, Help

“Dreaming was easier than screaming, and screaming was easier than worrying, and worrying was easier than crying, which was what she knew she would be reduced to if she didn’t keep a hard eye on herself.”

Kevin Brockmeier book The Brief History of the Dead

Source: The Brief History of the Dead

Dreams, Cry

“They laugh at this, the idea that one might keep herds of friendly deer or elk that walk happily to their slaughter whenever it's time for the human to eat meat. Some ask openly if there aren't consequences of a life so easy to live.”

Joseph Boyden book The Orenda

Source: The Orenda

Life, Idea, Time

“How different our lives are when we really know what is deeply important to us, and keeping that picture in mind, we manage ourselves each day to be and to do what really matters most.”

Stephen R. Covey (1932–2012) American educator, author, businessman and motivational speaker

“I'm all in favor of keeping dangerous weapons out of the hands of fools. Let's start with typewriters.”

David Gerrold (1944) American screenwriter and novelist

Source: A Matter for Men

Fools

“"Unfortunately, Lady of the Haven, my one true love remains myself."
"At least you don't have to worry about rejection, Jace Wayland."
"Not necessarily. I turn myself down occasionally, just to keep it interesting."”

Cassandra Clare book City of Bones

Jace and Madame Dorothea, pg. 345
Source: The Mortal Instruments, City of Bones (2007)

Love

“Anything is one of a million paths. Therefore you must always keep in mind that a path is only a path; if you feel you should not follow, you must not stay with it under any circumstances.”

Carlos Castaneda (1925–1998) Peruvian-American author

Source: The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge

Feeling

“I knew I had to keep him to myself, as I'd slowly begun to keep everything. We had secrets now, truths and half-truths, that kept her always at arm's length, behind a closed door, miles away.”

Sarah Dessen (1970) American writer

Source: Someone Like You (1998)

Truth, Secret

“To keep your marriage brimming,
With love in the loving cup,
Whenever you're wrong, admit it;
Whenever you're right, shut up.”

Ogden Nash (1902–1971) American poet

"A Word to Husbands" in Marriage Lines (1964)

Love, Marriage

“I am unable to believe in a God susceptible to prayer. I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their orbits, and then suddenly stops in order to give me a bicycle with three speeds.”

Quentin Crisp (1908–1999) writer, Actor

God, Imagination, Speed

“Escape? There is one unwatched way: your eyes. O Beauty! Keep me good that secret gate.”

Wilfred Owen (1893–1918) English poet and soldier (1893-1918)

Source: The Poems Of Wilfred Owen

Secret, Beauty, Way

“Sometimes… you have to try to forget people you love just so you can keep living.”

Jacqueline Woodson (1963) American writer

Source: Between Madison and Palmetto

Love, People, Forgetting

“I had to keep on acting deaf if i wanted to hear at all.”

Ken Kesey book One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Source: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

“Oh Lion in a peculiar guise,
Sharp Roman road to Paradise,
Come eat me up, I'll pay thy toll
With all my flesh, and keep my soul.”

Stevie Smith (1902–1971) poet, novelist, illustrator, performer

Source: Selected Poems

Soul

“Do act mysterious. It always keeps them coming back for more.”

Carolyn Keene book Nancy's Mysterious Letter

Source: Nancy's Mysterious Letter

“No, I don't want your money. The world moves less by money than by what you owe people and what they owe you. I don't like to owe anybody anything, so I keep to myself as much on the lending side as I can.”

Haruki Murakami book 1Q84

Source: 1Q84

Money, People, World

“I am too tired, I must try to rest and sleep, otherwise I am lost in every respect. What an effort to keep alive! Erecting a monument does not require an expenditure of so much strength.”

Franz Kafka (1883–1924) author

Effort, Sleep

“Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps the singing bird will come.”

Lois Lowry (1937) American writer

Source: Taking Care of Terrific

Attitude, Bird, Tree, Singing

“Try looking at your mind as a wayward puppy that you are trying to paper train. You don't drop-kick a puppy into the neighbor's yard every time it piddles on the floor. You just keep bringing it back to the newspaper.”

Anne Lamott (1954) Novelist, essayist, memoirist, activist

Source: Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Time, Training

“Great restaurants are, of course, nothing but mouth-brothels. There is no point in going to them if one intends to keep one's belt buckled.”

Frederic Raphael (1931) British writer

“It is not easy to keep silent when silence is a lie.”

Victor Hugo (1802–1885) French poet, novelist, and dramatist

Lie, Silence

“This misfortune you find is of your own manufacture.
Keep hold of what you have, it will harm no other,
for hatred comes home to the hand that chose it.”

Simon Armitage (1963) Poet, playwright, novelist

Source: The Death of King Arthur: A New Verse Translation

Home

“I feel strong. Not strong enough to face myself, but strong enough to keep going.”

James Frey book A Million Little Pieces

Source: A Million Little Pieces

Feeling, Strong

“I shall keep my book on the table here, and read a little every morning as soon as I wake, for I know it will do me good, and help me through the day.”

Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888) American novelist

Books, Reading, Help

“Hate is all that keeps us alive when love is gone. You’re almost there. Not quite ready to let it go yet.”

Kim Harrison (1966) Pseudonym

Source: Ever After

Love, Hate

“The truth is the last thing that matters,' she said. 'And you can believe one thing of the truth and me: I keep it well hidden, inside my heart.”

Philippa Gregory book The Virgin's Lover

Source: The Virgin's Lover

Truth, Heart

“I think that is the big danger in keeping a diary: you exaggerate everything.”

Jean Paul Sartre book Nausea

Source: Nausea

Thinking

“His voice is low and soft, a piece of silk you might keep in a drawer and pull out only on rare occasions, just to feel it between your fingers.”

Anthony Doerr book All the Light We Cannot See

Source: All the Light We Cannot See

Feeling

“We all have reasons
for moving.
I move
to keep things whole.”

Mark Strand (1934–2014) Canadian-American poet, essayist, translator

“Oh, very well, do you want to know why I really think you should keep a journal?"
She nodded.
"Because someday you're going to grow into yourself, and you will be as beautiful as you already are smart.”

Julia Quinn book The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever

Source: The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever

Beauty, Thinking

“There was something so primal and hungry about the way he stared down at her.. the way their bodies unconsciously strained toward one another as if nothing - not even time, not distance, not even death- could ever keep them apart.”

Amanda Stevens (1977)

Source: The Restorer

Death, Way, Time

“Just because you fall once, doesn't mean you're fall at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always trust yourself, because if you don't then who will??”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

“Nursing her wrath to keep it warm.--Robert Burns”

Robert Burns (1759–1796) Scottish poet and lyricist

“So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life's a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about.”

Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962) American actress, model, and singer

Heartbreaking, Inspirational, love, Life

“And is it all about the pay?”
“Hence the term mercenary.” He chucked her under the chin. “Try to keep up, halfling.”

Kresley Cole American writer

Source: Dark Desires After Dusk

“You have to keep recycling yourself.”

Chuck Palahniuk book Invisible Monsters

Source: Invisible Monsters

“There are moments in life when it is all turned inside out--what is real becomes unreal, what is unreal becomes tangible, and all your levelheaded efforts to keep a tight ontological control are rendered silly and indulgent.”

Aleksandar Hemon The Lazarus Project

Source: The Lazarus Project

Life, Effort

“If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968) American clergyman, activist, and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement

Hope, Dreams, Hope, Courage

“The purpose of a writer is to keep civilisation from destroying itself."

(Interview,, September 14, 1958)”

Bernard Malamud (1914–1986) American author

“The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny.”

Wole Soyinka (1934) Nigerian writer

The Man Died (New York: Harper & Row, 1972) p. 13.

“Drive away and try to keep smiling. Get a little rock and roll on the radio and go toward all the life there is with all the courage you can find and all the belief you can muster. Be true, be brave, stand.”

Stephen King book It

Page 1087
Source: It (1986)
Context: Not all boats which sail away into darkness never find the sun again, or the hand of another child; if life teaches anything at all, it teaches that there are so many happy endings that the man who believes there is no God needs his rationality called into serious question...So drive away quick, drive away while the last of the light slips away...drive away from Derry, from memory...but not from desire. That stays, the bright cameo of all we were and all we believed as children, all that shone in our eyes even when we were lost and the wind blew in the night. Drive away and try to keep smiling. Get a little rock and roll on the radio and go toward all the life there is with all the courage you can find and all the belief you can muster. Be true, be brave, stand. All the rest is darkness.
Context: So you leave, and there is an urge to look back, to look back just once as the sunset fades, to see that severe New England skyline one final time... Best not to look back. Best to believe that there will be happily ever afters all the way around - and so there may be; who is to say there will not be such endings? Not all boats which sail away into darkness never find the sun again, or the hand of another child; if life teaches anything at all, it teaches that there are so many happy endings that the man who believes there is no God needs his rationality called into serious question... So drive away quick, drive away while the last of the light slips away... drive away from Derry, from memory... but not from desire. That stays, the bright cameo of all we were and all we believed as children, all that shone in our eyes even when we were lost and the wind blew in the night. Drive away and try to keep smiling. Get a little rock and roll on the radio and go toward all the life there is with all the courage you can find and all the belief you can muster. Be true, be brave, stand. All the rest is darkness.

Hope, Life, Smile, Courage

“If your writing doesn't keep you up at night, it won't keep anyone else up either”

James M. Cain (1892–1977) Novelist, short story writer, journalist

Night

“The whole thing of what I’ve been trying,” you said, “is that you’re different, and you keep asking about the other girls, but what I mean is that I don’t think about them, because of the way you are.”

Daniel Handler book Why We Broke Up

Source: Why We Broke Up

Way, Girl, Thinking

“A relationship isn't something that has to be created in a day or perfected in a day. Part of the game is to keep working on it. It's something that'll always be just a little flawed.”

Nora Roberts (1950) American romance writer

Game, Parting, Perfection

“Change your opinions, keep to your principles; change your leaves, keep intact your roots.”

Victor Hugo (1802–1885) French poet, novelist, and dramatist

"Thoughts," Postscriptum de ma vie, in Victor Hugo's Intellectual Autobiography, Funk and Wagnalls (1907) as translated by Lorenzo O'Rourke
Source: Intellectual Autobiography: Ideas on Literature, Philosophy and Religion

Change

“I'm not sure you're quite sensible of the honor I'm doing you," Jace said. "you'll be the first mundane who has ever been inside the Institute.""Probably the smell keeps the rest of them away.”

Cassandra Clare book City of Bones

Source: City of Bones