J. Michael Straczynski Quotes

We have an obligation to one another, responsibilities and trusts. That does not mean we must be pigeons, that we must be exploited. But it does mean that we should look out for one another when and as much as we can; and that we have a personal responsibility for our behavior; and that our behavior has consequences of a very real and profound nature. We are not powerless. We have tremendous potential for good or ill. How we choose to use that power is up to us; but first we must choose to use it. We're told every day, "You can't change the world." But the world is changing every day. Only question is … who's doing it? You or somebody else?

That settled it. We were definitely at the stoned part of the conversation.

1 Q: What do you get when you cross the Creative Artists Agency with a ham sandwich? A: A ham sandwich that never returns your freaking phone calls.

The fear is always bigger than the actual threat. Once you stop being afraid, the threat falls apart.

If you hold fast to what's true and right and just, things work out.

Then I stumbled upon Max and Dave Fleischer’s Superman cartoons. They were beautiful, even a small black and white TV. The scene that lit up my brain like a Christmas tree showed Superman use his cape to protect Lois Lane from a cascade of molten metal. Rather than being angry at her for getting in trouble, he was gentle and brave and saved her. I imprinted on that moment like a baby duck and my child’s mind folded around a sudden understanding.

No, Superman was never going to be my father but if I worked at it really hard maybe day could become Superman. (32)

run outside and shit beside a dumpster, just blasting like a firehose, and a cat runs out covered in awfulness and all I wanted was to die, right then and there, in front of God and everyone.

Writing is a holy chore.

writing is as much a state of mind as it is a profession,

But the shelf life of that status quo was expiring fast.

Let’s go!' Peter yelled and ran off, his voice echoing through the mall. 'Last one to strike out at our imperialist oppressors is a Trotskyite stooge!'

Some people stay in college way too long.

No?” She picked up a jagged piece of glass. “Watch me.

I did whatever was necessary to take control of my life and circumstances because having agency, authority, and control over oneself is the most important thing in all the world. It is the power to say, ‘I will go this far and no farther.

Even as I think these words for the first time, the me who is my future self is remembering me thinking these words for the first time.

The female editor chairing the session considered this for a moment, then said, “Well, you know, rape’s been very good to us, but do you have a new angle on the rape thing?” On one level, her statement was understandable given the scandals and tabloid-style sex stories that drove sales of People magazine in the ’80s. But for me, hearing a woman say “rape’s been very good to us” was life-changing. I believe there is a trapdoor under all of us that has a single pin keeping it closed; it only takes one nudge, at the right time, to pop it open. With that comment, my pin was pushed, the trapdoor opened, and I fell through.