David Shields Quotes
The essential gesture of the contemporary novel is to get people to turn the page, to entertain them, and I hate that. I want a novel where the gesture is towards existential investigation on every page. That, to me, is thrilling.
Quotes to Explore
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What's great about stand-up is that you can say whatever you want and go around the country, and sometimes the world, and work on it and see how people react. You don't need Standards & Practices or notes from lawyers or producers to tell you what's funny.
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The Midwest breeds funny, eccentric people, to varying degrees. You play shows not because you're expecting to get a record deal, but to do something fun outside of mowing lawns. Everything else is just gravy... Or mustard.
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Usually when you're working is when people want you to work. They don't want you as much when you're not working. That's the frustrating nature of our business.
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It is not true that people are naturally equal for no two people can be together for even a half an hour without one acquiring an evident superiority over the other.
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I'm not going to change the world overnight. It's one person at a time, and hopefully they're people in positions of power who can help people get in those roles and really, truly embrace colorblind casting.
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I've been working for many years and I think I've managed to work with some of the best people in the business, which has been rewarding and an apprenticeship.
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People who have a sense of peace that their priorities are in the right place also have a sense of humility and a realistic view on life.
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You have to understand that while I pre-plot the meta story of a given book, I often have no idea of what will happen on the next page, let alone the next chapter. That's what makes it fun for me; I write the books the same way many people read them.
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I want to know what people thought and what they wore and what they ate for breakfast.
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Personally, I'm not into reality shows - I can't even name a reality show that I was a really big fan of, altogether as a whole, not just from MTV. Like, if ABC has another reality show, I'm like, 'Oh God, another reality show.' But people love them. 'The Hills', 'Laguna Beach'... those do extremely well. It's just a personal preference.
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All these police treating our people wrong, man. Black lives matter, but we got fans of all different colors, so all lives matter.
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I'm really private, and also, when I'm home, I'm home. I don't like people in on my business. I believe that you can be overexposed.
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'Jaws' was the ultimate man vs. nature movie, and it was a movie that was basically three people against the elements, so that was the biggest influence on 'Frozen.'
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When you're in a high-stress situation, dynamics between people can change.
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I think it's really the job of the composer, the artist, the painter, the writer to present people with options. I'm just really reflecting the thoughts and actions around me.
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When you rely on incentives, you undermine virtues. Then when you discover that you actually need people who want to do the right thing, those people don't exist because you've crushed anyone's desire to do the right thing with all these incentives.
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I played with Annika today. I love being paired with her. She does not make many mental mistakes, and she has the ability to repeat her swing over and over and wears people down.
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I'm one of those people who really liked high school. I know that might not be a popular thing to say, but it was fun, and I enjoyed my friends.
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When you're managing a large number of people, you learn that incentives matter tremendously. You really want people to be rewarded for doing the right thing for the customers and the organization.
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As an actor, you always think your last job is your last job, and you're always doubting yourself and worried that people will see you're a fraud.
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Very few persons go through life without at least one big chance. The fact that so many do not grasp it is due more often to fear than to any other one thing.
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I do feel almost violent when I'm watching things that I don't think are good enough. I get furious for the audience. I want to say to them, 'This play is not supposed to be like this. They've got it completely wrong. You should be electrified by this.'
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I never had a better role than I had in 'Little Miss Sunshine.' That was one of my favorite roles ever.
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The essential gesture of the contemporary novel is to get people to turn the page, to entertain them, and I hate that. I want a novel where the gesture is towards existential investigation on every page. That, to me, is thrilling.
