33 Quotes & Sayings By Robert Fanney

Robert Fanney is the author of "The Wall Street Journal" best-selling book, "The Birth of the Modern: From the World Wars to the New Era" (Simon & Schuster, 2012). He is a frequent guest on radio and television. His journalistic career spans more than four decades as a newspaper reporter, columnist, and editor. He was a professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism from 1997 - 2006, where he taught courses in media history, journalism ethics, and communication theory Read more

He lives in Westport, Connecticut.

Leowin: Don't worry Luthiel. 'Truth's existence never depended upon belief.
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Leowin: Don't worry Luthiel. 'Truth's existence never depended upon belief. Robert Fanney
May your feet ever walk in the light of two...
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May your feet ever walk in the light of two suns... and may the moonshadow never fall on you... Robert Fanney
3
Without realizing what she was doing and more on an impulse than anything else, she leaned forward and kissed him. It was a simple, yet firm kiss and she pulled back after only a moment. But it sent a thrill through her. He leaned down for another. But she put her finger on his lips to stop him. "That was my reward to you, " she said as they danced. "Don't squander it." "Reward? he asked still seeming both surprised and delighted at this unexpected attention. "What for?" "Why for living, Vaelros. And for doing so much else to help me. I will have you rewarded in state as well. But that was just from me." She saw Vaelros flush and she gave him a brilliant smile. "You don't like my reward?" she asked. "I do! " he replied. "I want only to learn how to earn more." The music was fading. The song was ending. Luthiel stepped back and let her hands drop. "A mysterious thing, my heart, " she said. Robert Fanney
4
Silent. So it should be. You have no place in this world, Luthiel. And there is no other.' Zalos reached out and lifted a few strands of her hair. 'Bright songs and the magic of hope are but a dangerous illusion. The fake comfort of witches charms. Robert Fanney
Zalos: 'The world is full of massive things in motion....
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Zalos: 'The world is full of massive things in motion. Little creatures get hurt. Robert Fanney
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Mithorden said it well, " she said finally. "It's worshipping death. They say they follow light. But, in the end, they're really following desolation, division, the end of things. You should hear their prophecies -- war, destruction, only special chosen people are spared." She felt sad and angry. Worse, she wondered to what ends people who believed these things would go to assert their views. Robert Fanney
I would rather live than die. I would rather die...
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I would rather live than die. I would rather die than survive as a monster. Robert Fanney
If Christ taught us anything it is this -- not...
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If Christ taught us anything it is this -- not to let our fear of death keep us from doing the good thing. Robert Fanney
Vanye: You're asking me to kill you. Luthiel: I'm asking...
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Vanye: You're asking me to kill you. Luthiel: I'm asking you to save her. Robert Fanney
If I could make a dream real, I would not...
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If I could make a dream real, I would not kill anything unless it could never be changed at heart. Robert Fanney
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Writers shouldn't fear criticism. Instead, they should fear silence. Criticism is healthy. It gets people thinking about your work and, even better, it gets them talking and arguing. But as for silence -- it is the greatest killer of writers. So if you hate a book and want to hurt it -- don't talk about it. And if you hate my books -- please, for God's sake, shout it from the hills! Robert Fanney
In my experience, nothing worthwhile has ever really been all...
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In my experience, nothing worthwhile has ever really been all that easy. But it certainly has been worthwhile regardless how difficult it seemed. Robert Fanney
Courage is not the absence of fear or despair; it...
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Courage is not the absence of fear or despair; it is the capacity to continue on despite them, no matter how great or overwhelming they become. Robert Fanney
Wars are won in the will.
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Wars are won in the will. Robert Fanney
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Someone smashed a flutterfler and without even thinking she touched her Stone and used Wyrd to piece its broken body back together. She filled its empty vessels with dreams and it became the stuff it used for blood. It brushed her cheek with its wings, then flew off -- dancing in the hot air. Robert Fanney
17
Othalas: Words. What are they but shadows on a page or howling on the wind? They are as ever-changing as the mists below us and it is just as easy to lose sense of yourself among them. I am older than most sorcerers so what I know may, indeed, be close to the truth. Magic, wyrd, words, dreams, they all come from the spirit. Within them lie both power and peril. For to misuse any is to warp your sense of self. To lie in words, or in magic, or in dreams -- that is how you become lost. The lights you see, they were lost long before they came to the Vale. Robert Fanney
We must be careful what we imagine, fear, or hope...
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We must be careful what we imagine, fear, or hope for. The echoes of our thought live on in eternity. Robert Fanney
19
There are very few things that live in both this world and the world of dreams. Most are gods, angels and demons. The Stone you hold was made by Vlad Valkire the son of an angel and a demon. By the divine blood that ran in his veins, Valkire could see the light and hear the song of creation -- if only as glimmerings and whispers. "Over time, he became aware of the light and the music and as he grew so did his understanding of it. At the age of twenty two, he began his greatest labor -- the making of the Wyrd Stones. In them he captured the light and song of creation and by them some of the powers of gods, angels and demons fell into the hands of elves and men. A sorcerer who knows its secret may -- like a god, angel, or demon -- stand with one foot in this world and another within the world of dreams. "Your Stone is a gateway into the world of dreams, Luthiel. When you sing, it opens and you are, in part, taken there. Others who hold a Wyrd Stone like yours may know when someone crosses into dream. When you sang, I could hear you quite clearly. Robert Fanney
20
Is there magic in this world? Certainly! But it is not the kind of magic written about in fantasy stories. It is the kind of magic that comes from ideas and the hard work it often takes to make them real. Robert Fanney
21
A song she heard Of cold that gathers Like winter's tongue Among the shadows It rose like blackness In the sky That on volcano's Vomit rise A Stone of ruin From burn to chill Like black moonrise Her voice fell still... Robert Fanney
22
You or I might think that at least one would show courage and put up a fight. But neither you nor I have suffered as they, and even we have born witness in silence to lesser ills under less dire threat. Yet, in the face of evil, to sit silent is an even greater evil. Complacency is ever the enabler of darkest deeds; Robert Fanney
23
How can I judge?" she said at last. "To me, he is a hero. To the world a monster." She let her head fall into her arms and started crying quietly. "I miss him! Curse him! I miss him! " Mithorden put a hand on her shoulder and let her cry for a few minutes. A sad smile slowly spread across his face. "I'm glad you can forgive him, " he said at last. Luthiel lifted her head. "How do you know?" Because you miss him. Robert Fanney
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Rise, Luthiel, in the name of love you came and in the name of love I crown you! Robert Fanney
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It is the curse of the powerful to be blind to their own faults. Robert Fanney
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In the depth a light will grow, A silver shine no shadows know, Like wings unfolding in the sky, That circle 'round a gleaming eye, Turning darkness all away, Even depths will know their day, For every shadow has its end, In light! Life will return again! Robert Fanney
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To be me is to be different... Robert Fanney
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Mithorden: 'We become what we do, Zalos. Robert Fanney
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Mithorden: 'He was brilliant, yes, but ready to laugh at himself when he made mistakes. You may not believe it, but he made mistakes often.' Luthiel: 'Why?' She choked around her tears. Mithorden: 'Because he tried to do great things. Anyone can succeed at easy things. But the things Valkire tried were very difficult. He wanted to make things better for people of all races -- for he saw the good in them. Robert Fanney
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A genius is someone who takes a complex thing and makes it look simple. An academic does the opposite. Robert Fanney
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I'd say we're all just ghosts on a wire seeking the prick of an electric thought. Robert Fanney
32
Dominance. Control. These things the unjust seek most of all. And so it is the duty of the just to defy dominance and to challenge control. Robert Fanney