“It requires more than mere genius to be an author”

“A mediocre mind thinks it writes divinely; a good mind thinks it writes reasonably”

“There are certain things in which mediocrity is not to be endured, such as poetry, music, painting, public speaking”

“Making books is a skilled trade, like making clocks”

“The Opera is obviously the first draft of a fine spectacle; it suggests the idea of one.”

“One may do whatever one likes in art: the only thing is to make sure that one does not like it”