Some people are born to make great art and others are born to appreciate it. … It is a kind of talent in itself, to be an audience, whether you are the spectator in the gallery or you are listening to the voice of the world's greatest soprano. Not everyone can be the artist. There have to be those who witness the art, who love and appreciate what they have been privileged to see.
Ann PatchettIf you're trying to find out what's coming next, turn off everything you own that has an OFF switch and listen.
Ann PatchettReading fiction is important. It is a vital means of imagining a life other than our own, which in turn makes us more empathetic beings.
Ann PatchettJust because things hadn't gone the way I had planned didn't necessarily mean they had gone wrong.
Ann Patchett