Secrets die when kept or revealed. They live by being faintly and uncertainly repeated.
The Muses inspire art and pretend not to notice when Mammon buys it.
Imprudence gets us into more trouble than actual misdeeds do.
Malevolence is shameful but satisfying.
My self-absorption warms me; yours boils me.
Modern literature seduces with insults, riddles, and inside stories.