Story Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old story quotes, story sayings, and story proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

Never tell a story because it is true: tell it because it is a good story. John Pentland Mahaffy
If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people. Virginia Woolf
Stories can conquer fear, you know. They can make the heart bigger. Ben Okri
Whether this tale be true or false, none can tell, for none were there to witness it themselves. Marjane Satrapi
A story should have a beginning, a middle and an end, but not necessarily in that order. Jean-Luc Godard
The basic quality that any great story must have is a story that illustrates the human condition. William Shatner
News is the first draft of history. Ben Bradlee
Telling stories is not just a way of passing time. It is the way the wisdom gets passed along. The stuff that helps us to live a life worth remembering. Rachel Naomi Remen
When you have a problem, if you tell the truth, the problem becomes part of your past. If you lie, it becomes part of your future. Rick Pitino
When someone is mean to me, I just make them a victim in my next book. Mary Higgins Clark
What writer wants to make compromises with story? Story is the only reason you're in it. David Simon
When one side only of a story is heard and often repeated, the human mind becomes impressed with it insensibly. George Washington
The secret is to start a story near the ending. Chris Offutt
The one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and build and play and dance and live as only you can. Neil Gaiman
There is no doubt fiction makes a better job of the truth. Doris Lessing
The story begins only when the book closes. Marshall McLuhan
Life is too short for a long story. Mary Wortley Montagu
There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you. Maya Angelou
Live your life as if you are writing your biography. Keshia Chante
There is no real ending. It's just the place where you stop the story. Frank Herbert
I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Gilda Radner
Each of us has been designed for one of two immortal functions, as either a storyteller or as a cross-legged listener to tales of wonder, love, and daring. When we cease to tell or listen, then we no longer exist as a people. Bryce Courtenay
The most important things to remember about back story are that (a) everyone has a history and (b) most of it isn't very interesting. Stephen King
The best time to write a story is yesterday. The next best time is today. R. A. Lafferty
Every great love starts with a great story. Nicholas Sparks
A story can sing the truth and not just tell it. Robert Barron
We cannot think without language, we cannot process experience without story. Christina Baldwin
Stories make us more alive, more human, more courageous, more loving. Madeleine L'Engle
A story is how we construct our experiences. Doris Lessing
In life, every ending is just the start of another story. Julian Barnes