Top 120 J. Michael Straczynski Quotes (2025 Update)
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101. “On the Internet, inside information is currency, and there will always be counterfeiters among us.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

102. “When we say I won’t take this anymore, that’s when we know who we are and what we’ll tolerate. Until we’re tested, we don’t know those things. That’s when we wake up. That’s when we know who we are. That’s when people will show up and take your side. When you decide what it is you stand for, when standing is the hardest.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

103. “I’m all for crossovers if they benefit the individual books.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

104. “My philosophy: find what it is you want to say, walk in the room, say it, and get the hell out.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

105. “Superhero stories are kind of in my DNA from childhood on, so I think I’m genetically drawn to playing in the genre when the opportunity presents itself.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

106. “Again, one of the problems I have with television, as I mentioned before, is it’s trivial in many ways, and I think that a lot of folks out there are looking for new metaphors and new ways of thinking about things.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

107. “If a person with a bullet in Dallas can change the world, imagine a person with an idea could do.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

108. “To have someone like Clint Eastwood come along and shoot your first draft as written is just any screenwriter’s dream. And Clint is very straightforward. If it’s good enough to get his attention, it’s good enough to produce.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

109. “I think for any writer, creating and controlling your own property is the ultimate dream.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

110. “Whenever you write for someone else, you’re always aware – sometimes overtly, other times at an almost cellular, subliminal level – of the rules about what you can and can’t do.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

111. “I want to have time. When you’re doing a monthly book, you’re like a man racing after a bus. You’re breathless and red-faced. I want to build in quality control.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

112. “Did Alan Moore get screwed on his contract? Of course. Lots of people get screwed, but we still have Spider-Man and lots of other heroes.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

113. “It is not for the gods to decide whether or not Man exists – it is for Man to decide whether or not the gods exist.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

114. “There’s a lot of comics writers out there whose work I appreciate and who are nice guys. I really want to work with guys I really respect and enjoy.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

115. “I like writing. It’s partly control freak, and partly I really like what I do for a living. I have the luckiest job in the world. I can get up every day and do what I love for a living.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

116. “Writing is the process of asking the next logical question.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

117. “Science fiction shows are traditionally about the gimmick or the gadget and tend to be emotionally cool to the touch.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

118. “I think that we are already making steps toward mapping out the brain so we can identify the chemical patterns that create and store memory.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

119. “I’ve always been a science fiction fan since I had understood the conception of what a story was.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

120. “The problem with writing a monthly book is that you’re going through your work like a man running for a bus, red-faced and out of breath. There isn’t time for reflection or critical self-examination.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

121. “On a purely personal level, it’s very strange, because as a kid, Superman informed my personality. Now I’ve been given the job of forming Superman’s personality and, in some ways, drawing on my own background.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

122. “I wake up every morning knowing how ridiculously lucky I am to be able to do what I love for a living, and that sense of wonder never, ever wears off.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

123. “When a book of mine comes out, I instantly go hunting the net, not for praise, but for criticism, because that’s how you learn, from people who don’t have to be polite to you.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

124. “Never let them stop you from telling the story you want to tell.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

125. “Whatever our history, whatever the root of our surnames, we remain a good and decent people, and we do not bow down and we do not give up. The fire of the human spirit cannot be quenched by bomb blasts or body counts. Cannot be intimidated forever into silence or drowned by tears. We have endured worse before. We will bear this burden and all that come hereafter because that’s what ordinary men and women do. No matter what. This has not made us weaker. It has only made us stronger.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

126. “Sister Mary Cthulhu.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

127. “Instead, someone decided to create little moments of beauty to do the simplest, smallest job in the world, because why shouldn’t that be beautiful?”

— J. Michael Straczynski

128. “And if you’re wondering why no always trumps yes, it’s because when you’re married it takes two to say yes but only one to say no. Besides, there’s no risk in saying no. No means everything stays the same, you’re in control, and you don’t feel like you’ve lost out on anything. No is safe, no is always safe, but saying yes is dangerous because anything can happen.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

129. “Writers write because they have stories they need desperately to tell, and things they need just as vitally to say. It’s not something where you have to go out and find an idea to write about, they’re begging to be written. If you have nothing to say, and no story to tell... and I’m not being harsh, just honest... you’re probably not a writer.”

— J. Michael Straczynski

130. “The whole point of Superman, as originally created, was to be the ally of those who had no other allies. It put that magnitude of power, the most powerful guy in the world, in the service of those who had no hope, no chance.”

— J. Michael Straczynski