35 Quotes by Arthur Hailey

In 1633,” Ainslie explained, “Galileo was condemned for heresy and held under house arrest for the last eight years of his life – all because he showed that the earth revolves around the sun. That, of course, was contrary to Catholic doctrine, which said that the earth was the center of the universe and didn’t move. Only in 1992, after what the Vatican called ‘thirteen years of study,’ did Pope John Paul II admit the Church was wrong – something science had confirmed centuries before.

I learned a long time ago, though – you can’t live other people’s lives. We have to make our own decisions even if we’re wrong.

A surgeon gets $500 for taking out a tumor. A pathologist gets five dollars for examining it, making a diagnosis, recommending further treatment, and predicting the patient’s future.

There was no surer way to lose the confidence of an audience, or a jury, than by letting them think faster than yourself, so that they became aware of what you were going to say before you said it.

It was simply because, as a doctor, I don’t believe a drug should be taken for anything that is just uncomfortable or self-limiting.

I don’t think I really invented anybody. I have drawn on real life.

There I was, an 18-year-old mimic rooming with a blind whistler.

I set myself 600 words a day as a minimum output, regardless of the weather, my state of mind or if I'm sick or well. There must be 600 finished words-not almost right words.