Famous Authors and Their Best Quotes on CrownQuote

New famous authors join the hub whenever their quotes appear in a new CrownQuote collection. Each of these famous authors earned a place here because readers keep returning to their words, and every quote below links back to the collection where that famous author first appeared on CrownQuote.

Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein worked as a clerk at the patent office in Bern, Switzerland, while he developed the ideas that would change physics forever. He published his special theory of relativity in 1905 and completed the general theory of relativity in 1915, reshaping how the world understands space, time, and gravity.

In 1933 he emigrated to the United States after the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany, and he spent his later years at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, where his curiosity about the universe never faded. His quotes appear across more of CrownQuote’s collections than almost any other author, from motivation and success to money and life.

> “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” — Albert Einstein

> “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” — Albert Einstein

Fun Facts:

• Einstein won his Nobel Prize for his explanation of the photoelectric effect, not for relativity.
• In 1952, he was offered the presidency of Israel and declined.
• He was born in Ulm, Germany, in 1879 and died in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1955.

More Famous Authors to Explore

Mark Twain

Mark Twain was born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in 1835 in Missouri, and he worked as a riverboat pilot and journalist before becoming America’s best-loved humorist. His novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn made him famous, and Huckleberry Finn is often called the Great American Novel. He died in 1910, leaving behind a body of witty, plainspoken writing that still reads as fresh today.

> “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain

> “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness.” — Mark Twain (The Innocents Abroad, 1869)

Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou was born in 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri, and grew up to become a poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist. She worked alongside Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, and her memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings became a landmark of American literature. In 1993 she read her poem “On the Pulse of Morning” at President Bill Clinton’s inauguration, and she died in 2014, remembered as a voice of dignity and resilience.

> “All great achievements require time.” — Maya Angelou

> “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” — Maya Angelou

Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett was born in 1930 in Omaha, Nebraska, and built Berkshire Hathaway into one of the largest companies in the world as its chairman and chief executive. Known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” he is regarded as one of the most successful investors of all time, famous for patience, discipline, and plainspoken annual letters. He has also given away much of his fortune through philanthropy, including the Giving Pledge he started with Bill and Melinda Gates.

> “The best investment you can make is in yourself.” — Warren Buffett

> “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” — Warren Buffett

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin was born in 1706 in Boston and became a printer, scientist, diplomat, and founding father of the United States. His experiments with electricity, including the lightning rod, made him famous on both sides of the Atlantic, and as a diplomat he secured the French support that helped win American independence. He also helped draft the Declaration of Independence, and his practical wisdom about money and work still fills quote collections today.

> “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” — Benjamin Franklin

> “Well done is better than well said.” — Benjamin Franklin

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in 1803 in Boston and became the leading voice of transcendentalism, a movement that prized self-reliance, nature, and the individual conscience. His essay “Self-Reliance,” published in 1841, urged readers to trust their own judgment rather than follow the crowd. He was also a mentor to Henry David Thoreau, and his lectures drew crowds across America in the mid-1800s.

> “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

> “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

Helen Keller

Helen Keller was born in 1880 in Alabama and lost her sight and hearing at 19 months old after an illness in early childhood. With the help of her teacher Anne Sullivan, she learned to communicate, and in 1904 she graduated from Radcliffe College, becoming the first deafblind person to earn a bachelor’s degree. She went on to campaign for people with disabilities and for many other causes, and her life remains one of the most quoted stories of perseverance.

> “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” — Helen Keller

> “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” — Helen Keller

Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was born in 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, and became a Baptist minister and the leading voice of the American civil rights movement. He led the Montgomery bus boycott and delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington in 1963, preaching nonviolent resistance to injustice. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 and was assassinated in Memphis in 1968, but his words on love, justice, and courage are still quoted around the world.

> “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

> “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

Mother Teresa

Mother Teresa was born in 1910 in Skopje as Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu and became a Catholic nun who devoted her life to serving the poorest communities in Calcutta, India. In 1950 she founded the Missionaries of Charity, an order dedicated to caring for the sick, the dying, and the destitute. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and was canonized as a saint in 2016, and her short, gentle sayings on love and service remain among the most shared quotes on CrownQuote.

> “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” — Mother Teresa

> “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” — Mother Teresa

Aristotle

Aristotle was born in 384 BC in Stagira, Greece, and studied under Plato in Athens before becoming the tutor of the young Alexander the Great. He later founded his own school, the Lyceum, and wrote on logic, ethics, politics, and science, shaping Western thought for more than two thousand years. His practical advice on habit and character is why his lines still appear in success and motivation collections today. Note: only Aristotle the philosopher is profiled here, never Aristotle Onassis.

> “Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” — Aristotle

> “Happiness depends upon ourselves.” — Aristotle

Lao Tzu

Lao Tzu is traditionally credited with writing the Tao Te Ching, the short, poetic text that founded Taoism in ancient China. He is said to have lived in the 6th century BC, and his teachings on simplicity, humility, and leading without force have guided readers for more than two thousand years. His lines on leadership and contentment appear across CrownQuote’s success and life collections.

> “To lead people, walk behind them.” — Lao Tzu

> “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” — Lao Tzu

Zig Ziglar

Zig Ziglar was born in 1926 in Alabama and rose from a struggling salesman to one of America’s best-known motivational speakers and authors. His book See You at the Top, published in 1975, made his practical, encouraging style famous, and he spent decades teaching audiences about goals, attitude, and character. He died in 2012, and his plainspoken lines on failure and discipline are still quoted in success collections everywhere.

> “Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street.” — Zig Ziglar

> “There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs.” — Zig Ziglar

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was baptized in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, and became a playwright, poet, and actor whose works are performed more than those of any other dramatist. He is traditionally credited with 39 plays and 154 sonnets, written for the London stage and the Globe Theatre, and he died in 1616. His lines on love, ambition, and human nature have entered everyday language, which is why so many of his phrases feel familiar even to people who have never seen a play.

> “Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” — William Shakespeare

Rumi

Rumi was born in 1207 in the Balkh region of Persia and became a Sufi mystic and poet whose verses on love, longing, and the soul are still read around the world. His great work, the Masnavi, is a long poem of stories and spiritual teaching that has been translated into many languages. He died in 1273 in Konya, in present-day Turkey, where his tomb remains a place of pilgrimage, and his love poetry is among the most quoted on CrownQuote.

> “The minute I heard my first love story, I started looking for you, not knowing how blind that was.” — Rumi

> “Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.” — Rumi

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde was born in 1854 in Dublin, Ireland, and became a playwright and author celebrated for his wit. His novel The Picture of Dorian Gray appeared in 1890, and his comedy The Importance of Being Earnest, first performed in 1895, remains one of the most performed plays in English. He died in Paris in 1900, and his sharp, funny lines on love, life, and society are still quoted today. Where CrownQuote’s source article labels a Wilde line “Attributed to,” that label is preserved here exactly.

> “You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear.” — Attributed to Oscar Wilde

> “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” — Oscar Wilde

The next ten famous authors joined the hub from CrownQuote’s own collections. Like the first fifteen, each of these famous authors is here because readers keep coming back to their words — and every quote below is copied exactly from the collection where that famous author first appeared.

Confucius

Confucius lived from 551 to 479 BC in China and became the philosopher whose teachings on education, respect, and moral character shaped Chinese civilization for centuries. His sayings were collected by his disciples in the Analects, and his advice on perseverance and learning still opens motivation collections today.

> “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” — Confucius

George Washington

George Washington was born in 1732 in Virginia and became the commander of the Continental Army in the American Revolution and then the first President of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. He is often called the “Father of His Country,” and his short, stern lines on discipline and character still suit success collections perfectly.

> “Discipline is the soul of an army.” — George Washington

John Wooden

John Wooden lived from 1910 to 2010 and became the most successful college basketball coach in American history at UCLA, winning 10 NCAA championships. He taught his players through the “Pyramid of Success,” a set of building blocks for character and teamwork, and his definition of success — doing your best to become your best — is one of the most quoted lines on CrownQuote.

> “Make each day your masterpiece.” — John Wooden

Albert Schweitzer

Albert Schweitzer was born in 1875 in Alsace and became a theologian, musician, and physician who gave up a respected career in Europe to found a hospital in Lambaréné, in present-day Gabon. He spent decades treating patients there and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952 for his philosophy of “reverence for life.” He died in 1965, and his line on happiness and success opens CrownQuote’s success collection.

> “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” — Albert Schweitzer

Nicholas Sparks

Nicholas Sparks was born in 1965 in Nebraska and became one of the best-selling romance novelists in the world. His first novel, The Notebook, published in 1996, became a beloved book and film, and many of his later novels were also adapted for the screen. His lines on love that changes a person are among the most quoted in CrownQuote’s love collection.

> “The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more.” — Nicholas Sparks

Emily Brontë

Emily Brontë lived from 1818 to 1848 in Yorkshire, England, and wrote the novel Wuthering Heights, published in 1847 under the pen name Ellis Bell. The wild, stormy love story of Heathcliff and Catherine shocked Victorian readers and is now considered a classic of English literature. She died young, at 30, and her single completed novel made her one of the most quoted voices on love and soulmates.

> “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” — Emily Brontë

David Viscott

David Viscott lived from 1938 to 1996 and became an American psychiatrist, author, and radio talk show host who wrote about emotional health in plain, warm language. His books on love, loss, and self-understanding reached a wide audience, and his most famous line on love opens CrownQuote’s love collection.

> “To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides.” — David Viscott

Winston Churchill

Winston Churchill lived from 1874 to 1965 and served as Prime Minister of Britain during most of the Second World War, from 1940 to 1945, and again from 1951 to 1955. His speeches rallied Britain in its darkest hours, and he won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953 for his histories and oratory. His short, defiant lines on courage and persistence appear in CrownQuote’s motivational collection.

> “In war: resolution, in defeat: defiance, in victory: magnanimity, in peace: goodwill.” — Winston Churchill

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela lived from 1918 to 2013 and became the South African leader who spent 27 years in prison for opposing apartheid, then led his country to democracy. He served as South Africa’s first Black president from 1994 to 1999 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for his work toward reconciliation. His prison letters and speeches offer documented reflections on adversity, courage, and public service.

> “Difficulties break some men but make others.” — Nelson Mandela

Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi lived from 1869 to 1948 and led India to independence through nonviolent resistance, a method he called satyagraha. His campaigns of peaceful protest inspired civil rights movements around the world, and he was assassinated in 1948, months after India gained independence. His short lines on action today and service to others are still quoted in motivation and money collections alike.

> “The future depends on what you do today.” — Mahatma Gandhi

Why do these famous authors still get quoted every day? Because their lines solve a modern problem in one sentence — doubt, fear, love, or ambition. That is why famous authors never really leave the conversation: each generation finds a new reason to repeat them. That is why this list of famous authors keeps growing.

This hub now profiles 25 famous authors, each with quotes copied exactly from CrownQuote’s own collections. Whether you came here for one of the famous authors you already love or to discover a new voice, every profile above points you back to the full collection where that famous author appears.

Related Quotes to Explore

Find these famous authors’ words in their full collections on CrownQuote: our 200 motivational quotes for success, our 200 money quotes, our 200 inspirational quotes for life, our 200 success quotes, our 200 love quotes, our 200 Instagram captions, our 200 birthday wishes, and our 200 good morning wishes. Browse the full Authors archive, or start from the CrownQuote homepage for the Quote of the Day.

Want to go deeper on the lead author? Read about Albert Einstein on Britannica for the life behind the most-quoted voice in this hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

How are authors chosen for this hub?

Famous authors are added when their quotes appear in CrownQuote’s collections. The hub grows as new articles are published, so the list here reflects the voices already featured on the site.

Why is Albert Einstein featured first?

Einstein’s quotes appear across more of our collections than almost any other of the famous authors here, from motivation and success to money and life. His curiosity-first view of the world fits the spirit of the whole site.

Are all the quotes on this page verified?

Every quote from these famous authors on this page is copied exactly from the CrownQuote article where it first appeared. Where the original article labels a quote “Attributed to” an author, that label is kept here too, because the attribution is disputed.

Do you include living authors?

Yes, when their words appear in our collections and the quote is clearly sourced. The hub mixes classic famous authors like Aristotle and Shakespeare with modern ones like Warren Buffett and Maya Angelou.