J.K. Rowling

It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.

This quote, spoken by Albus Dumbledore, comes from Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone by author J.K. Rowling. The Potter series books have gained worldwide attention, won multiple awards, and sold nearly 400 million copies. Aside from writing the Potter series, Rowling is equally notable for her "rags to riches" life story in which she progressed from living on welfare and writing on napkins to multi-millionaire status within five years time. Rowling, in 2008, was estimated to be the 12th richest women in Britain.

Walt Disney

We keep moving forward, opening new doors and doing new things because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.

Disney (1901-1966) was a multiple Academy Award winning film producer, director, screenwriter, and entrepreneur. He is notable as one of the most influential and innovative figures during the twentieth century. As the co-founder of Walt Disney Productions he became the best-known motion picture producer in the world.

E.E. Cummings

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night and day to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human can fight and never stop fighting.

Cummings (1894-1962) was an American poet, essayist, author, and playwright. His body of work encompasses more than 900 poems, plays, essays, drawings, and two novels. He is best remembered as a preeminent voice of 20th century poetry, as well as one of the most popular.

Sylvia Plath

Everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.

Plath (1932-1963) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Some of Plath's most famous works include The Bell Jar, Three Women, and Letters Home. Plath is credited with helping to introduce the genre of confessional poetry to American literary culture.

Blaise Pascal

The heart has reasons that reasons cannot know.

Pascal (1623-1662) was mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher who is most famous for his work in defense of the scientific method. As a child prodigy taught by his father, Pascal focused his early studies on scientific fields. Later in his short life he had a "mystical" experience and devoted himself entirely to philosophy and theology.

Henry James

Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create the fact.

James (1843-1916) is one of the founders and leaders of a school of realism in fiction literature. Some of James's most famous pieces of work include titles such as The Ambassadors, What Masie Knew, and The Portrait of a Lady. Most of James's work centered around themes such as the encounter of America and Europe, personal relationships, the proper exercise of power, and general questions of morality.

Sixteen Candles

- "But if I were Ginny I'd have this guy crawling on his knees."

- "Well. let me tell you something about Ginny. Now, I love her as much as I love you. But she's a different person. Sometimes I worry about her. When you're given things kind of easily, you don't always appreciate them. With you, I'm not always worried. When it happens to you, Samantha, it'll be forever."

Sixteen Candles is a 1984 coming-of-age film directed by John Hughes. The film is considered the beginning of the Brat Pack series and one that will continued play for years to come. Molly Ringwald plays Sam, who is suffering from a horrible weekend set in motion by her family forgetting her birthday. Michael Schoeffling plays Jake Ryan, the high school dream boat who is starting to find that partying and cute girls are not all there is in life. Anthony Michael Hall portrays the role of Ted, the geeky freshman dork trying to build a reputation.