Imitation, if noble and general, insures the best hope of originality.
Source: In Isaac Asimov's Book of Science and Nature Quotations, ed. Jason Shulman & Isaac Asimov, 1988.
-- Edward G Bulwer-Lytton, (May 25 1803-1873), English statesman, poet; He is chiefly remembered as a prolific novelist and his skill in anticipating and satisfying changes in public taste.