All good fortune is a gift of the gods, and. . . you don't win the favor of the ancient gods by being good, but by being bold.
Source: Writers at Work (Eighth Series, ed. by George Plimpton, 1988).
-- Anita Brookner, (Jul 16 1928-2016), English art historian, writer; She wrote biographical studies of 18th C. painters, including Jacques-Louis David, 1981; wrote novel Hotel du Lac, 1984.