Agatha Christie: Necessity is Not the Mother of Invention
“I don’t think necessity is the mother of invention — invention, in my opinion, arises directly from idleness, possibly also from laziness. To save oneself trouble.”
Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter
A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people
Agatha Christie (1890-1976) was a prolific writer of detective and mystery novels during the 20th century. The Guinness Book of World Records cites Christie as the best-selling novelist of all time with over 2 billion copies sold. Her play The Mousetrap also holds the record for the longest-running production of all time; it opened in London’s West End in 1952 and is still playing today after over 25,000 performances.
“I don’t think necessity is the mother of invention — invention, in my opinion, arises directly from idleness, possibly also from laziness. To save oneself trouble.”
Source: An Autobiography (1977) Part III: Growing Up. Section II. (Via Wikiquote)
Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter
A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people
