“It is necessary to write, if the days are not to slip emptily by. How else, indeed, to clap the net over the butterfly of the moment? for the moment passes, it is forgotten; the mood is gone; life itself is gone. That is where the writer scores over his fellows: he catches the changes of his mind on the hop. Growth is exciting; growth is dynamic and alarming. Growth of the soul, growth of the mind.”
Cite this quote
APA
Sackville-West, V. (n.d.). It is necessary to write, if the days are not to slip emptily by. How else, indeed, to clap the net over the butterfly of the moment? for the moment passes, it is forgotten; the mood is gone; life itself is gone. That is where the writer scores over his fellows: he catches the changes of his mind on the hop. Growth is exciting; growth is dynamic and alarming. Growth of the soul, growth of the mind. [Quotation]. Famous Quotations Network. Retrieved October 24, 2026, from https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37616-it-is-necessary-to-write-if-the-days/
MLA
Sackville-West, Vita. “It is necessary to write, if the days are not to slip emptily by. How else, indeed, to clap the net over the butterfly of the moment? for the moment passes, it is forgotten; the mood is gone; life itself is gone. That is where the writer scores over his fellows: he catches the changes of his mind on the hop. Growth is exciting; growth is dynamic and alarming. Growth of the soul, growth of the mind.” Famous Quotations Network, https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37616-it-is-necessary-to-write-if-the-days/. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.
Chicago
Sackville-West, Vita. “It is necessary to write, if the days are not to slip emptily by. How else, indeed, to clap the net over the butterfly of the moment? for the moment passes, it is forgotten; the mood is gone; life itself is gone. That is where the writer scores over his fellows: he catches the changes of his mind on the hop. Growth is exciting; growth is dynamic and alarming. Growth of the soul, growth of the mind.” Famous Quotations Network. Accessed October 24, 2026. https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37616-it-is-necessary-to-write-if-the-days/.