About William 
William O’Flaherty earned a Master’s degree in counseling from Appalachian State University. Since then, has been a school guidance counselor, a radio announcer, and he is currently employed as an in-home Family Therapist with Pressley Ridge, based out of Pittsburgh, PA.
William’s first publication was a children’s story for Practical Ideas for Counselors. He has also published technical articles for Christian Computing Magazine (now Ministry Tech Magazine) and other tech magazines.
In addition to writing for his website EssentialCSLewis.com, William has contributed to Breakpoint.org and NarniaFans.com. His podcast, “All About Jack,” which features interviews about books related to C. S. Lewis, has over 200 downloads per day. The photo on right is courtesy of Lancia E. Smith.
Your Questions or Comments Are Always Welcomed
Feel free to contact me if you have questions or comments about my site. While I can’t guarantee you’ll get a personal reply, your questions will be considered for a future article. If you have written a book about C.S. Lewis, or have read a book and thought the author would be a good candidate then send me a message below.
Contact me via the form below (at the end of the comments):
Hello, would you know who actually said this?
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
Yes,
I did an article about that quote here:
https://essentialcslewis.com/2017/11/11/ccslq-41-go-back-and-change/
I’m quoting CS Lewis and want to cite it properly. Do you know how I can find out what page number this quote is on? “There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.”
C.S. Lewis, letter to Mary Willis Shelburne on June 17, 1963. The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 3.
It is on page 1430 of Volume 3.
Please note the CONTEXT of this quote. I’ve written about it here:
https://essentialcslewis.com/2016/02/13/ccslq-21-far-better-things/
Regarding the origin of the beautiful quote on friendship some believe to be Lewis’s…”A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.”… I have a lovely card that attributes it to a Danish proverb.
Jane
I’m really glad this whole resource exists. I didn’t realize until I read “The Misquotable C.S. Lewis”, just how misquoted he really is! I do have a quote that I am really now wondering about. I first heard it from a Christian artist at a concert. Can you tell me if C.S. Lewis actually wrote this quote or anything close to it, and where it would be found: “We are called to have faith, even in the darkest hour, and not grow faint or join with the cynics and the mockers.”
It is amazing how many quotes are falsely attributed to Lewis, even if some are summaries of what he actually said.
As for your question, I don’t believe anyone has asked about that quote before. However, I was able to track down the source, and it was NOT written by Lewis. Instead, it is from a book about him, or rather Narnia. Specifically, it comes from page 176 of Narnia Beckons: C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Beyond
On that page the authors are providing a reflection of chapter 14 of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Thank you for the clarification on the phrase “We read to know…” While I love the phrase, I wanted to use it in a job application and needed confirmation on its source. Thanks to you, I attributed it to the movie and not Lewis himself.
Hello, I enjoy your podcast a lot!
A while back you highlighted a new doctoral program focused on the Inklings and I can’t find it now when I search your website or google it. Could you remind me of the name of the school?
Thanks and best wishes,
Greg
It’s called Northwind.
Here’s a link to a podcast interview I did on it:
https://essentialcslewis.com/2020/12/28/podcast-northwind-seminary-michael-christensen-and-charlie-starr/
Hello William,
I was trying to find the source of the quote you discuss in the following article: https://essentialcslewis.com/2018/03/03/ccslq-47-loving-everybody/
I felt as though I was reading a detective story! Your conclusion was very satisfying; particularly your willingness to purchase a book solely to determine the authenticity of a quote. Thank you for your work.
I don’t have any other details other then what the article mentions. the quote is found in The Letters of John by John R.W. Stott. Stott claims “Lewis” as the author; however, the author he’s referring to is not the creator of Narnia, but “G.P. Lewis.” I don’t know anything else about G.P. Lewis.
Hi William,
I came across this quotation attributed to CSLewis somewhere: “ . . the Trinity is either the most farcical doctrine invented by the early disciples, or the most profound and thrilling mystery revealed by the Creator Himself, giving us a grand intimation of reality.” Any idea where it comes from? I think I have read all his published works and have never come across this quote. Perhaps located in some revised edition?
Thank you
Russ
I sent you an email, that in part says:
The quote you asked about is actually NOT from Lewis, but a summary/paraphrase made by Ravi Zacharias back in 1994 (Can Man Live Without God).
Ravi then quotes from Mere Christianity, book 4, chapter 2, entitled “The Three-Personal God.”
I need help with a C.S. Lewis quote often stated, but never cited: “You can make anything by writing.” The bit of research I’ve attempted has led me to believe that either it is from an obscure source of Lewis’, or entirely made up. However, I can find no insight into this matter. Hopefully, you can shine light onto this mystery of mine.
I’ve sent you an email with more details that states I’m almost certain Lewis did NOT write it.
Could you please forward me the same information? I like the quote – just want to make sure it is really from CSL.
Thank you so much in advance. BR
I’ve done some research in the past on the past on this quote, but it came out after my book on the topic. Sadly, one of the places I kept some notes about questionable quotes related to Lewis, the file got corrupted.
However, I found a previous location where I kept some notes and I searched the major locations (about 80% of Lewis’s works) and I’m fairly certain he did NOT write the statement.
As you are aware, it is so short and common that nearly ANYONE could have said it.
I did find a writer who actually said it, but I’m not sure who first claimed Lewis did.
https://books.google.com/books?id=qX3DCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA4&dq=%22You+can+make+anything+by+writing%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi5zuXq9LDaAhVmyoMKHeygDYIQ6AEILjAB#v=onepage&q=%22You%20can%20make%20anything%20by%20writing%22&f=false
Regarding your “(CCSLQ-33) – Isn’t It Funny” post, I recognized the quote right away. It’s “Calvin and Hobbes”! Hope this helps you out a bit.
https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1995/11/04
That’s VERY interesting! Thank you for sharing the information.
I encountered this quote allegedly by Lewis today:
“Spiteful words can hurt your feelings but silence breaks your heart.”
Genuine?
I don’t find anything like this in Lewis, though he mentions spite and spitefulness a few times.
Hi! Do you happen to know if this quotation:
“You can make anything by writing”
is actually something Lewis wrote/said, and if so, where?
Thanks so much for this resource!
I’ve done some research in the past on the past on this quote, but it came out after my book on the topic. Sadly, one of the places I kept some notes about questionable quotes related to Lewis, the file got corrupted.
However, I found a previous location where I kept some notes and I searched the major locations (about 80% of Lewis’s works) and I’m fairly certain he did NOT write the statement.
As you are aware, it is so short and common that nearly ANYONE could have said it.
I did find a writer who actually said it, but I’m not sure who first claimed Lewis did.
https://books.google.com/books?id=qX3DCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA4&dq=%22You+can+make+anything+by+writing%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi5zuXq9LDaAhVmyoMKHeygDYIQ6AEILjAB#v=onepage&q=%22You%20can%20make%20anything%20by%20writing%22&f=false
Do you happen to know anyone who has a copy of the collections of Lewis recordings titled “C.S. Lewis Speaks His Mind”? I’ve been looking for a copy to purchase for some years, but everyone who once offered it for sale seems to be perpetually out of stock or out of business.
Sadly it doesn’t seem to be available anywhere. However, this article might be of interest to you:
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/all-the-known-audio-of-c-s-lewis-speaking/
Claimed CSL quote: “I am a democrat because I believe in the Fall of Man –C. S. Lewis (1943).” This claimed quote is found in David P. Gushee, Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies, Eerdmans, 2023, p. 26, and its source: “Quoted in David T. Koyzis, Political Visions and Illusions: A Survey and Critique of Contemporary Ideologies (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003), 127.”
Something close to this quote is found in Of Other Worlds, “Reply to Professor Haldane,” p. 81, “I am a democrat because . . . ” The preface states that this “Reply” was originally published in Modern Quarterly, Autumn 1946.
Check this article for details:
https://exegesisandtheology.com/2018/08/30/c-s-lewis-on-equality/
Thank you so much William,
it is brilliant to “meet” another massive fan of Uncle Jack..
The audiobook of his collected short works & essays got me through the last crazy four years..
and his Cosmic Trilogy would be my desert Island book:)
We so need his witness now
(“On Living in an Atomic Age” feels really timely) and I am grateful to you for sharing his wisdom and your enthusiasm,
warmest regards,
Karen in Cambridge
How many of these are “C. S. Clueless”?
https://www.youtube.com/@C.S.LewisLegends
None of them are from Lewis.
Where do you get your information to ensure what you’re saying is correct? I found the quote by C.S. Lewis “You can’t go back and change…” on Goodreads. I am curious who is correct and why?
Unfortunately Goodreads is not a reliable place to know if something credited to an author is by them.
Specific to the quote you asked about, you can find out more about why we know Lewis did not write it here:
https://youtube.com/shorts/WKb9CJo7sHA?feature=share
Just wanted to say thanks for your scholarship, particularly around the veracity of quotes attributed to Lewis. He and Churchill are two who are most subject to misattribution. Your work and that of Richard Langworth on Churchill are much appreciated.
Thank you for your kind words!
I got started listening to a C.S. Lewis sermon about 5 angels The first angel he describes is the angel of truth. To continue I would have to subscribe to YouTube which is beyond my budget. I thought you might know of an available text of this particular sermon?
What you found is what I believe to be one of the many fairly recent YouTube channels presenting material that is NOT from Lewis. If you can share what you saw then I can look more into it.
The phrase “the fulness or emptiness of your drawer” by C.S. Lewis is not the title of a specific essay or work but a metaphor he used in his book Miracles to explain the laws of arithmetic and divine intervention.
This is by AI
I think AI lie.