Contrariwise: Literary Tattoos Over 600 tattoos from books, poetry, music, and other sources.

Fear of Falling

This tattoo belongs to Sorbetera.

This is a quote from Neil Gaiman's The Sandman, from the story "Fear of Falling".  I got this tattoo because I wanted to put something on my body that reflects my resolve in life. It's a bit long and I could have just cut the phrase but I decided against it. I wanted to include the whole message of the quote for it to deliver its intended impact. I chose this font because I treat my body like a book. If I'm going to put words on my body, I want people to be able to read it and understand it.

sometimes when you fall you fly

This is Emilee's tattoo.

"Sometimes you wake up. Sometimes the fall kills you. And sometimes, when you fall, you fly." 

— Neil Gaiman,  The Sandman, Vol. 6: Fables and Reflections

tempus frangit

This is Will's tattoo:

This was my first tattoo, though I've been thinking about it for ... well, a long time. The phrase comes from Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series, from Delirium's sundial and means "time is broken." For me, it was always a play on having no sense of time, but realizing that memories are persistent beyond any real sense of time. I can remember what happened ten years ago better than I can what I did for lunch yesterday. I think most people are like that. Having it just above where most people wear a watch is just part of the joke.