172 Quotes by Elmore Leonard

I won't read a book that starts with a description of the weather. I don't read books over 300 pages, though I'll make an exception for Don Delillo.

Never use an adverb to modify the verb 'said' . . . he admonished gravely. To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange.

Bad guys are not bad guys twenty-four hours a day.

Don't worry about what your mother thinks of your language.

There's nothing like work to take your mind off your worries.

I get letters. I get several a week, I think. A lot of people want a picture, a lot of people just want an autograph.

Never use a verb other than ‘said’ to carry dialogue.

I don't believe in writer's block. I don't know what that is. There are just certain little areas that I know I'm going to get through. It's just a matter of finding a way.

It's like seeing someone for the first time, and you look at each other for a few seconds, and there's this kind of recognition like you both know something. Next moment the person's gone, and it's too late to do anything about it.