172 Quotes by Elmore Leonard

If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it

At the bottom of the hill they came out of the trees to a busy street and Antwan said, "We cross here." "Ain't no lights here," Antwan said. "Just look out for the ones trying to hit you. There's a nice-looking blonde-haired female human lives around here - any time she sees me she tries to run me down.

I can't allow what we learned in English composition to disrupt the sound and rhythm of the narrative.

Boyd looked at him now like he was trying to decide something in his mind.“You’d shoot me, you get the chance?”“You make me pull,” Raylan said, “I’ll put you down.

And she thought if you don't have the desire to fight or wait for something there's no reason for being on earth.

Don’t go into great detail describing places and things… You don’t want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.

All the information you need can be given in dialogue.

There were a lot of terms you had to learn, as opposed to the shylock business where all you had to know how to say was 'Give me the fuckin money.

Don't go into great detail describing places and things, unless you're ­Margaret Atwood and can paint scenes with language. You don't want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.