280 Quotes About On-writing

There are books full of great writing that don't have very good stories. Read sometimes for the story... don't be like the book-snobs who won't do that. Read sometimes for the words--the language. Don't be like the play-it-safers who won't do that. But when you find a book that has both a good story and good words, treasure that book.

All great literature is one of two stories; a man goes on a journey or a stranger comes to town.

The most important things to remember about back story are that (a) everyone has a history and (b) most of it isn’t very interesting.

I write one page of masterpiece to ninety-one pages of shit. I try to put the shit in the wastebasket.

I think the best stories always end up being about the people rather than the event, which is to say character-driven.

Whenever I'm asked what advice I have for young writers, I always say that the first thing is to read, and to read a lot. The second thing is to write. And the third thing, which I think is absolutely vital, is to tell stories and listen closely to the stories you're being told.

A slavish concern for the composition of words is the sign of a bankrupt intellect. Be gone, odious wasp! You smell of decayed syllables.

Stories. Character. Dialouge. Entire worlds created on the page. Worlds that could sweep you away or frighten you, make you laugh or cry. Worlds that allowed you to escape to another country or time. Worlds built piece by piece of ink and punctuation.

I am a writer of books in retrospect. I talk in order to understand; I teach in order to learn