#writers

"Every true writer is like a bird; he repeats the same song, the same theme, all his life. For me, this theme as always been revolt."

"You don’t make art out of good intentions."

"A big enough artist, I say, can eat anything, must eat everything and then alchemize it. Only the feeble writer is afraid of expansion."

"A loving heart, determination, faith, courage, trust, belief, truth, and a solid soul create the wings with which we fly."

"Life is painful and disappointing. It is useless, therefore, to write new realistic novels. We generally know where we stand in relation to reality and don’t care to know any more."

"...at some point you need to stop looking out at others and start looking inward, at yourself, at your own accomplishments, at your own foibles, at your own successes and your own failures. It's only when you begin to look inward that you can begin to have an effect on those out there, the ones with the greedy eyes and outstretched hands."

"If you're silent for a long time, people just arrive in your mind."

"Lolita is famous, not I. I am an obscure, doubly obscure, novelist with an unpronounceable name."

"The universe is made of stories, not of atoms."

"A non-writing writer is a monster courting insanity."[Letter to Max Brod, July 5, 1922]"

"Every morning I jump out of bed and step on a landmine. The landmine is me. After the explosion, I spend the rest of the day putting the pieces together."

"He offered her power, money, status...a giant prison, all in exchange for only...her soul."

"When is now."

"The best writers I've read possess oodles of self-doubt, yet claw their way up with each work and remain humble. Boastful ones, not so much."

"Every day, live in a way that honors who you are."

"Every day is not a day to master but an adventure to experience."

"If you were born with the ability to change someone’s perspective or emotions, never waste that gift. It is one of the most powerful gifts God can give—the ability to influence."

"I find Bukowski to be so edgy, gritty, and daring that he oozes romance, and if couples read him in bed they would appreciate what they have."

"Greatness is achieved through kindness, compassion, and love."

"Love is written by the soul."