#writing

"But this I know; the writer who possesses the creative gift owns something of which he is not always master--something that at times strangely wills and works for itself. He may lay down rules and devise principles, and to rules and principles it will perhaps for years lie in subjection; and then, haply without any warning of revolt, there comes a time when it will no longer consent."

"You’re not a bad person, you’re just a little bit different and I’m a sucker for that."

"you must not come lightly to the blank page."

"Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it's the only way you can do anything good."

"The glory of a good tale is that it is limitless and fluid; a good tale belongs to each reader in its own particular way."

"It’s not: I jumped in, and it was cold. No. It was cold, and I jumped in. Always arrange a sentence so you appear to be fearless, when in fact you are far less than fearless—you are clueless."

"Some writers enjoy writing, I am told. Not me. I enjoy having written."

"Our age not only does not have a very sharp eye for the almost imperceptible intrusions of grace, it no longer has much feeling for the nature of the violences which precede and follow them."

"She was broken from moment to moment, watching her world collide she felt lost inside herself. She fell apart for a passion that flamed beneath her. She waited and died a hundred times, it dripped from her pores. The moment she let go, she soared over the stillness like the star she was born to be."

"Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s."

"Language imparts identity, meaning, and perspective to our human condition. Writers are either polluters or part of the cleanup."

"Generally, people who are good at writing letters have no need to write letters. They've got plenty of life to lead inside their own context."

"nothing can save you except writing. it keeps the walls from failing."

"Fiction is the truth inside the lie."

"My hands could be considered deadly weapons. You see, I write with both of them."

"You can approach the act of writing with nervousness, excitement, hopefulness, or despair ... Come to it any way but lightly."

"If a writer stops observing he is finished. Experience is communicated by small details intimately observed."

"Find out the reason that commands you to write; see whether it has spread its roots into the very depth of your heart; confess to yourself you would have to die if you were forbidden to write."

"But the truth is, it's not the idea, it's never the idea, it's always what you do with it."(Online journal entry for January 31, 2009)"

"If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot."