After all, the appeal to stop being yourself, even for a little while, is very great

If I'm not working, I'm not happy. That's it. That's the prerequisite for me for happiness.

Sometimes we want what we want even if we know it’s going to kill us.

When I'm writing, I am concentrating almost wholly on concrete detail: the color a room is painted, the way a drop of water rolls off a wet leaf after a rain.

But it's for every writer to decide his own pace, and the pace varies with the writer and the work

Sometimes it's about playing a poor hand well.

I'd rather write one good book than ten mediocre ones.