I know nothing - nothing in the world - of the hearts of men. I only know that I am alone - horribly alone.

It was an odd friendship, but the oddnesses of friendships are a frequent guarantee of their lasting texture.

But responsibility hardens the heart. It must.

I know nothing - nothing in the world - of the hearts of men. I only know that I am alone - horribly alone.

If you're going to have a character appear in a story long enough to sell a newspaper, he'd better be real enough that you can smell his breath.

Damn it all, it's the first duty of a soldier - it's the first duty of all Englishmen - to be able to tell a good lie in answer to a charge.

The object of the novelist is to keep the reader entirely oblivious of the fact that the author exists - even of the fact he is reading a book.