Russia, France, Germany and China. They revere their writers. America is still a frontier country that almost shudders at the idea of creative expression.

About a billion years ago, long before the continents had separated to define the ancient oceans, or their own outlines had been determined, a small protuberance jutted out from the northwest corner of what would later become North America.

When I was a child in the Navy during World War II, I was perennially grateful to the armed services libraries for having on hand a good supply of those pocket books, which were so common in that period. I must have read a couple hundred of them, and they did a lot to save my sanity.

A writer can make a fortune in America, but he can't make a living.

All I can do is play the game the way the cards fall.

I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions.

It is difficult to be king when the gods are changing.