Never pray for justice, because you might get some.

If you want to be a writer, you should go into the largest library you can find and stand there contemplating the books that have been written. Then you should ask yourself, 'Do I really have anything to add?' If you have the arrogance or the humility to say yes, you will know you have the vocation.

for me the novel is a social vehicle, it reflects society.

Ten days after the war ended, my sister Laura drove a car off a bridge.

But the adjectives change,” said Jimmy. “Nothing’s worse than last year’s adjectives.

What a lost person needs is a map of the territory, with his own position marked on it so he can see where he is in relation to everything else.

You can wipe your feet on me, twist my motives around all you like, you can dump millstones on my head and drown me in the river, but you can’t get me out of the story. I’m the plot, babe, and don’t ever forget it.