You're brave. You are the bravest person I know, and you are my friend. I don't care if you are imaginary.

You don't have to stay anywhere forever.

If you only write when inspired, you may be a fairly decent poet, but you'll never be a novelist.

For me, the glory of my first 25 years as a writer was I could put things off as long as I wanted.

Because, if one is writing novels today, concentrating on the beauty of the prose is right up there with concentrating on your semi-colons, for wasted effort.

She didn't have a daddy?" I asked. "No." "Did you have a daddy?" "You're all questions, aren't you? No, love. We never went in for that sort of thing. You only need men if you want to breed more men.

Know that diamonds and roses are as uncomfortable when they tumble from one's lips as toads and frogs: colder, too, and sharper, and they cut.