I don't want anything to do with anything mechanical between me and the paper, including a typewriter, and I don't even want a fountain pen between me and the paper.

I've never shown anybody a draft of anything.

I never cared what kind of grade I got.

People make a grievous error thinking that a list of facts is the truth. Facts are just the bare bones out of which truth is made.

Most of my inspiration, if that's the word, came from books themselves.

I think making mistakes and discovering them for yourself is of great value, but to have someone else to point out your mistakes is a shortcut of the process.

When you grow up in a totally segregated society, where everybody around you believes that segregation is proper, you have a hard time. You can't believe how much it's a part of your thinking.