A simple [writing] style is the result of very hard work.

Writers must constantly ask: what I am trying to say? Surprisingly often, they don't know.

Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly should be able to write clearly-about any subject at all.

Memoir is the art of inventing the truth.

Writing wasn't easy and wasn't fun. It was hard and lonely, and the words seldom just flowed.

Not every oak has to be gnarled, every detective hard-bitten. The adjective that exists solely as a decoration is a self-indulgence for the writer and an obstacle for the reader.

Never forget that you are practicing a craft with certain principles.