creativity Quotes

When I'm writing books, something weird happens; and the result is the books contain a large amount of what you could call 'supernaturalism.' As a writer, I find I need that to explain the world I'm writing about.

We are the storytelling animal.

Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious one.

I write books I'd enjoy reading, I'm the reader standing behind my shoulder.

The gamble of literature is that I make the best work I can; the most truthful, the most representative of how I see things. I try and do that, and then I put it out there and say to you, 'What do you think?' I hope that you think well of it, obviously.

I'm a big-city boy. What I like is big cities. It's not just what I like. It's what I write about.

I have always thought, the secret purpose of the book tour is to make the writer hate the book he's written. And, as a result, drive him to write another book.

I don't like books that play to the gallery, but I've become more concerned with telling a story as clearly and engagingly as I can.

When you start writing about the stuff that is the central experience of your own life, you can talk about whatever you want, in whatever way you want.

I used to write a monthly column for the 'New York Times' syndicate. But I stopped because I found it really hard to have one extreme opinion a month. I don't know how these columnists have two or three ideas a week; I was having difficulty having 12 things to say a year.