1137 Novel Quotes for You to Enjoy

I read a blog about this young filmmaker in the Philippines who made a short film, and one of the characters in the film reads my novel and then starts discussing the novel with someone. The idea that my book can inspire another artist and be part of that other artist's work... that's the reason I write. Miguel Syjuco

Work Book Inspire Philippines Made Young Starts Other Characters About Someone Write Part Idea Read Another Reads Blog Discussing Artist Short Short Film Then Reason Who Novel Film Filmmaker

One might say that the novel is the genre that most predisposes one to a profound insight into the tremendous life around us, instead of putting forward one's own tiny ego as the centre of the universe. Mikhail Sholokhov

Life Ego Own Universe Tremendous Say Insight Instead Putting Most Genre Around Tiny Centre Might Us Forward Novel Profound

I think if I tried very hard, I could do a novel or a play, a poem. I could possibly paint a picture, but I know I can't write music. And still, it is the most accessible of all arts, as you know when you hear a tune. Milos Forman

For me, writing a historical novel was really hard. I love history as a subject and majored in it in college. I think, in a way, my training made it worse for me because I knew how important it was to focus on document-based analysis, and I really didn't want to get stuff wrong. Min Jin Lee

Love Me History Writing Training Focus Made College Important Think Analysis Way Worse Knew Wrong Stuff Because How Subject Historical Get Want Really Hard Novel

Novel writing is solitary work. Mohsin Hamid

Work Writing Solitary Novel

When people talk about the death of the novel, they are speaking of the need for the birth of something different. Mohsin Hamid

Death People Birth About Something Talk Different Speaking Novel Need

I feel no desire to write a novel that takes place in the past. Mohsin Hamid

Past No Desire Write Takes Feel In The Past Place Novel Desire

I've always loved short stories. Even before I was a writer, I was reading short stories - there were certain writers where I just felt like they could do in a short story what so many writers needed a whole novel to do, and that was really inspiring to me. Molly Antopol

Me Reading Before Could Inspiring Writer Writers Like Felt Always Were Short Just Where Stories Loved Short Stories Short Story Story Really Certain Many Whole Even Novel Needed

I am a former newspaper reporter turned church secretary turned vampire novelist. I wrote my first complete novel, 'Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs,' at night while I was working as the receptionist for a Baptist church. That was an interesting conversation with the pastor. Molly Harper

Conversation Church Girl First Nice Complete Secretary Vampire Wrote Am Pastor Reporter Baptist While Former Interesting Newspaper Newspaper Reporter Turned Working Novel Novelist Night

When I first read Margaret Atwood's novel 'The Handmaid's Tale,' it was Saudi Arabia as I knew it that came to mind, not a dystopian future United States as in the new television adaptation. Mona Eltahawy

My first job was to run a concessions cart. Later, I found a position at the Pacific Film Archive. Thus began a long series of jobs, each one slightly better than the last, that continued for a decade, until I sold my first novel, and still goes on, even now. Mona Simpson

Better Job Long First Sold Later Slightly Jobs Run Cart Long Series Thus First Job Until Still Continue Began Than Decade Goes Pacific Even Novel Series Each Even Now Film Found Now Each One Last Position

If you're writing a novel, you're in a room for three or four years. There's not much coming in from the outside. Mordecai Richler

You Writing Three Outside Coming Years Room Much Novel Four

The truth is, you have about three paragraphs in a short story, three pages in a novel, to capture that editor's attention enough for her to finish your story. Nancy Kress

Truth You Truth Is Three Enough Paragraphs About Finish Attention Editor Short Short Story Story Pages Your Novel Capture Her

The most-asked question when someone describes a novel, movie or short story to a friend probably is, 'How does it end?' Endings carry tremendous weight with readers; if they don't like the ending, chances are they'll say they didn't like the work. Failed endings are also the most common problems editors have with submitted works. Nancy Kress

Work Ending Problems Tremendous Say Carry Someone Weight Failed Like Most Also Readers Does How Editors Question Friend End Submitted Endings Short Common Movie Short Story Story Works Novel Chances

A brief short story may require only a few paragraphs after the climax. On the other hand, in his massive novel 'The World According to Garp,' John Irving's denouement consisted of 10 separate sections, each devoted to an individual character's fate and each almost a story in itself. Nancy Kress

Character World Fate Few Other Sections Paragraphs John Only Individual Almost Massive Devoted Climax His Hand According Itself May Short After Short Story Story Require Separate Novel Each Brief

You do not have to dramatize everything. In fact, you usually can't, not without ending up with a half-million-word novel. Nancy Kress

You Ending Everything Fact Without Up In Fact Novel

In Jenny Offill's remarkable first novel, 'Last Things,' 7-year-old Grace Davitt watches her mother, Anna, descend into madness and tries to make sense of the claustrophobic world that Anna has created for her. Nancy Willard

Grace World Madness Mother First Sense Tries Claustrophobic Remarkable Anna Make Created Descend Novel Her Things Watches Last

I had a year of panic attacks. I was feeling really pressured, like I could never do it again. With a first novel, you put things on hold because it takes so much mental energy and self-belief to keep on writing. Naomi Alderman

You Writing First Feeling Year Energy Panic Pressured Mental Mental Energy Attacks Could Never Had Put Takes Like Because Hold Again Much Really Novel Keep Things

I have often heard that the novel is dead. But I see novels produced, I don't know how many a week, in France. I have the impression it's carrying along quite well. Nathalie Sarraute

France Carrying See Week Along Know Dead Well How Heard Impression Quite Often Produced Many Novel Novels

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