1137 Novel Quotes for You to Enjoy

Sue Grafton's 'A Is for Alibi', the 1982 novel that introduced the world to private detective Kinsey Millhone, wasn't seen as the pioneering achievement we now know it to be. Sarah Weinman

Achievement World Seen Alibi Introduced Detective Kinsey Know Private Pioneering Novel Sue Now

When I first read Helen Weinzweig's 'Basic Black with Pearls' several years ago, I emerged in the sort of daze that happens when a book seems to ferret out your most secret thoughts and hopes. Since then, I've described the book to others as an 'interior feminist espionage novel.' Sarah Weinman

Thoughts Book Interior Black First Others Secret Several Out Hopes Emerged Seems Since Most Read Sort Feminist Years Years Ago Espionage Happens Then Your Novel Basic Pearls

George V. Higgins's 'The Friends of Eddie Coyle' (1970) added an extra literary layer to the con novel; James Crumley's 'The Last Good Kiss' (1978) influenced countless writers and will be remembered forever for its opening line, quoted often in obituaries of the author. Sarah Weinman

Good Will Kiss Extra Added Obituaries Layer Writers Remembered Con Countless Opening Eddie George Line Friends Forever Author Often Influenced James Literary Quoted Novel Last

Although we might think of Holmes as the Ur-sleuth, the seminal inspiration for many writers comes not from the chronicles of Baker Street but from the intricately plotted novels of Charles Dickens and his colleague Wilkie Collins, who in works like 'Bleak House' and 'The Moonstone' established the modern, character-driven mystery novel. Sarah Weinman

Think Colleague Charles Charles Dickens Collins Inspiration Mystery Writers Bleak Like Baker House Although His Dickens Modern Established Might Holmes Who Many Works Novel Novels Street

Joseph Wambaugh did not invent the police novel, but no one had seen anything like 'The New Centurions' when it was published in 1971. Here was a working, living, breathing cop with a decade of experience on the beat. Sarah Weinman

The reason I love comics more than anything else is that the longest story will be just a few pages. With a novel, it takes so many pages to get to one thing happening. Sergio Aragones

I didn't think I could pull off a novel. Shane Dawson

Think Could Off Novel Pull

My first novel, 'Sacrifice,' was set on the Shetland Islands. Sharon Bolton

Sacrifice First Islands Novel Set

For me, a memoir is supposed to be understood as a representation of your life, whereas a novel is self-consciously symbolic. Sheila Heti

Life Me Memoir Supposed Understood Representation Whereas Your Novel Symbolic

My father was sleepless most of his life. So by the age of five, I was awake with him all night long, watching bad television or we'd lie in the same bed, and I'd read my comic books while he read his latest spy or mystery novel. Sherman Alexie

Life Age Lie Father Long Sleepless Books Latest Television All Night Bad Mystery He Most Him Read Comic Bed Comic Books His Spy Five Same While Awake Novel Watching Night

I even feel guilty if I'm reading a novel, because I think I should be reading Homer again. I don't really know what free time is, because I don't have something to measure it against. Simon Armitage

Time Free Reading Think Guilty Something Free Time Feel Know Because Again Against Really Should Measure Even Novel Homer

'Sanctus' was done on speculation. I had no agent or publisher. I was being sensible, I suppose, by writing a standalone novel. I figured if that one didn't work, no one would be interested in reading a sequel. Simon Toyne

Work Writing Reading Would Would-Be Had No-One Suppose Done Being Sensible Interested Agent Sequel Figured Novel Publisher Speculation

I wrote the worst novel ever. Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Worst Wrote Novel Ever

I'm snobby about books that aren't crime fiction: if I start reading a literary novel and there's no mystery emerging in the first few pages, I'm like, 'Gah, this obviously isn't a proper book. Why would I want to carry on reading it?' Sophie Hannah

Book Crime First Reading Few Crime Fiction Books Carry Would About Proper Emerging Mystery Like Obviously Snobby Want Fiction Literary Pages Novel Why Start

A short story can be really interesting and enriching and powerful, but a novel just contains so much more information and richness and depth. That's what I strive for in my music. I want to create something that's like a longform statement. St. Lucia

You come out of your MFA program with a cogent clutch of stories, trying to get an agent interested, and she or he admits these are quality, sure, but this agent actually needs something the publisher can make money on. So you get kind of bullied by the market into writing a novel. Stephen Graham Jones

Needs You Quality Writing Money Market Out Kind Admit Something He Come She Make Sure Bullied Get Trying Stories Interested Clutch Agent Your Novel Publisher Actually Program

The new book is a result of my well-documented... absorption in Samurai movie culture. It's called 'The 47th Samurai: A Bob Lee Swagger novel,' and it takes Bob to Japan in search of the sword his father recovered on Iwo that has gone missing under extremely violent circumstances. Stephen Hunter

Culture Book Result Father Gone Extremely Circumstances Recovered Absorb Takes New Missing New Book His Lee Movie Samurai Swagger Japan Bob Search Novel Sword Violent

I believe in three-act structure. When I say that to novel people, or people in the world of books, they go, 'Well, that's a film thing.' However, even a good joke has three acts. Stephen J. Cannell

Good People World Three Joke Believe Books Say Structure Well Go However Even Novel Film Acts Thing

Screenwriting, as a whole, tends to be more objective. In a novel, you can have chapters of stream-of-consciousness writing that add depth to the plot and characters. Film doesn't allow for that by its nature, at least in the long form. Stephen McFeely

Nature You Writing Long Add Chapters Plot Characters Objective More Tends Allow Least Form Screenwriting Depth Whole Novel Film

We have no general conceptual thrust for the band, other than trying to make music that keeps our interest. When things are novel, they are probably things we have discovered by accident or investigation rather than by design. Steve Albini

Music Accident Band Design Other Our General Rather Investigation Thrust Conceptual Make Discovered Than Trying Interest Novel Keeps Things

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