Goodness, Truth and Beauty come first

Give me a girl at an impressionable age and she is mine for life.

I see no reason to keep silent about my enjoyment of the sound of my own voice as I work.

The true novelist is one who understands the work as a continuous poem, is a myth-maker, and the wonder of the art resides in the endless different ways of telling a story.

To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil's soul.

She wasn't a person to whom things happen. She did all the happenings.

Parents learn a lot from their children about coping with life.

It is impossible to persuade a man who does not disagree, but smiles.

If you want to concentrate deeply on some problem, and especially some piece of writing or paper-work, you should acquire a cat . . .

If you're going to do a thing, you should do it thoroughly. If you're going to be a Christian, you may as well be a Catholic.

A rebellion against a tyrant is only immoral when it hasn't got a chance.

The rhythm of solitude, once so intimidating, began to feel comfortable. Aloneness, I was learning, does not have to equal loneliness.

Volunteering abroad is a powerful force for change but only if you choose the right project.

Insane means fewer cameras!

I'm Winnie the Pooh - that's as sexy as I am. I meet ladies and they talk about their family and I talk about my family. It's about as sexy as a bag of Brussel sprouts.

Americans think African writers will write about the exotic, about wildlife, poverty, maybe AIDS. They come to Africa and African books with certain expectations.

After writing a page, Hemingway would let it float to the ground. He never crumpled pages - he believed that if you crumpled them, you'd be insane in a year.

Do not start a story unless you have an ending in mind. You can change the story's ending if you wish, but you should always have a destination.

I'm a little wounded, but I am not slain; I will lay me down to bleed a while. Then I'll rise and fight again.

Mess is fairly good. It is like what is found in American hotels except for cake and pie.

If you think you have a good idea, get into the marketplace as quickly as you can, using as little money as possible, and see what happens.