The rulings of the past do not always apply in the present.

No one should be judged by the worst moment of his life.

Aggressiveness is good in a combat leader. Combining that with ambition and insecurity becomes more problematic.

Writing seems like the only job where what you think and feel really matters.

Problem was that we could make things worse but we couldn't make anything better.

The business of writing is empathising with situations that aren't your own.

I was 29 when I wrote my first novel. But I was 45 when I quit for good. I was a 16-year overnight success.

The manuscript you submit [should not] contain any flaws that you can identify - it is up to the writer to do the work, rather than counting on some stranger in Manhattan to do it for him.

Morally repugnant and tactically stupid are a lousy combination.

The only judgment that truly matters is the final judgment.

he knew that men were too complex to be defined by the worst moment in their lives

A wise man once found peace in the practice of saying nothing, leaving the gossiper with no other choice but to fabricate gossip about a wise man saying nothing

I was too far away to hear what was said but I saw in Val’s eyes the same fear that I had once known and could well guess at Lucas’ unthinking remark.

Is Medicare socialism? You want to get rid of Medicare. And a lot of the people against health care do. I want to preserve it and grow it.

Matrimony; the high sea for which no compass has yet been invented.

That said, there are certainly still cooks out there who make fantastic historical cornbreads, though the old recipes have often been changed to include modern techniques and ingredients.

There is no problem only solutions

An interviewer asked me what book I thought best represented the modern American woman. All I could think of to answer was: Madame Bovary.

Besides, who ever asked you what you wanted in this world, girl? The answer to that question, reader, as you well know, was absolutely no one.

I'd stop in the middle of a gun fight and sing a song.

The old grooves must be erased in your brain, without forming new ones. You must realize yourself as the immovable, behind and beyond the movable, the silent witness of all that happens.