To take possession of a city of which you are not a native you must first fall in love there.

Fictional characters are made of words, not flesh; they do not have free will, they do not exercise volition. They are easily born, and as easily killed off.

In order really to write one has to sink deep into the self and become lost there.

All my life I have lied. I lied to escape, I lied to be loved, I lied for placement and power; I lied to lie. It was a way of living; lies are life's almost-anagram.

The past beats inside me like a second heart.

If I was asked to say what was the greatest invention of human beings, I would say the sentence.

Everything we do is tinged with the knowledge that this may be the last time that we will do this, and that makes what we're doing incredibly sweet.

We carry the dead with us only until we die too, and then it is we who are borne along for a little while, and then our bearers in their turn drop, and so on into the unimaginable generations.

For memory, we use our imagination. We take a few strands of real time and carry them with us, then like an oyster we create a pearl around them.

A man is not much if he can't depend on himself, and nothing if others can't depend on him.

Most crime fiction, no matter how 'hard-boiled' or bloodily forensic, is essentially sentimental, for most crime writers are disappointed romantics.

But then, I knew so little about my mother over the last decade of her life. I had been too wrapped up in my own drama.

Success = 1 part work + 1 part play + 1 part keep your mouth shut

No one's ever completely broken. It's just a matter of how much has to fall apart before the ember of life is exposed to air.

The blues is also existential and offers a sense of mature reflection that enabled it to be the leitmotif of modern life.

Next time we see you, you’ll be on trial for some ingenious crime!” Dottie said with a laugh. Evie grinned. “Just as long as they know my name.

Our sin is what separates us from God, but it's our self righteousness that keeps us from running to Him for the grace He willingly gives to all who come.

You shouldn’t blindly accept a leader’s advice. You’ve got to question leaders on occasion.

The spirit and tone of your home will have great influence on your children. If it is what it ought to be, it will fasten conviction on their minds, however wicked they may become.

If this is the way You treat Your friends, no wonder You have so few!

Surprises and reverses can serve as an incentive for great accomplishment. There are no rules here, we're just trying to accomplish something.