“I don't want my novel to be like Madame Bovary, finely crafted with the life edited out of it. I want my novel to be like a friend telling me a story -- so we go off on thoughts; that's the way it is.” WayWantStoriesNovelEdited Author:Tama Janowitz
“If you want to be a writer, all you need is a piece of paper and a pencil, and I had a manual typewriter. It doesn't cost money to write. It costs money to make art. So I would just write. I would hand out stories in the classes in high school. And the teacher would say, "Whatever you do, don't become a writer."” IfsWantNeedsWritingArtStoriesHandsSchoolClassTeacherPiecesCostPaperHigh SchoolPencilsTypewritersManuals Author:Tama Janowitz
“I'm writing what I want to write. But it's almost an act of rebellion on my part. Because as a person, I've always wanted to be very likeable, and I think that's a horrible thing, particularly for women. You're always like, "Oh, I hope I didn't hurt anyone's feelings. I hope they like me!" And that's just so stupid.” ThinkingWantWritingPersonsFeelingsWantedHurtStupidHorribleLike MeRebellionHorrible ThingsLikeable Author:Tama Janowitz
“If you want to write about a person who isn't nice, people say, "This is a bad book. It's about somebody I couldn't stand." But that's not the point. You don't have to like a character to like a book. Most of the time, people would misjudge and say, "I didn't like the book." No, you didn't like the character. That doesn't make it any less interesting of a book. In fact, to me, it makes it more interesting.” PeopleIfsWantWritingPersonsBookCharacterFactsInterestingNiceNice People Author:Tama Janowitz
“Why would I want to read something about somebody that's just a really nice, decent person who overcomes terrible trials? That's not how life is to me.” WantPersonsLife IsNiceTerribleOvercomingTrialsDecentReally Nice Author:Tama Janowitz
