Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by James Patterson

Quote by James Patterson

“If it's commercial fiction that you want to write, it's story, story, story. You've got to get a story where if you tell it to somebody in a paragraph, they'll go, "Tell me more." And then when you start to write it, they continue to want to read more. And if you don't, it won't work.”

Quote by James Patterson

Create image

Author

James Patterson
James Patterson

James Patterson is a highly acclaimed author in the thriller and mystery genres, recognized for his engaging storytelling and the creation of memorable characters. Born on March 22, 1947, he has authored numerous best-selling novels and is a significant figure in the literary world. Patterson's work has captivated readers worldwide, and he has been influential for decades. more

You May Also Like

“I used to write my own versions of famous tales, such as William Tell or Robin Hood, and illustrate them myself, too. When I entered my teens, I got more into horror and science fiction and wrote a lot of short stories. A literary education complicated things and for many years I wrote nothing but poetry. Then I got back to story-telling.”

WritingYearsStoriesUsedMy OwnFictionHorrorScience FictionComplicatedTalesVersionsShort StoryTeensHoodRobinsRobin HoodComplicated Things
Author:Peter Robinson
Create image

“I like newspaper stories that are incomplete, that give me room to imagine the rest. It's no good to me reading about something that's all neatly solved and wrapped up. That's why so many of my stories revolve around human psychology, around why someone commits a certain crime, or series of crimes. I don't profess to know the answers but I like to explore the possibilities.”

KnowsGivingHumansStoriesCertainReadingAnswersRoomsPsychologyImagineCrimePossibilityGive MeSeriesNewspapersCommitIncomplete
Author:Peter Robinson
Create image

“I am not attracted to writers by style. What style do Dickens, Grass, and Vonnegut have in common? How silly! I am attracted to what makes them angry, what makes them passionate, what outrages them, what they applaud and find sympathetic in human beings and what they detest about human beings, too. They are writers of great emotional range.”

HumansHuman BeingsCommonStyleEmotionalAngryPassionateSillyRangeGrassSympatheticOutrageDickensDetest
Author:John Irving
Create image

“You bet I write disaster fiction. We have compiled a disastrous record on this planet, a record of stupidity and absurdity and self-abuse and self-aggrandizement and self-deception and pompousness and self-righteousness and cruelty and indifference beyond what any other species has demonstrated the capacity for, which is the capacity for all the above.”

WritingSelfFictionRecordsPlanetsCapacityAbuseSpeciesStupidityDisasterCrueltyDeceptionIndifferenceRighteousnessAbsurditySelf DeceptionSelf Righteousness
Author:John Irving
Create image

“Along the (writing) way accidents happen, detours get taken... But these are not "divine" accidents; I don't believe in those. I believe you have constructive accidents en route through a novel only because you have mapped a clear way. If you have confidence that you have a clear direction to take, you always have confidence to explore other ways; if they prove to be mere digressions, you'll recognize that and make the necessary revisions. The more you know about a book, the freer you can be to fool around. The less you know, the tighter you get.”

IfsKnowsWayWritingBelieveBookHappensI BelieveNovelTakenClearDivineFoolProveMereDon't BelieveAccidentsRoutesConstructiveHave ConfidenceRevisionDetoursAccidents HappenClear Direction
Author:John Irving
Create image