Best Novel Quotes | Short & Famous Sayings

“By using novels, I show ordinary kids confronting and overcoming great odds.”

Shows Kids Novel Ordinary Overcoming Odds Confronting

“The novels take longer to write than the picture book texts, and they do take a different sort of concentration. However, a very short, simple story that works well is just as exciting to me as any longer and more complex book.”

Writing Wells Book Different Stories Simple Novel Exciting Complexes Concentration Picture Books

Author:Margaret Mahy

“I grew up in a community where it was not the exception to be a good girl. It was sort of expected. And all of my friends were good girls too, and my boyfriends were good boys. Everybody was pretty nice. And that affects how I write my characters. There aren't very many bad guys in my novels.”

Writing Character Guy Girl Community Boys Novel Nice Grew Grew Up My Friends Expected Exception Bad Guys My Boyfriend Good Girl Good Boy

Author:Stephenie Meyer

“The 'interactive fiction' format hasn't changed in any fundamental way since the early 1970s, in the same way that the format of the novel hasn't since 1700.”

Way Fiction Novel Changed Fundamentals Format Interactive

Author:Graham Nelson

“I'm not a big crime reader, but I'm reading Michael Connelly's 'The Reversal.' I'm going back to his novels. I'm also reading Keith Richards' 'Life.' I'm always fascinated by the transition from the innocent late '60s and early '70s and the youth culture becoming an industry.”

Bigs Culture Reading Novel Crime Youth Industry Reader Becoming Late Innocent Transition Fascinated Keith Reversal Youth Culture

Author:Jo Nesbo

“Many Scandinavian writers who had made their name in literary fiction felt they wanted to have a go at the crime novel to show they could compete with the best. If Salman Rushdie had been Norwegian, he would definitely have written at least one thriller.”

Ifs Made Shows Wanted Names Felt Fiction Novel Written Crime Thrillers Norwegians Scandinavians Scandinavia Crime Novels Rushdie

Author:Jo Nesbo

“I've never read a young adult novel, though. I'm sure I would love it, but I've never read one.”

Young Novel Adults Young Adult

Author:Elizabeth Olsen

“I might just write a novel next. I don't know!”

Knows Writing Might Next Novel

Author:Frank Ocean

“Novel-writing is a bit like deception. You lie as little as you possibly can. That's the way I do it, anyway.”

Way Writing Littles Lying Bits Novel Deception Novel Writing

Author:Joseph O'Neill

“You want a novel to tap as directly as possible into your most unspeakable preoccupations. And in America, in particular, cricket is pretty unspeakable.”

Want America Novel Particular Cricket Preoccupation Unspeakable

Author:Joseph O'Neill

“I am one of the writers who wish to create serious works of literature which dissociate themselves from those novels which are mere reflections of the vast consumer cultures of Tokyo and the subcultures of the world at large.”

World Culture Literature Wish Novel Serious Reflection Mere Consumers Tokyo Subculture Consumer Culture Serious Work

Author:Kenzaburo Oe

“I have survived by representing these sufferings of mine in the form of the novel.”

Form Suffering Novel Mines Survived Representing

Author:Kenzaburo Oe

“I can't envision an honest war novel that left war in a positive light.”

I Can War Light Left Novel Honest

Author:Kevin Powers

“Every decade of my life I attempted to write a novel. But I had nothing to say. I was far too self-absorbed, and now I realize I was writing for others, so that they'd applaud me, see my genius, tell me how wonderful I am, or be jealous of my success.”

Writing Self Realizing Novel Wonderful Genius Decades Jealous Self Absorbed Being Jealous

Author:Louise Penny

“A good novel is a good novel, pointe finale. And I think what I'm writing is exactly that.”

Thinking Writing Novel Finale Pointe

Author:Louise Penny

“A journalist also needs to be disciplined, and so do I. I am, essentially, lazy. Without discipline I'd be just a mass of gummy bears on the sofa instead of on book tour with my eighth novel.”

Needs Book Novel Bears Discipline Mass Journalist Lazy Sofas Gummies Gummy Bear

Author:Louise Penny

“Write a nonfiction book, and be prepared for the legion of readers who are going to doubt your fact. But write a novel, and get ready for the world to assume every word is true.”

World Writing Book Facts Novel Doubt Ready Reader Assuming Prepared Nonfiction Be Prepared Legion

Book:High Tide in Tucson

Source: High Tide in Tucson

“I don't feel the need to prove myself by writing the next generational novel.”

Needs Feels Writing Next Novel Prove Next Generation Prove Myself

Author:Camilla Lackberg

“I never know what's going to happen in a novel. I don't have a plan or an outline.”

Knows Happens Novel Plans Outlines

Author:Donna Leon

“In Hollywood we acquire the finest novels in order to smell the leather bindings.”

Order Novel Hollywood Smell Acquire Finest Leather Binding

Author:Ernst Lubitsch

“My favorite novel is 'To Kill a Mockingbird' because of its broad sweep, its tackling of big issues in ways that even young minds can make sense of and for the heart of the characters, who span a wide range of ages. I reread it every year.”

Way Years Mind Heart Character Bigs Age Young Novel Issues My Favorite Wide Make Sense Range Broads Tackling Young Minds Mockingbird Kill A Mockingbird

Author:Ridley Pearson

“I've written short stories in first person, but you have so much more control writing in third person. Third person, you know what everybody's thinking. First person is very limiting, and I could never sustain a first person novel before.”

Thinking Knows Writing Firsts Persons Stories Novel Written Thirds Short Story First Person Third Person Thinking First

Author:Tamora Pierce

“Teen problem novels? I can go through them like a box of chocolates. And there are fantasy books out now that need a lot more editing. Fantasy got to be so popular that people began to think 'We don't need to be as diligent with the razor blade,' but they do.”

People Thinking Needs I Can Book Problem Fantasy Novel Boxes Chocolate Editing Blades Razors Diligent Fantasy Books Box Of Chocolates

Author:Tamora Pierce

“When I first thought of the idea for 'Sweet Valley High,' I loved the idea of high school as microcosm of the real world. And what I really liked was how it moved things on from 'Sleeping Beauty'-esque romance novels where the girl had to wait for the hero. This would be girl-driven, very different, I decided - and indeed it is.”

World Firsts Ideas Different Real Would Be School Romance Girl Waiting Sleep Novel Sweet Hero High School Decided Moved Driven Real World Valleys Romance Novel Microcosm Sleeping Beauty

Author:Francine Pascal

“You no longer have much in the way of knowing what to do in a big, epic novel about the future, because nobody knows what the hell is going to happen.”

Knows Way Bigs Happens Novel Hell Knowing Epic Nobody Knows Knowing What To Do

Author:Jerry Pournelle

“I've always wondered why there isn't a great French novel about the German occupation. The nouveau roman authors weren't interested in telling that sort of thing.”

Novel Occupation Great French

Author:Manuel Puig

“I have written every one of my novels to convince somebody of something.”

Literature Novel Written Convince

Author:Manuel Puig

“The crime novel has always been my favourite genre.”

Novel Crime Genre Favourite Crime Novels

Author:Sara Paretsky

“The characters you refer to as predatory and unsavory are useful. They're the ones who make a novel into a thriller. They're active, and most of the common virtues, the signs of a good person, are not.”

Writing Persons Character Common Novel Virtue Active Good Person Thrillers Predatory

Author:Thomas Perry

“As for writing about temptation, there's no drama without temptation, and no novel without drama.”

Writing Novel Drama Temptation No Drama

Author:Tom Perrotta

“My novels are certainly more exciting than my own life.”

My Own Novel Exciting My Own Life

Author:Tom Perrotta

“A screenwriter heard me read from my novel 'The Wishbones' when it was still in progress and mentioned me to some producers in Hollywood. They called, and I told them I had a novel in my drawer about a high school election that goes haywire. They asked to take a look, and my life changed pretty dramatically as a result.”

Looks Stills School Results Novel Progress Heard Changed High School Hollywood Election Producers Life Changing Screenwriters Drawers Wishbones

Author:Tom Perrotta

“I'm not sure that it's possible to write a novel about people who don't transgress or stumble, people who don't surprise themselves with the things they do, people who can explain all their actions with perfect logical consistency. At least it's not possible for me to write that sort of novel.”

People Writing Action Perfect Novel Surprise Not Sure Logical Consistency

Author:Tom Perrotta

“I'm used to adapting my novels for feature film - it can be challenging to cut and compress three or four hundred pages into two hours of dramatic action.”

Two Action Film Used Three Hours Challenges Novel Four Cutting Pages Hundred Features Dramatic Adapting

Author:Tom Perrotta

“Maybe I would have become an actor. I was a very outgoing kid, but being in the hospital - being outside of social action for so long - turned me into an observer. Actually, right after I got out of the hospital, I did start writing a novel, but the book was so transparently about me that I stopped.”

Writing Long Book Kids Action Actors Social Novel Hospitals Observers Outgoing Social Action

Author:Brent Runyon

“I took the first James Kelman novel, 'The Bus Conductor Hines', home to my dad. I thought, 'My dad will like this; it's written in Scots.' But my dad said: 'I can't read that.' He was reading James Bond and John le Carre. That was part of what attracted me to crime - the idea of getting a wide audience.”

Firsts Said I Can Ideas Home Reading Novel Audience Written Crime Dad My Dad Wide Bus Conductor Scots

Author:Ian Rankin

“I used to think that: whenever I heard that someone had taken 10 years to write a novel, I'd think it must be a big, serious book. Now I think, 'No - it took you one year to write, and nine years to sit around eating Kit Kats.”

Thinking Writing Years Book Bigs Used Novel Taken Heard Serious Eating Nine Nine Years

Author:Ian Rankin

“My first novel was turned down by half a dozen publishers. And even after having published five or six books, I wasn't making enough money to live on, and was beginning to think I'd have to give up the dream of being a full-time writer.”

Thinking Giving Firsts Book Enough Dream Half Novel Five Giving Up Six Dozen Publishers Turned Down

Author:Ian Rankin

“The most difficult part of any crime novel is the plotting. It all begins simply enough, but soon you're dealing with a multitude of linked characters, strands, themes and red herrings - and you need to try to control these unruly elements and weave them into a pattern.”

Needs Trying Enough Character Difficult Novel Crime Elements Red Patterns Theme Multitudes Linked Strands Unruly Herring Crime Novels Red Herrings

Author:Ian Rankin

“I think writing a poem is like being a greyhound. Writing a novel is like being a mule. You go up one long row, then down another, and try not to look up too often to see how far you still have to go.”

Thinking Writing Trying Looks Long Stills Novel Look Up Mules Greyhounds

Author:Ron Rash

“I usually do at least a dozen drafts and progressively make more-conscious decisions. Because I've always believed stories are closer to poems than novels, I spend a lot of time on the story's larger rhythms, such as sentence and paragraph length, placement of flashbacks and dialogue.”

Stories Decision Novel Conscious Sentences Dialogue Rhythm Length Dozen Always Believe Paragraph Placement Flashback

Author:Ron Rash

“Short fiction is the medium I love the most, because it requires that I bring everything I've learned about poetry - the concision, the ability to say something as vividly as possible - but also the ability to create a narrative that, though lacking a novel's length, satisfies the reader.”

Ability Fiction Novel Reader Mediums Narrative I've Learned Length Lacking

Author:Ron Rash

“I don't think anyone has written a great graphic novel.”

Thinking Novel Written Graphic Graphic Novels

Author:Ted Rall

“If I had to rank my skills, I have a long way to go before I can write a good graphic novel.”

Ifs Way Writing Long I Can Novel Skills Long Way Graphic Graphic Novels Long Way To Go

Author:Ted Rall

“When I put together a graphic novel, I don't think about literary prose. I think about storytelling.”

Thinking Writing Together Novel Storytelling Prose Graphic Graphic Novels

Author:Ted Rall

“Normally, I have a lot of alpha readers on my books. These are people that, once I finish a novel, I let them look at it and give me a reader response.”

People Giving Looks Book Novel Reader Give Me Response Alphas

Author:Brandon Sanderson

“I'm a big fan of a lot of graphic novels - 'Fables,' 'Y: The Last Man' and 'The Walking Dead,' which I like a lot more.”

Men Bigs Lasts Novel Fans Walking Graphic Fables Graphic Novels Walking Dead

Author:Cobie Smulders

“I have to say that movies have as much impact on me as music. And that I learned as much about narrative from movies as I did from reading novels, how to arrange stories, how to juxtapose things.”

Stories Reading Novel Impact Narrative Reading Novels

Author:Dana Spiotta

“I think it's harder than ever to be an artist. I think that you end up, especially as a middle-aged person, you pay such big consequences for saying, 'I'm just going to devote my life to making art,' or 'I'm going to devote my life to writing novels.' You end up with no resources.”

Thinking Writing Persons Art Ends Bigs Artist Pay Novel Middle Consequence Resources Harder Middle Aged

Author:Dana Spiotta

“The summer I finished my first novel Ghana Must Go, I drove across west Africa: from Accra to Lomé to Cotonou to the deliciously named Ouagadougou.”

Firsts Novel Summer West Finished Ghana West Africa

Author:Taiye Selasi

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