“A novel is a conversation starter, and if the author isn't there for the after-party, both the writer and the reader are missing a lot.” IfsPartyNovelMissingReaderConversationStartersAfter Party Author:Maggie Stiefvater
“I've come to realize that however blue my circumstances, if after finishing a chapter of a Dickens novel I feel a miss-my-stop-on-the-train sort of compulsion to read on, then everything is probably going to be just fine.” IfsFeelsRealizingNovelMissingFineCircumstancesBlueTrainChaptersCompulsionFinishingDickens Book:Rules of Civility Source: Rules of Civility
“The highest praise a writer can give another is to say he wishes he had written his book. I wish I had written Forty Words for Sorrow. Giles Blunt has a tremendous talent. If you miss Forty Words for Sorrow, you'll miss one of best novels of 2001.” IfsGivingBookWishNovelWrittenTalentMissingSorrowHighestPraiseFortyBlunt Author:Tony Hillerman
“In a novella, a whole lot of crap can happen, and you can build momentum and suspense and leave room for a surprise or three. Stories are cut down to the most essential elements, and novels (this might be an unfair generalization on my part) are big fat clumsy efforts where the reader can snooze for a couple chapters and miss nothing of consequence. Hence my love for the middle way.” WayWholeStoriesBigsMightHappensThreeRoomsEffortNovelCuttingMiddleMissingReaderCoupleEssentialsElementsConsequenceSurpriseFatsSuspenseChaptersUnfairCrapMomentumClumsyGeneralizationMiddle Way Author:Robert Reed