“I'm just an entertainer. In a way crime stories are boring. A crime's been committed and at the end you know it will be solved. So you've got to make the story interesting besides it just being a plot. And that's why character matters, why you've got to make the characters interesting.” KnowsWayEndsMatterCharacterStoriesInterestingCrimeCommittedBoringPlotJust BeingEntertainers Author:Jo Nesbo
“The same way that some people can play the piano, I can do plots! They just come!” PeopleWayI CanPlayCan DoPianoPlot Author:Francine Pascal
“In 'Law & Order,' your main job is to stay out of the way of the plot. On another show you'd receive your script and see stuff that seems challenging and feel excited that the writers thought highly enough of you to write it for you.” WayFeelsWritingEnoughShowsSeemsJobsLawOrderStuffChallengesScriptsExcitedPlotIn-laws Author:Jeremy Sisto
“I read Claire Messud's 'The Emperor's Children,' I read Joseph O'Neill's 'Netherland' - but to me, they're not 9/11 novels. In 'The Emperor's Children,' 9/11 felt to me like a piece of the plot; the novel wasn't wrestling with what 9/11 meant. And 'Netherland' felt the same way. I liked both books a lot but I don't see them as 9/11 novels.” WayChildrenBookFeltNovelPiecesPlotWrestlingEmperorClaireNetherlands Author:Amy Waldman
“It is a little out of touch to presume that someone wants to follow your every observation and insight over the course of hundreds of pages without any sort of payoff. That's why writing isn't a one-way street. You have to give something back: an interesting plot, a surprise, a laugh, a moment of tenderness, a mystery for the reader to piece together.” WayWantGivingWritingLittlesMomentsTogetherCoursesInterestingLaughingPiecesMysteryStreetsReaderPagesSurpriseInsightObservationOne WayPlotTendernessPayoff Author:Christopher Bollen