Not Dreams But Night Changes,

The Line Of Dialogue Belongs To The Character; The Verb Is The Writer Sticking His Nose In.

Never Open A Book With Weather. There Are Exceptions. If You Happen To Be Barry Lopez, Who Has More Ways To Describe Ice And Snow Than An Eskimo, You Can Do All The Weather Reporting You Want.

I Won't Read A Book That Starts With A Description Of The Weather. I Don't Read Books Over 300 Pages, Though I'll Make An Exception For Don Delillo.

I Focus On Characters As Individuals With Attitudes And Write Each Scene From A Particular Character's Point Of View. That Way, Even Narrative Passages Take On The Character's Sound. I Don't Want The Reader To Be Aware Of Me, Writing.

I Do Have Fun Writing, And A Long Time Ago, I Told Myself, 'you Got To Have Fun At This, Or It'll Drive You Nuts.'