Try any goddam thing you like, no matter how boringly normal or outrageous. If it works, fine. If it doesn't, toss it. Toss it even if you love it.
Stephen KingRead
A successful novel should interrupt the reader’s life, make him or her miss appointments, skip meals, forget to walk the dog.
Interpretation
A great novel captivates readers so deeply that they lose track of time and neglect their daily responsibilities.
Stephen King's quote highlights the immersive power of a successful novel, suggesting that it should be so compelling that readers become fully absorbed in the story. This level of engagement indicates not only the effectiveness of the writing but also the profound impact literature can have on our lives, drawing us away from mundane tasks and into fictional worlds.
In practice
In a book club discussion, one might say, 'I lost track of time reading this novel; it truly interrupted my life.'
Try any goddam thing you like, no matter how boringly normal or outrageous. If it works, fine. If it doesn't, toss it. Toss it even if you love it.
Eddie discovered one of his childhood's great truths. Grownups are the real monsters, he thought.
Hairstyles change, and skirt lengths, and slang, but high school administrations? Never.
Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s.
That's the day's business. Thinking. Thinking and isolation, because it doesn't matter if you pass the time of day with someone or not; in the end, you're alone. He seemed to have put in as many miles in his brain as he had with his feet. The thoughts kept coming and there was no way to deny them.
Late last night and the night before, tommyknockers, tommyknockers knocking on my door. I wanna go out, don't know if I can 'cuz I'm so afraid of the tommyknocker man.
I think writers need windows on a view to remind them that a whole world is out there, not the minutiae with which they might be dealing on a close scale
The great thing about a record is it frees your imagination; it gives your eyes a rest and lets your mind wander. There's the special thing that each record can mean a different thing to every person listening to it.
My favorite flamenco singers, they're not trying to look pretty. They're trying to put truth in what they do, in the way they express themselves. Sometimes that's not beauty, but it's beautiful.
Not-writing is a good deal worse than writing.
Artists who seek perfection in everything are those who can't attain it in anything.
What's great about being a character actor is you know that you can survive forever. It's not about the gloss of your eyebrows.
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