Quotes on Writing Short

A good novel tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author.

You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader.

Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout with some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.

If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.

Substitute "damn" every time you're inclined to write "very"; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.