It seems that the fiction writer has a revolting attachment to the poor, for even when he writes about the rich, he is more concerned with what they lack than with what they have.

There’s many a bestseller that could have been prevented by a good teacher.

When a book leaves your hands, it belongs to God. He may use it to save a few souls or to try a few others, but I think that for the writer to worry is to take over God’s business.

It is better to be young in your failures than old in your successes.

I am not afraid that the book will be controversial, I’m afraid it will not be controversial.

Faith is what someone knows to be true, whether they believe it or not.

The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.

The Southerner is usually tolerant of those weaknesses that proceed from innocence.

Manners are of such great consequence to the novelist that any kind will do. Bad manners are better than no manners at all, and because we are losing our customary manners, we are probably overly conscious of them; this seems to be a condition that produces writers.

The writer should never be ashamed of staring. There is nothing that does not require his attention.