“I do not read a book; I hold a conversation with the author.”

The love we give away is the only love we keep.

I wish to live without hate, whim, jealousy, envy, and fear. I wish to be simple, honest, frank, natural . . to face any obstacle and meet every difficulty unabashed and unafraid.

The worst thing about medicine is that one kind makes another necessary

A retentive memory may be a good thing, but the ability to forget is the true token of greatness.

We find what we expect to find, and we receive what we ask for.

Never explain – your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyway.

Money never made a fool of anybody; it only shows them up.

Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do every day what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer to your goal.

Growth is often a painful process.

Genius is the capacity of avoiding hard work.

It does not take much strength to do things, but it requires great strength to decide on what to do.

The average woman sees only the weak points in a strong man, and the good points in a weak one.

All wages are based primarily on productive power. Anything else would be charity.

Love grows by giving. The love we give away is the only love we keep. The only way to retain love is to give it away.

I believe in the hands that work, in the brains that think, and in the hearts that love…I believe in sunshine, fresh air, friendship, calm sleep, beautiful thoughts.

People who are able to do their own thinking should not allow others to do it for them.

All authors to their own defects are blind.

Time is of no account with great thoughts, which are as fresh to -day as when they first passed through their authors’ minds ages ago.

Most of the more celebrated names among African-American authors, poets, and artists are known to the world because of their association with specific cultural arts movements.

An author accepting language’s invitation to dance steps onto the floor of his her sensibility-charged consciousness and begins to move instinctively–even if with much dread

Few sensible authors are happy discussing the creative process–it is, after all, black magic.

Negative space is important. When I teach students to read critically I advise them to look for what the author isn’t saying just as carefully as for what he or she is.

Your source material is the people you know, not those you don’t know, but every character is an extension of the author’s own personality.

My own experience is that once a story has been written, one has to cross out the beginning and the end. It is there that we authors do most of our lying.