Jesmyn Ward Quotes

I want to be a part of the stories that need to be told.

I'm a fan of great storytelling.

Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you don't know, and you want to know what's going to happen to them.

Stories have a way of telling themselves.

I think that, anybody with a strong will to tell a story, then that is fantastic. I think it's fantastic. I think sometimes people have what I'll call an ulterior motive with a story.

Fiction is all about vicarious experiences and getting into other people's heads in a way that no other art form lets you.

Everything I do is just an opportunity to tell a great story.

I've always been passionate about the stories I want to tell.

I want to be a part of stories.

As human beings, it's good to build stories.

Novels are not about expressing yourself, they're about something beautiful, funny, clever and organic. Self-expression? Go and ring a bell in a yard if you want to express yourself.

I'm a storyteller, not a prophet. I'm just interested in a good story.

All that non-fiction can do is answer questions. It's fiction's business to ask them.

I can be so blown away by story lines.

All my fiction starts from a feeling of unique perception, the pressure of a secret, a story that needs to be told.

I've tried to tell a story. For me, it is the best one.

Fiction is life with the dull bits left out.

My first duty to write a gripping yarn. Second is to convey credible characters who make you feel what they feel. Only third comes the idea.

Fiction is about telling a good story, first and foremost. But of course, everything I'm interested in or angry about leaks into my writing, from art to violence against women.

For me, the drive is storytelling. To be a part of an art that tells a story and to be a catalyst, a color in that, is very exciting.

Sometimes my lyrics may describe a situation that happened to a friend. Other times, I create a story from the ground up.

I'm first and foremost interested in the story, the characters.

I always like to tell a story.

In my books I try to tell a good story, not give messages.

I just knew there were stories I wanted to tell.