Rod Serling Quotes

Authors should be honored only for their works.

Writing offers fairly large rewards to a few successful people, but the rewards come late, and most writers are failures.

If I were a writer, the Pulitzer Prize would be important to me. This is my profession, so an Oscar is important.

By the time I was in fifth grade, I was dreaming of the Pulitzer Prize.

I always grew up with the idea that in order to be a successful writer, I should have a book published.

I'm probably one of the few authors in this country who could very comfortably live off my writing.

I think my first story sold for $550. This was in 1954, and it seemed like quite a lot of money, and I said to myself, 'Hey, I'm a professional writer now.'

One tends to overlook the fact that all during the 30's and actually during the late 40's I was a highly successful writer and a great many properties accumulated during that period of time.

To have been able to write the books I wanted to write, on demanding subjects like war and the history of psychiatry, and for them to have sold in the numbers they have - and then go around saying: 'Actually, I'd also like to have won the Costa Book of the Year?' That would be ridiculous.

There are writers who go their whole lives and never hit that No. 1 spot.

You can't be admitted to the ranks of writers of importance unless you have sales.

I completed my first novel when I was 19 years old.

Whenever anyone calls me 'The new J..K. Rowling,' I think, 'What's wrong with the old one?'

I actually own a copy of my own book; that's how dedicated I am as an author.

I sold my very first novel when I was 24 or 25 years old.

My dream was to be known as a writer and to be able to produce at least one book that would be read by people. That dream came true with the publication of my first novel - and all the rest has been a sweet bonus.

I wrote my first full book when I was fourteen, and that was 'Obernewtyn.' It was also the first book I had published. It was accepted by the first publisher I sent it to, and it was short listed for Children's Book of the Year in the older readers category in Australia.

The first story I ever sold was to 'Argosy' magazine, which no longer exists. That issue also contained work by several other more celebrated writers, like Ray Bradbury - so I felt I had at least one toe on the ladder.

There's something very strange about associating me with that prize. I had hoped for it in a more directed way as a journalist. Somehow as a journalist you know there are Pulitzers out there and you can work hard and get one. To win it for Fiction seems unbelievable.

If you are making money writing, you are doing great. If you can support yourself writing, you are a success. I don't care if you're writing textbooks or Pulitzer Prize-winning articles for weighty publications of world renown: If you're writing and it's paying the bills, consider yourself a successful writer.

I was just delighted to be a legitimate, for-real published author.

I never set out to do this - getting to No. 1 in the 'New York Times' bestseller list wasn't even a pipedream.

It always seemed much better to be a writer - a Real Writer - than a successful hack.

I didn't like being a name attached to a book.

The only time I was ever approached to write a book was when I was most famous.