Authorial Reputation Quotes

I reckon I can count on 30 more writing years, averaging a book a year (I can't keep up the 2-2.5 a year I used to do these days). And these days I've gotten round to wondering, for each new idea, "do I want to be remembered for this?" before I get to the point of spending a year on it.

My dear Smollett ... disgraces his talent by writing those stupid romances called history.

On the whole, Chaucer impresses us as greater than his reputation, and not a little like Homer and Shakespeare, for he would haveheld up his head in their company.

I'd like to be remembered not only for my body of work but also for specific novels. Ideally, I want to be remembered in the same way as Stephen King, who defined and exemplified excellence in the horror genre in the late 20th and early 21st century.

Writers often feel obliged to adopt some sort of public appearance.

There are certain people whom one feels almost inclined to urge to hurry up and die so that their letters can be published.

I'm often associated with parallel narratives or dual narratives. The 'Devil in the White City' was a fluke.