The Quotable Writer

Who among us hasn't dreamed of penning the perfect poem, a short story that would impress even Hemingway, or the next Great American Novel? With so much value placed on the writer's instrument - it is, after all, "mightier than the sword" - it's no wonder that so many of us long to use it to express our unique take on the human experience.

But who are the ones who make it and how? In spite of the eventual success of the well-known writers in this collection, many of them had to journey to the dark midnight of their souls and back. Here is Flannery O'Connor on the insidious lure of the Hollywood machine; Stephen King on his disregard for the perfectly grammatical sentence; Norman Mailer on the emotional turmoil of novel writing; Anne Lamott on the daily discipline it takes to bring a work to fruition; and many others.

The Quotable Writer is the perfect gift for the dabbler, the professional writer, the teacher, and the dreamer. These carefully selected quotations capture the wisdom and wit of the world's best-known writers, from Mark Twain to Mary Higgins Clark, Aristotle to Truman Capote. Included are sections on writing habits, finding the muse, transcending writer's block, dealing with editors, facing the critics, as well as managing success and rejection. This compilation is sure to inspire, entertain, and enlighten writers and readers everywhere.

A fascinating collection of insightful comments about writers and their craft.

LAMAR UNDERWOOD serves as editorial director of the Outdoor Magazine Group of Harris Publications in New York. He is the author of a novel, On Dangerous Ground, and editor of such anthologies as The Greatest Survival Stories Ever Told, The Greatest Adventure Stories Ever Told, and several other books. Formerly editor in chief of both Sports Afield and Outdoor Life, he lives in Pennington, New Jersey.