Paris was a museum displaying exactly itself. Jeffrey Eugenides More Quotes by Jeffrey Eugenides More Quotes From Jeffrey Eugenides Though at this moment she felt abused, abandoned, and ashamed of herself, Madeleine knew that she was still young, that she had her whole life ahead of her--a life in which, if she persevered, she might do something special--and that part of persevering meant getting past moments just like this one, when people made you feel small, unlovable, and took away your confidence. Jeffrey Eugenides specialpeoplepast What I do when I create a character is put in details from all the people I know who might be like that person, and then put in a huge amount of myself. Jeffrey Eugenides creativitycharacterpeople I approach writing female characters the same why I approach writing male characters. I never think I'm writing about women, I think I'm writing about one woman, one person. And I try to imagine what she is like, and endow her with a lot of my own thoughts and history. Jeffrey Eugenides writingcharacterthinking Usually my ideas are small. Jeffrey Eugenides ideas Reading a novel after reading semiotic theory was like jogging empty-handed after jogging with hand weights. What exquisite guilt she felt, wickedly enjoying narrative! Madeleine felt safe with a nineteenth century novel. There were going to be people in it. Something was going to happen to them in a place resembling the world. Then too there were lots of weddings in Wharton and Austen. There were all kinds of irresistible gloomy men. Jeffrey Eugenides readingmenhands The Pulitzer Prize is an idea; it's a vote of confidence. Like literature, it exists purely in the mind. Jeffrey Eugenides literaturemindideas Novelists are always resisting autobiographical readings of their work, because they know how false those can be. Jeffrey Eugenides novelistsreadingwriting I spend most of every day writing. I like to write every day if I can. I don't start extremely early. Jeffrey Eugenides ifsworkwriting I went into the desert to forget about you. But the sand was the color of your hair. The desert sku was the color of your eyes. There was nowhere I could go that wouldn't be you. Jeffrey Eugenides coloreyehair I think, especially when you're in college, each book that you're reading tends to tell you who you are. Jeffrey Eugenides readingcollegebook I have a very beautiful room in my house... It's glass on three sides, and you'd think that's the perfect place to write. Somehow in that nice room I feel too exposed, and... I'm too distracted by things going on, so I end up writing in a not-very-nice office bedroom. Jeffrey Eugenides nicewritingbeautiful Some Pulitzer winners - novelists - have confided to me that getting the prize screwed them up. It messed with their heads. That hasn't been my experience. Jeffrey Eugenides winnernovelistssuccess The perishable nature of love is what gives love its profound importance in our lives. If it were endless, if it were on tap, love wouldn't hit us the way it does. Jeffrey Eugenides love-isgivingprofound Some cities have fallen into ruin and some are built upon ruins but others contain their own ruins while still growing. Jeffrey Eugenides ruinsgrowingcities The only way we know it's true is that we both dreamed it. That's what reality is. It's a dream everyone has together. Jeffrey Eugenides togetherdreamreality Every novelist should possess a hermaphroditic imagination. Jeffrey Eugenides novelistsimaginationshould Just like ice, lives crack, too. Personalities. Identities. Jeffrey Eugenides icepersonalityidentity You begin always knowing nothing. You remain forever an amateur, a first timer. Jeffrey Eugenides always-knowingknowing-nothingforever It took courage to let things fall apart so beautifully. Jeffrey Eugenides balconiesfalling-apartfall A seven-year-old girl can take only so many walks with her grandfather. Jeffrey Eugenides girlgrandfatheryears
