When I read, I'm purely a reader Anne Tyler More Quotes by Anne Tyler More Quotes From Anne Tyler My stories are never quite good enough Anne Tyler never-quit literature stories I think it must be very hard to be one of the new young writers who are urged to put themselves forward when it may be the last thing on earth they'd be good at Anne Tyler earth may thinking I'll write maybe one long paragraph describing the events, then a page or two breaking the events into chapters, and then reams of pages delving into my characters. After that, I'm ready to begin Anne Tyler writing character two I save the best of myself for novels, and I believe it shows Anne Tyler novel shows believe I spend about a year between novels Anne Tyler novel years I consciously try to end my novels at a point where I won't have to wonder about my characters ever again. Anne Tyler literature trying character For my own family, I would always choose the makeshift, surrogate family formed by various characters unrelated by blood. Anne Tyler literature character blood I've always enjoyed studying the small clues that indicate a particular class level. Anne Tyler levels literature class I think I was born with the impression that what happened in books was much more reasonable, and interesting, and real, in some ways, than what happened in life. Anne Tyler real book thinking I hated childhood, and spent it sitting behind a book waiting for adulthood to arrive. Anne Tyler childhood waiting book Try Jesus, you won't regret it, a billboard read. Anne Tyler regret trying jesus And she thought what a clean, simple life she would have led if it weren't for love. Anne Tyler clean simple-life simple I mean you're given all these lessons for the unimportant things--piano-playing, typing. You're given years and years of lessons in how to balance equations, which Lord knows you will never have to do in normal life. But how about parenthood? Or marriage, either, come to think of it. Before you can drive a car you need a state-approved course of instruction, but driving a car is nothing, nothing, compared to living day in and day out with a husband and raising up a new human being. Anne Tyler husband mean thinking Some people are aware of everything that is going on everywhere at every moment in their lives. Anne Tyler awareness moments people My writing day has grown shorter as I've aged, although it seems to produce the same number of pages. Anne Tyler literature writing numbers Not until the final draft do I force myself to remember that I'm going to have to think about how it will affect other people. Anne Tyler finals people thinking I just want to be told a story, and I want to believe I'm living that story, and I don't give a thought to influences or method or any other writerly concerns Anne Tyler stories giving believe I write because I want to have more than one life. Anne Tyler want writing ...if you catalogue grudges, anything looks bad. Anne Tyler grudge attitude looks But I don't think people take bad advice. They've got intuition too, you know. In fact I'd be surprised if they take any advice at all. Anne Tyler advice people thinking