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I do think that poetry is important though, if you don’t strive at it, if you don’t fill it full of stars and falseness.

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When I begin to doubt my ability to work the word, I simply read another writer and know I have nothing to worry about. My contest is only with myself...more

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take a writer away from his typewriterand all you have leftisthe sicknesswhich started himtypingin thebeginning

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So where do you go? Back to the bottle And back to a tiny room somewhere. And wait. And wait, and wait. That's all.

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He asked, "What makes a man a writer?" "Well," I said, "it's simple. You either get it down on paper, or jump off a bridge.

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Ya got cigarettes?” she asks. “Yes,” I say,“I got cigarettes.” “Matches?” she asks.“Enough to burn Rome.” “Whiskey?”“Enough whiskey for a Mississippi ...more

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The secret is writing down one simple line after another.

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Don’t ever write a novel unless it hurts like a hot turd coming out

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nothing can save you except writing. it keeps the walls from failing.

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Getting drunk was good. I decided that I would always like getting drunk. It took away the obvious and maybe. If you could get away from the obvious o...more

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Drinking is an emotional thing. It joggles you out of the standardism of everyday life, out of everything being the same. It yanks you out of your bod...more

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Basically, that's why I wrote: to save my ass, to save my ass from the madhouse, from the streets, from myself.

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The writer has no responsibility other than to jack off in bed alone and write a good page.

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unless the sun inside you is burning your gut, don't do it

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Isolation is a gift. Everything else is just a test of your endurance. You will be alone with the Gods. Your nights will flame with fire.