Top 62 Quotes by James Salter

About James Salter

These are some quotes by American author James Salter Novelist, who lived between June 10, 1925 and June 19, 2015.

In 1957, I decided: write or perish.

In 1957, I decided: write or perish.

James Salter

Happiness is often at its most intense when it is based on inequality.

Happiness is often at its most intense when it is based on inequality.

James Salter

I sometimes say that I don't make anything up - obviously that's not true. But I am uninterested in writers who say that everything comes out of the imagination. I would rather be in a room with someone who is telling the story of his life, which may be exaggerated and even have lies in it, but I want to hear the true story, essentially.

James Salter

A name, of course is like a piece of clothing, isn't it? It gives you an impression right away.

A name, of course is like a piece of clothing, isn't it? It gives you an impression right away.

James Salter

There comes a time when you realize that everything is a dream, and only those things preserved in writing have any possibility of being real.

There comes a time when you realize that everything is a dream, and only those things preserved in writing have any possibility of being real.

James Salter

The whole joy of writing comes from the opportunity to go over it and make it good, one way or another.

The whole joy of writing comes from the opportunity to go over it and make it good, one way or another.

James Salter

It was not until I began to write a book called 'Light Years' that an editor really stepped in. The editor was Joe Fox at Random House, and he wound up editing a subsequent book.

It was not until I began to write a book called 'Light Years' that an editor really stepped in. The editor was Joe Fox at Random House, and he wound up editing a subsequent book.

James Salter

Written pages are something that can be returned to, reclaimed, and when they are marvelous, never lose their power.

Written pages are something that can be returned to, reclaimed, and when they are marvelous, never lose their power.

James Salter

If you read a book about school - someone else's book - you always translate it into your own school experiences. It's describing the student: he's bewildered and lost in a large crowd in a university classroom. You'll visualize that from your own experiences. So, everything you know is what you're really writing.

James Salter

There came a time when I felt I was not going to be satisfied with life unless I could write.

There came a time when I felt I was not going to be satisfied with life unless I could write.

James Salter

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