Early on, after gay liberation, there was an almost Stalinist pressure from gay critics and even gay readers to write about positive role models. We were never supposed to write negative things about gays, or else we were seen as… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
The Stonewall riots were a key moment for gay people. Throughout modern history, gays had thought of themselves as something like a mental illness or maybe a sin or a crime. Gay liberation allowed us to make the leap to… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
Just like Barack Obama, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and now I am a reluctant groom. — Edmund White Copy Share Image
In 'A Boy's Own Story' and 'Jack Holmes and His Friend,' my idea was to take someone totally different from my real self and,… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
Everyone seems agreed that writing about sex is perilous, partly because it threatens to swamp highly individualised characters in a generic, featureless activity (much… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
'The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. Even in translation, the… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
If you're a beach person or a golfer, Key West is not for you. Most of the sand has been imported, and the water… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
From my mother I learned just how violent and unquenchable a woman's loneliness can be. She had been sheltered excessively by her husband and… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
From an early age, I had the idea that writing was truth-telling. It's on the record. Everybody can see it. Maybe it goes back… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
Since, in the best Southern tradition, I was named Edmund Valentine White III, sometimes when people look up my books on Amazon they find… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
When I was young, I despised old people. I was provincial and narrow-minded. It's the reason I stayed stupid so long. If you only… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
Key West is the place where your sickly house plant back in New York grows to 10 ft. It's also the place where an… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
“In the past, when gays were very flamboyant as drag queens or as leather queens or whatever, that just amused people. And most of… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
When a woman falls in love with me, I feel guilty. I am convinced that it's pure obstinacy that keeps me from reciprocating her… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on… — Edmund White Copy Share Image
