I think that writers are, at best, outsiders to the society they inhabit. They have a kind of detachment, or try to… — John Irving Copy Share Image
Never confuse faith, or belief—of any kind—with something even remotely intellectual. — John Irving Copy Share Image
I have a friend who says that reviewers are the tickbirds of the literary rhinoceros-but he is being kind. Tickbirds perform a… — John Irving Copy Share Image
I'm a worst-case scenario person. I'm only interested in a story because I kind of go, like a magnet, to the worst… — John Irving Copy Share Image
I sometimes think that what I do as a writer is make a kind of colouring book, where all the lines are… — John Irving Copy Share Image
If you feel strongly about people having abortions, don't have one. But we are a country - USA - that likes to… — John Irving Copy Share Image
More than a half, maybe as much as two-thirds of my life as a writer is rewriting. I wouldn't say I have… — John Irving Copy Share Image
I'm not a movie person. They're collaborations of the worst kind. You must compromise yourself to many interests that are venal and… — John Irving Copy Share Image
They all settled into being the kind of friends when they heard from each other… or when they occasionally got together. And… — John Irving Copy Share Image
It seems to me that people who don’t learn as easily as others suffer from a kind of learning disability—there is something… — John Irving Copy Share Image
Ted Seabrooke, my wrestling coach, had a kind of Nietzschean effect on me in terms of not just his estimation of my… — John Irving Copy Share Image
Know the story before you fall in love with your first sentence. If you don’t know the story before you begin the… — John Irving Copy Share Image
I think the sport of wrestling, which I became involved with at the age of 14... I competed until I was 34,… — John Irving Copy Share Image
Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from… — John Irving Copy Share
… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life. — John Irving Copy Share
Watch out for people who call themselves religious; make sure you know what they mean––make sure they know what they mean! — John Irving Copy Share
The desire to never leave your side, the desire to never see you again. The desire to see your face asleep on the pillow… — John Irving Copy Share
I had been a student in Vienna, and one of the neat little things I had found out was about that zoo. It was… — John Irving Copy Share
“God, I think I just hit a high E-flat - and I really held it!" Esmeralda said, after one of her more prolonged orgasms,… — John Irving Copy Share
“Nostalgia!" Miss Frost cried. "You´re nostalgic!" She repeated. "Just how old are you, William?" She asked. "Seventeen, " I told her. "Seventeen!" Miss Frost… — John Irving Copy Share
“JUST BECAUSE A BUNCH OF ATHEISTS ARE BETTER WRITERS THAN THE GUYS WHO WROTE THE BIBLE DOESN'T NECESSARILY MAKE THEM RIGHT!" [Owen Meany] said… — John Irving Copy Share
It is much easier to be flexible about where a story begins than it ever was for me to change my mind about where… — John Irving Copy Share
“Only the chicken-lover will understand me. He will give me a kindly look, maybe mildly desirous. His eyes will tell me: You might look… — John Irving Copy Share
You're nice,' Cushie told him, squeezing his hand. 'And you're my oldest friend.' But they both must have known that you can know someone… — John Irving Copy Share
“Because of A Prayer for Owen Meany, many of my readers assume I am “religious.” I go to church only occasionally—like a lot of… — John Irving Copy Share
“Did anyone who was in love and was unsatisfied with how he was loved in return ever feel saved?” — John Irving Copy Share
“I TRUST THAT GOD WILL HELP ME, BECAUSE WHAT I’M SUPPOSED TO DO LOOKS VERY HARD.” — John Irving Copy Share
