---
title: "1 Said Writer Quotes By James Salter"
description: "1 Said Writer quotes by James Salter. Plus more from James Salter and more Said Writer sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg"
---

> [“Gertrude Stein, when asked why she wrote, replied "For praise." Lorca said he wrote to be loved. Faulkner said a writer wrote for glory. I may at times have written for those reasons, it's hard to know. Overall I write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote-replied-for-praise-lorca-said/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg)

## More by James Salter

> [It seems to me that literature is giving way a little bit to the immediacy of other diversions, other forms of entertainment. What will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/it-seems-to-me-that-literature-is-giving-way-a-little-bit-to-the/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [Women fall in love when they get to know you. Men are just the opposite. When they finally know you they're ready to leave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/women-fall-in-love-when-they-get-to-know-you-men-are-just-the/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [Not necessarily narrow so much as impatient, intense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/not-necessarily-narrow-so-much-as-impatient-intense/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [I write in longhand. I am accustomed to that proximity, that feel of writing. Then I sit down and type.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-write-in-longhand-i-am-accustomed-to-that-proximity-that-feel-of/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [A writer writes a book. People read it. You don't know what they're reading, really. You read a review and think, "That is so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/a-writer-writes-a-book-people-read-it-you-don-t-know-what-they-re/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [“Strauss’s, for instance, which begins in the heavens. The artist doesn’t ascend to glory, he appears in it, he already has it and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/strauss-s-for-instance-which-begins-in-the-heavens-the-artist-doesn-t/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [Normally, what you’re envious of is a book, not a writer: standards, ideas, levels … almost nonexistent things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/normally-what-you-re-envious-of-is-a-book-not-a-writer-standards/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [Sometimes I write with a particular person in mind. I think it's fair to say that I write for a perceptive reader. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/sometimes-i-write-with-a-particular-person-in-mind-i-think-it-s-fair/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [Lots of scripts are written and not made, even scripts that people want to make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/lots-of-scripts-are-written-and-not-made-even-scripts-that-people/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [I'd given up everything to be a writer, and if I didn't then go on to do that - to write - then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-d-given-up-everything-to-be-a-writer-and-if-i-didn-t-then-go-on-to/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [“One should not believe too easily in a life which can easily vanish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/one-should-not-believe-too-easily-in-a-life-which-can-easily-vanish/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [“Life is separated by scars, like the rings in the inside of a tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/life-is-separated-by-scars-like-the-rings-in-the-inside-of-a-tree/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [“Dean is still asleep. His clothes are strewn about. The shutters are closed. He never dreams. He’s like a dead musician, like a spent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/dean-is-still-asleep-his-clothes-are-strewn-about-the-shutters-are/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [The dreams are the skeleton of all reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/the-dreams-are-the-skeleton-of-all-reality/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [There came a time when I felt I was not going to be satisfied with life unless I could write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/there-came-a-time-when-i-felt-i-was-not-going-to-be-satisfied-with/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "ItemList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/#itemlist",
            "name": "1 Said Writer Quotes By James Salter",
            "numberOfItems": 1,
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "“Gertrude Stein, when asked why she wrote, replied \"For praise.\" Lorca said he wrote to be loved. Faulkner said a writer wrote for glory. I may at times have written for those reasons, it's hard to know. Overall I write because I see the world in a certain way that no dialogue or series of them can begin to describe, that no book can fully render, though the greatest books thrill in their attempt. A great book may be an accident, but a good one is a possibility, and it is thinking of that that one writes. In short, to achieve. The rest takes care of itself, and so much praise is given to insignificant things that there is hardly any sense in striving for it. In the end, writing is like a prison, an island from which you will never be released but which is a kind of paradise: the solitude, the thoughts, the incredible joy of putting into words the essence of what you for the moment understand and with your whole heart want to believe.”",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "James Salter"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote-replied-for-praise-lorca-said/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“Gertrude Stein, when asked why she wrote, replied \"For praise.\" Lorca said he wrote to be loved. Faulkner…” — James Salter",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "CollectionPage",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/#webpage",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/",
            "name": "Said Writer Quotes by James Salter",
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "mainEntity": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/#itemlist"
            },
            "primaryImageOfPage": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d8/james-salter-2584_books_gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote_1141649.jpg"
            },
            "description": "1 Said Writer quotes by James Salter. Plus more from James Salter and more Said Writer sayings from other authors.",
            "breadcrumb": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/#breadcrumb"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/#breadcrumb",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Topics",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Said Writer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 5,
                    "name": "James Salter",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer/james-salter/"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```