I suppose I started writing seriously at 16 years old. I thought I wrote a novel at 16 and sent it to New York! They sent it back because it wasn't novel. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
I try to write something that would interest anybody and keep them turning the page. You must have a plot and good storyline. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
Words mean nothing. Action is the only thing. Doing. That's the only thing. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
In all my stories and novels, no one ever escapes Louisiana. Maybe that is because my soul never left Louisiana, although my body did… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
I think I'm a very religious person. I think I believe in God as much as any man does. I don't only believe in… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
What for?" I said. "What for, Tante Lou? He treated me the same way he treated her. He wants me to feel guilty, just… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
We all have much more in common than we have difference. I would say that about people all over the world. They don't know… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
I believe that the writer should tell a story. I believe in plot. I believe in creating characters and suspense. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
A myth is an old lie that people believe in. White people believe that they're better than anyone else on earth - and that's… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
I have learned as much about writing about my people by listening to blues and jazz and spirituals as I have by reading novels. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
When I'm sitting in the church alone, I can hear singing of the old people. I can hear their singing and I can hear… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
Question everything. Every stripe, every star, every word spoken. Everything. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
Now, about that mulatto teacher and me. There was no love there for each other. There was not even respect. We were enemies if… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
Without love for my fellow man and respect for nature, to me, life is an obscenity. — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
I knew I wanted to be a writer and I knew if I had a wife and family, I would neglect something, and I… — Ernest Gaines Copy Share Image
