The mission of the playwright is to look in his heart and write, to write whatever concerns him at the moment to write with passion and conviction. Of course the measure of the man will be the measure of the play

Action is greater than writing. A good man is a nobler object of contemplation than a great author. There are but two things worth living for: to do what is worthy of being written and to write what is worthy of being read and the

He lives the poetry that he cannot write. The others write the poetry that they dare not realise

But there are certain very practical things American Negro writers can do. And must do. There's a song that says, the time ain't long. That song is right. Something has got to change in America—and change soon. We must help that change to come

I suppose that writers should, in a way, feel flattered by the censorship laws. They show a primitive fear and dread at the fearful magic of print

People say I give the best head, and they're not always talking about sex

Cats are dangerous companions for writers because cat watching is a near-perfect method of writing avoidance

Let Catholic writers take care when defending the cause of the proletariat and the poor not to use language calculated to inspire among the people aversion to the upper classes of society

Everything a writer learns about the art or craft of fiction takes just a little away from his need or desire to write at all. In the end he knows all the tricks and has nothing to say