Elmore Leonard > Quotes

“Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing

1. Never open a book with weather.
2. Avoid prologues.
3. Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue.
4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said”…he admonished gravely.
5. Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose.
6. Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose."
7. Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
8. Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.
9. Don't go into great detail describing places and things.
10. Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

My most important rule is one that sums up the 10.

If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.”
― Elmore Leonard

“I try to leave out the parts that people skip.”
― Elmore Leonard

“Psychopaths... people who know the differences between right and wrong, but don't give a shit. That's what most of my characters are like.”
― Elmore Leonard

“It doesn't have to make sense, it just has to sound like it does.”
― Elmore Leonard, Freaky Deaky

“Skip the boring parts.”
― Elmore Leonard

“I'm very much aware in the writing of dialogue, or even in the narrative too, of a rhythm. There has to be a rhythm with it … Interviewers have said, you like jazz, don’t you? Because we can hear it in your writing. And I thought that was a compliment.”
― Elmore Leonard

“If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.”
― Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing

“I spent most of my dough on booze, broads and boats and the rest I wasted.”
― Elmore Leonard, LaBrava

“There are cities that get by on their good looks. Detroit has to work for a living.”
― Elmore Leonard

“A man can be in two different places and he will be two different men. Maybe if you think of more places he will be more men, but two is enough for now.”
― Elmore Leonard, Valdez Is Coming

“Fate was working it's ass off when it got us all together.”
― Elmore Leonard

“You never know what somebody might tell you, chris said, when they think you're somebody else.”
― Elmore Leonard, Freaky Deaky

“There were a lot of terms you had to learn, as opposed to the shylock business where all you had to know how to say was "Give me the fuckin money".”
― Elmore Leonard, Get Shorty

“I always felt, you don’t have a good time doin crime, you may as well find a job.”
― Elmore Leonard, Raylan

“9 Don't go into great detail describing places and things, unless you're ­Margaret Atwood and can paint scenes with language. You don't want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.”
― Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing

“It's my attempt to remain invisible, not distract the reader from the story with obvious writing.”
― Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing

“There’s something happening here, I know it. It’s right in front of my face, but I just can’t see it.”
― Elmore Leonard, Unknown Man #89

“The one thing Leonard won't tolerate is fancy prose. As he states in his 10 Rules of Writing: "If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.”
― Elmore Leonard

“I started out of course with Hemingway when I learned how to write. Until I realized Hemingway doesn't have a sense of humor. He never has anything funny in his stories.”
― Elmore Leonard

“I won't read a book that starts with a description of the weather. I don't read books over 300 pages, though I'll make an exception for Don Delillo.”
― Elmore Leonard

“You thinkin bout the time I shot you and you rose from the dead? It only happens once in your life." He turned to Carol again and she said:

"Were you actually aiming at his hat?"

"I hit it didn't I?”
― Elmore Leonard

“And she thought if you don't have the desire to fight or wait for something there's no reason for being on earth.”
― Elmore Leonard, Last Stand at Saber River

“all over the world...the past was being wiped out by condominiums.”
― Elmore Leonard, Cat Chaser

“The shots left a hard ringing sound within the closeness of the brick walls. Terry held the pistol at arm's length on a level with his eyes--the Russian Tokarev resembling an old-model Colt .45, big and heavy--and made the sign of the cross with it over the dead. He said, "Rest in peace, motherfuckers," turned, and walked out of the beer lady's house to wait at the side of the road.”
― Elmore Leonard, Pagan Babies

“He saw Harvey and Edgar catch each other's eye as he looked off toward the strains of "Alley Cat," Jesus, hoping they'd rush it faster than the others or he'd have to get out of here. It was the only song he knew that made him want to break something.”
― Elmore Leonard, Stick

“Avoid Prologues. They can be annoying, especially a prologue following an introduction that comes after a foreword.”
― Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing

“a wife's faithful to her husband, subject to him. it's in the bible.”
― Elmore Leonard, Gold Coast

“At the bottom of the hill they came out of the trees to a busy street and Antwan said, "We cross here."

"Ain't no lights here," Antwan said. "Just look out for the ones trying to hit you. There's a nice-looking blonde-haired female human lives around here - any time she sees me she tries to run me down.”
― Elmore Leonard, A Coyote's in the House

“when you're really cute that's all you have to be, you make a career out of it. someone asks you what you do, you say, 'nothing. i'm cute.”
― Elmore Leonard, Killshot

“Ernesto Palmer got the name Chili originally because he was hot-tempered as a kid...Now he was Chili, Tommy Carlo said, because he had chilled down and didn't need the hot temper. All he had to do was turn his eyes dead when he looked at a slow pay, not say more than three words, and the guy would sell his wife's car to make the payment.”
― Elmore Leonard, Get Shorty