Thoughts about reading, writing and books from author Pat Conroy who died March 4, 2016 at age 70; his books include The Water is Wide, The Great Santini, Prince of Tides and Beach Music:
Books are living things and their task lies in their vows of silence. You touch them as they quiver with a divine pleasure. You read them and they fall asleep to happy dreams for the next 10 years. If you do them the favor of understanding them, of taking in their portions of grief and wisdom, then they settle down in contented residence in your heart.
It’s an article of faith that the novels I’ve loved will live inside me forever.
A novel is a great act of passion and intellect, carpentry and largess. From the very beginning, I wrote to explain my own life to myself, and I invited readers who chose to make the journey with me to join me on the high wire.
Writing is more about imagination than anything else. I fell in love with words. I fell in love with storytelling.
I would love to see young writers come out of college and know there is a possibility to be a novelist.