Raymond Chandler’s writing advice

 

“A good story cannot be devised, it has to be distilled.”

“I write when I can and don’t write when I can’t.”

“The actual writing is what you live for. The rest is something you have to get through in order to arrive at that point.”

“When in doubt, have a man come through the door with a gun in his hand.”

“Technique alone is never enough. You have to have passion. Technique alone is just an embroidered potholder.”

“The challenge is to write about real things magically.”