"Hemingway was a prisoner of his style. No one can talk like the characters in Hemingway except the characters in Hemingway. His style in the wildest sense finally killed him"
- William Burroughs
About this Quote
This quote by William Burroughs talks to the unique and powerful design of Ernest Hemingway. Hemingway was a master of his craft, and his composing style was so unique that it ended up being a prison of sorts. His characters spoke in a manner that was so special and recognizable that nobody else could replicate it. This style, in its wildest sense, was eventually what resulted in his death. Hemingway was a victim of his own success, and his style was so powerful that it eventually consumed him. His writing was a reflection of his life, and it was this same design that ultimately resulted in his death. Hemingway was a detainee of his own style, and it was this very same design that eventually eliminated him.
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"The way I write is that I'll actually have a conversation out loud with myself. In a weird way, I just kind of get schizophrenic and play two characters"
"From beginning to end it's about keeping the energy and the intensity of the story and not doing too much and not doing too little, but just enough so people stay interested and stay involved in the characters"
"They weren't impatient for the boys to turn into cartoons again. They awarded sympathy, gave compassion. Because deep down they had found parts of themselves in the characters. You said it George"
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"I plot the first 5 or 6 chapters quite minutely, and also the end. So I know where I am going but not how I'm going to get there, which gives characters the chance to develop organically, as happens in real life as you get to know a person"
"I think for anybody reading the book they're going to get an idea in their heads of all those characters, and I think that once that gets fixed, it's quite hard to shake"
