Quotes by Richard Russo

No, Sullyd decided long ago to abstain from all but the most general forms of regret. He allowed himself the vague wish that things had turned out differently, without blaming himself that they hadnt, any more than hed blamed himself when his 1-2-3 triple never ran like it should at least once. It didnt pay to second-guess every one of lifes decisions, to pretend to wisdom about the past from the safety of the present, the way so many people did when they got older.

You cant possibly judge your ability to control something until youve experienced the extremes of its capabilities. Do you understand?

Novel writing is mostly triage (this now, that later) and obstinacy. Trying something, and when that doesnt work, trying something else. Welcoming clutter Surrendering a good idea for a better one. Knowing you wont find the finish line for a year or two, or five...

One of the odd things about middle age...was the strange decisions a man discovers he’s made by not really making them.

To his surprise he...discovered that it was possible to be good at what you had little interest in, just as it had been possible to be bad at something…that you cared about a great deal.

What did I think? Right then I was thinking about my father, specifically his habit of treating everyone with courtesy and consideration, of how he used to stop on lower Division Street and converse genially with old black men from the Hill whom he knew from his early days as a route man. His kindness and interest werent feigned, nor did they derive, Im convinced, from any perceived send of duty. His behavior was merely an extension of who he was. But heres the thing about my father that Ive come to understand only reluctantly and very recently. If he wasnt the cause of what ailed his fellow man, neither was he the solution. He believed in Do unto Others. It was a good, indeed golden, rule to by and it never occurred to him that perhaps it wasnt enough. You aint gotta love people, I remember him proclaiming to the Elite Coffee Club guys at Ikeys back in the early days. Confused by mean-spirited behavior, he was forever explaining how little it cost to be polite, to be nice to people. Make them feel good then theyre down because maybe tomorrow youll be down. Such a small thing. Love, he seemed to understand, was a very big thing indeed, its cost enormous and maybe more than you could afford if you were spendthrift. Nobody expects that of you, asny more than they expected you to hand out hundred-dollar bills on the street corner. And I remember my mothers response when he repeated over dinner what hed told the men at the store. Really, Lou? Isnt that exactly what were supposed to do? Love people? Isnt that what the Bible says?

Like many men addicted to sports, Clive Sr. was also a religious man.

Miles smiled. Can you keep a secret?Bea snorted. Did I tell you what you were in for if you married my daughter?No, Miles conceded.Well, then, she said, as if that settled the matter.

At the risk of appearing disingenuous, I dont really think of myself as writing humor. Im simply reporting on the world I observe, which is frequently hilarious.

I never worry about people not taking my work seriously as a result of the humor. In the end, the comics best trick is the illusion that comedy is effortless. That people imagine what hes doing is easy is an occupational hazard.

HBO is really famous for hiring good people and staying out of their way until they ask for help, or need it. And that reputation is earned.

Truth be told, Im not an easy man. I can be an entertaining one, though its been my experience that most people dont want to be entertained. They want to be comforted.

I dont think theres a shortage of material in the world. Or in my head. I just pray for continued good health, because Ive got other stories to tell.

I have to have a character worth caring about. I tend not to start writing books about people I dont have a lot of sympathy for because Im just going to be with them too long.

My books are elegiac in the sense that theyre odes to a nation that even I sometimes think may not exist anymore except in my memory and my imagination.

“It was a scary thought. A man could be surrounded by poetry reading and not know it.”