Quotes from Elmore Leonard

Leave out the parts that readers tend to skip.

He sat in the living room in the dark, an expert at waiting, a nineteen-year veteran of it, waiting for people who failed to appear, missed court dates because they forgot or didn't care, and took off. Nineteen years of losers, repeat offenders in and out of the system. Another one, that's all Louis was, slipping back into the life.

Tony was a lawyer, so you had to accept the fact he was opinionated and full of shit.

A: Anyone who looks like she does has to be somebody... B: What does she look like? A: An ice cream. I had a spoon I would have eaten her.

The personality and the ego scream, while the soul whispers.

A wife's faithful to her husband, subject to him. It's in the bible.

Quiet and calculating. He hasn't changed that much since. Always mild-mannered, the nice guy—until someone steps over the line and challenges him.

You're going through your menopause and you thought you were in love.

Boyd looked at him now like he was trying to decide something in his mind. "You'd shoot me, you get the chance?" "You make me pull," Raylan said, "I'll put you down.

I've learned if you're ever angry enough to hit somebody, don't do it. Cool down and get yourself a pistol.

Raylan got ready.

He walked back into the living room, looking again at the illuminated photo of the man with the brown beard and long hair. "Who's that, a friend of yours?" Mr. Sweety glanced over. He said, "This picture here?" and sounded surprised. "It's Jesus. Who you think it was?" "It's a photograph," Raymond said. Mr. Sweety said, "Yeah, it's a good likeness, ain't it?

I try to leave out the parts that people skip.

Yeah, ESP," Juvenal said. "You know how you do it? You listen to the other person instead of thinking of what you're gonna say next. That's all, and you learn things.

He called out to no one in particular, Fire in the Hole!

the one they used to call Club Fed. No fence, no guys with shanks or razor blades stuck in toothbrush handles. The worst that could happen to you, some guy hits you over the head with a tennis racquet.

She said very quietly, "Mitch?" "What?" "There's somebody downstairs." "I know there is.

That goddamn Louis, you see what he done? Put his cigarette butt in here. I'm gonna punch him right in his smokin' mouth." Max turned back to the form, glades mutual casualty printed across the top. He said, "I know how you feel. But when you hit an ex-con who's done three falls, they say you better kill him.

If it sounds like writing, I rewrite.

Don't go into great detail describing places and things… You don't want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.

I'll give you something else to think about. Not very long ago he shot and killed a man and did it deliberately, at close range. What I'm saying is he intended to kill the guy and he did. Again the silence before Chip said, Come on, he told you that? I felt it in his hand, Dawn said. The one that held the gun.

Come on up to Riv'era Beach and say those things, you be dead.

All the information you need can be given in dialogue.

You look back,' Max said, 'you can't believe that much time went by. You look ahead and you think, shit, if it goes that fast I better do something with it