The item directly under this text is an advertisement

Quillblog, ,

Quotable Vidal

The Telegraph has an interview with Gore Vidal, who, at the age of 81, has a new memoir out entitled Point to Point Navigation. Vidal is always quotable, and he doesn’t disappoint here. Below are some gems.

On academia: “If you want to meet someone who really hates literature, then just talk to an academic.”

On the concept of the auteur: “I remember all these terrible hacks in Hollywood coming up and telling me, ‘I’m an auteur, you know.’ And I would say, ‘I always knew you were by the way you parted your hair.’”

On the decline of literary fame: “To speak of a famous writer is like speaking of a famous speedboat designer. The adjective is inappropriate to the noun.”

Of course, Vidal’s quotability comes at a price. The notoriously litigious author makes clear that “the only thing that I react really violently to is being misquoted.”

Related links:
Read the interview with Gore Vidal

Related posts:

  1. » Franzen is “sad” about Oprah ending her show
  2. » Mavis wasn’t crazy about Mordecai

Comments are closed.

The item directly under this text is an advertisement

Latest comments

  • Nic Boshart: I read one of DH’s short stories and loved it, thought I’d try out a novel and picked up...
  • Carl: “We don’t have anything like [Canada Reads] in Quebec.” Yes you do, it’s called Canada Reads. I...
  • urbanmkr: Yes, it is, but it doesn’t have quite such a large listenership, I guess.
  • Alex Good: “We don’t have anything like [Canada Reads] in Quebec.” Isn’t it called Le Combat des...
  • angel guerra: It costs just the same…..? What a bargain. Makes writing War and Peace sound like a piece of...

Latest issue

Quill & Quire cover

Inside: In the January/February issue of Q&Q, now on newsstands, we look back on the decade that was, highlighting the people, books, and events that defined the 2000s. Also in the issue, we look ahead at the season’s most anticipated books in our Spring Preview; visit with veteran publisher Kim McArthur as she attempts to reinvent McArthur & Company; and examine the secret nine-to-five lives of Canadian authors. All that, plus reviews of new books by Todd Babiak, Ruth Ohi, Ann Vanderhoof, Richard Scrimger, and more.

» Subscribe today!

Follow along and participate

Book Pictures

View all photos

Book Launch for Von Allan's "the road to god knows..." at Ottawa's Perfect Books

panel celebrates

Ottawa writers festival

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

Blazing Figures Launch

The fine print

All content copyright Quill & Quire -- Quill & Quire is a registered trademark of St. Joseph Media