I’ve been at writing long enough now to know that every three or four books, I have to start a new direction. – Daniel Woodrell
I think all regions have had their peculiarities of speech rounded off by television, radio, and people travel so much more now. – Daniel Woodrell
For a long time, I didn’t think I wanted to live in the Ozarks or write about the region. It seemed to be a sure recipe for obscurity, and to be obscure was not my conscious ambition. – Daniel Woodrell
One of the interesting things about the Ozarks is you just about don’t have street crime. It’s strictly between people who know each other. It really isn’t indiscriminate; it’s kind of between themselves. – Daniel Woodrell
You realize you’re alive while you’re alive, and you better notice it then, because later, it’s hard to see. – Daniel Woodrell
I tell the story by feel most of the time, and I am not much given to labyrinthian digressions but seem to be naturally drawn to compression and pace, and the feelings come about on their own. – Daniel Woodrell
I am well aware that the writers of New York, London, and Toronto are more readily noticed, though the shadowy and potent Ozarks Literary Cabal does what it can for me, then nightly joins me for dinner and calls me ‘honey.’ – Daniel Woodrell
It was in a grim room on Eddy Street that I finally opened ‘A Moveable Feast.’ I read it all overnight. I read it again the next day. – Daniel Woodrell
I realized there might be monetary or financial reasons to jump in and write a ‘Winter’s Bone Retriumphs’ or something, and nobody would object to me doing that in publishing. But it would be a waste of my time, and they always take a little longer than you thought they would take. – Daniel Woodrell
I don’t think I can write a book as nihilistic as some of my early ones. They’re so bleak. I don’t think I would enjoy that as much anymore. You really become fixated on ways out. – Daniel Woodrell
The town of St. Charles near St. Louis was founded by a trapper named Blanchette. There is a section that’s called Frenchtown on historical markers. – Daniel Woodrell
I rise near dawn, make a strong cup of coffee, wander to my desk and come fully awake by reading something written the day before. – Daniel Woodrell
I was reading newspaper front pages from the 1930s, and I was taken aback. I’m not naive about American history, but I was a bit knocked off my feet by things that used to be on the front pages of newspapers. – Daniel Woodrell
I have always loved short stories. I have been at least as influenced by the short story masters as I have been by novelists. – Daniel Woodrell
I think there are some folks who don’t particularly like what I have to say, but on the whole, the reaction has been very positive. – Daniel Woodrell
If you don’t allow yourself to change from book to book – take chances – it turns into a dullish job with no health benefits or pension plan and only intermittent paychecks. – Daniel Woodrell