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My dad told me that no one could ever make it as a writer, that my chances were equivalent to winning the lottery - which was good for me, because I like to have something to prove.

Poppy Z. Brite

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Poppy Z. Brite
Age: 57
Born: 1967
Born: May 25
Author
Biographer
Novelist
Writer
New Orleans
Louisiana
Billy Martin
Something
Chances
Make
Dad
Good
Prove
Like
Writer
Told
Winning
Chance
Lottery
Ever
Equivalent

More quotes by Poppy Z. Brite

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You hold onto what you have you do not give it up easily, even when you know it is poisoning you.
Poppy Z. Brite
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They discovered that even in the face of pain that seems unbearable, even in the face of pain that wrings the last drop of blood out of your heart and leaves its scrimshaw tracery on the inside of your skull, life goes on. And pain grows dull, and begins to fade
Poppy Z. Brite
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When you have too much faith in something, it's bound to hurt you. Too much faith in anything will suck you dry. In this way, all the world is a vampire.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Sometimes we gotta be brave even when we're scared. We gotta not let being scared keep us from thinkin' straight. That's all brave is, boy, when you come right down to it, not lettin' the fear get you so turned around you start doin' stupid things, instead of what you know you ought to do.
Poppy Z. Brite
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If you find yourself imitating another writer, that doesn't have to be a bad thing, especially if you are a young or a new writer. However, you should be conscious of exactly how you are imitating him - word choice, sentence structure, motifs? - and think about why you're doing it.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Never relinquish your terrors. That's when they catch you.
Poppy Z. Brite
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I believe in whatever gets you throught the night. [...] Night is the hardest time to be alive. For me, anyway. It lasts so long, and four A.M.knows all my secrets.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Horror is the badge of humanity, worn proudly, self-righteously, and often falsely.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Delete nothing. Move nothing. Change nothing. Learn everything.
Poppy Z. Brite
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I don't think it is possible to give tips for finding one's voice it's one of those things for which there aren't really any tricks or shortcuts, or even any advice that necessarily translates from writer to writer. All I can tell you is to write as much as possible.
Poppy Z. Brite
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The night is the hardest time to be alive and 4am knows all my secrets.
Poppy Z. Brite
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If you’re ever lucky enough to belong somewhere, if a place takes you in and you take it into yourself, you don't desert it just because it can kill you. There are things more valuable than life.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Why bother? I was right all along: the second you make yourself vulnerable to someone, they start drawing blood.
Poppy Z. Brite
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I've certainly learned a great deal from my husband, though, and could never have written a book like Liquor without him and the people he introduces me to and the stories he brings home.
Poppy Z. Brite
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I certainly wanted to write a book that was honest about New Orleans without explaining it to death, so much so that the first draft contained references absolutely incomprehensible to anyone who hasn't lived here for several years.
Poppy Z. Brite
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You can only maintain an immensely gothic attitude for so long before either killing yourself or beginning to feel like a poser.
Poppy Z. Brite
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In France, for instance, one magazine writer was convinced that On The Road had been a huge influence on Lost Souls and was crushed to learn that I hadn't read the one until after I'd written the other.
Poppy Z. Brite
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And I can't think of a reason I'd ever use a pseudonym, as I wouldn't want to publish something that I didn't like enough to put my name on it.
Poppy Z. Brite
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In high school I was the dog, always, and I never have felt comfortable or right in my body, and part of my whole exhibitionist thing has probably been a way of testing to see whether or not I really was this repulsive creature that I felt like for so long.
Poppy Z. Brite
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Celebrities, even insignificant ones like me, are created to be abused by the Great Unwashed.
Poppy Z. Brite