He Looked Rather Pleasantly, Like A Blonde

When You Write, You Want Fame, Fortune And Personal Satisfaction. You Want To Write What You Want To Write And Feel It's Good, And You Want This To Go On For Hundreds Of Years. You're Not Likely Ever To Get All These Things, And You're Not Likely To Give Up Writing And Commit Suicide If You Don't, But That Is -- And Should Be -- Your Goal. Anything Else Is Kind Of Piddling.

What I Try To Do Is Write A Story About A Detective Rather Than A Detective Story. Keeping The Reader Fooled Until The Last, Possible Moment Is A Good Trick And I Usually Try To Play It, But I Can't Attach More Than Secondary Importance To It. The Puzzle Isn't So Interesting To Me As The Behavior Of The Detective Attacking It.

A Lot Of Fancier Yarns Come From People Trying To Tell The Truth. It’s Not Easy Once You’re Out Of The Habit.

Joel Cairo: You Always Have A Very Smooth Explanation Ready. Sam Spade: What Do You Want Me To Do, Learn To Stutter?

The Face She Made At Me Was Probably Meant For A Smile. Whatever It Was, It Beat Me. I Was Afraid She'd Do It Again, So I Surrendered