“Never get out of the boat. Absolutely goddamn right.”

“Writing is too goddamned hard for me to think about a soul in teh world ... I don't think about a soul, but just try to get those goddamned characters to act right.”

“She looked at him with loathing. "I knew you were crazy," she said. "But I didn't realize you were absolutely, spectactularly out of your goddamned mind.”

“The little fishing boat anchors right off the shore of Gili Meno. There are no docks here on this island. You have to roll up your pants, jump off the boat and wade in through the surf on your own power. There's absolutely no way to do this without getting soaking wet or even banged up on the coral, but it's worth all the trouble because the beach here is so beautiful, so special”

“The person who gets the farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore.”

“There’s nothing––absolutely nothing––half so much worth doing as messing about in boats.”