Quote

Read Don Quixote; it is a very good book; I still read it frequently.

'Don Quixote' is a very political book that has been used by diplomats, politicians, guerrilla fighters, to inspire people, to convince them that they themselves can become quixotic. George Washington had a copy of the book on his desk when signing the U.S. Constitution.

I always have a book that I use that somehow inspires my novels.

How many different works of art have been inspired by 'Don Quixote?' Thousands. Most people enter the novel, for better or worse, through the musical the 'Man Of La Mancha.'

Reading made Don Quixote a gentleman, but believing what he read made him mad.

There's this creative thing in me that wants to have my work used - like the author of a book who wants it read.

I don't actually have a one wellspring of inspiration. Though I'm most often inspired while reading - both fiction and nonfiction.

Most of my inspiration, if that's the word, came from books themselves.

Probably every book I read influenced me in some small way. Authors like Jan Westcott, Kathleen Winsor, Catherine Cookson, Georgette Heyer, and even Barbara Cartland taught me to write character-driven stories.

While we are reading, we are all Don Quixote.