Harlan CobenWhat I love about the thriller form is that it makes you write a story. You can't get lost in your own genius, which is a dangerous place for writers. You don't want to ever get c… ▶372LoveReadingThought
Harlan CobenI don't find any real rivalries with crime and thriller writers anyway. That might sound a little Pollyanna, but for the most part the writers I compete with, if you want to use t… ▶361Thought
Harlan CobenI'm the Jerry Lewis of crime fiction.361Philosophy
Harlan CobenThat's what a good crime novelist - any good novelist - should do with you: play with your perceptions while showing you everything in plain sight.351Reading
Harlan CobenTragedy is a hell of a teacher. It's much too strict, but it's a hell of a teacher.363Thought
Harlan CobenWhat I want to do is tell stories about normal people in the American suburbs. I don't write the book where it's a conspiracy reaching the prime minister; I don't write the book w… ▶375HumanityLifeReading
Harlan CobenA dancer on break approached him. She smiled. Each tooth was angled in a different direction, as if her mouth were the masterwork of a mad orthodontist. Hi, she said. Hi. You're r… ▶332LoveReading
Harlan CobenMyron reached for the phone and dialed Win's number. After the eighth ring he began to hang up when a weak, distant voice coughed. Hello? Win? Yeah. You okay? Hello? Win? Yeah. Wh… ▶344ReadingTime
Harlan CobenI wish i could tell you that through the tragedy i mined some undiscovered, life-altering absolute that i could pass on to you.I didn't.The cliches apply-people are what count,lif… ▶322HumanityLifeTime
Harlan CobenMemories, you see, hurt. The good ones most of all. ✨ Harlan Coben (2009). Tell No One/Gone for Good, p.14, Delta356Humanity
Harlan CobenI pretty much only wear Lilly Pulitzer ties because my best friend owns the company.367Truth
Harlan CobenSo basically, that entire theory is blown to hell.Not basically, Win corrected. Entirely.379Thought
Harlan CobenA novel is like a sausage. You might like the final taste but you don't want to see how it was made. ✨ Twitter post from Sep 08, 2014368Reading
Harlan CobenLife may not always fall into neat chapters, and you may not always get the satisfying ending you're looking for, but sometimes a good explanation is all the rewrite you need.302LifeTime
Harlan CobenYou can't have an up without a down, a right without a left, a back without a front - or a happy without a sad.324Sadness
Harlan CobenOnly bad writers think they're good. ✨ Twitter post from Jan 27, 2017357Thought
Harlan CobenYou want this so badly—this second chance, this chance at real redemption—that you can’t see the truth. ✨ Six Years. Book by Harlan Coben, books.google.ru. April 25, 2013.324ReadingTruth
Harlan CobenSummer romances cometo an end. That was part of the deal. They are built like certain plants or insects, not able to survive more than one season. I thought we would be different.… ▶314LoveThought
Harlan CobenThe actual writing time is a lot shorter than the thinking time. I don't do too many notes. I keep it mostly in my head. I usually start writing a new book around January, and it'… ▶292ReadingThoughtTime
Harlan CobenLet me back up a little and tell you why I prefer writing to real life: You can rewrite. A novel, for example, can be cleaned up, altered, trimmed, improved. Life, on the other ha… ▶292LifeReading
Harlan CobenIts funny how you can let yourself forget for seconds, how even in the heat of the horrible, you can have moments when you fool yourself into thinking it might all be okay ✨… ▶272HumorReadingThought
Harlan Coben...desperation can toy with you and if you give desperation any wiggle room, it will find alternative answers ✨ Harlan Coben (2010). Caught, p.283, Penguin272Reflection
Harlan CobenThe preparation for building a series of thrillers based on a single character is kind of like the preparation for becoming a parent: The best part is the idea - wink, wink.316Thought
Harlan CobenFrankly I'm fairly boring or fairly busy. Between writing and family, I have little time for anything else.327Time
Harlan CobenGenius is a curse. That's how I look at it. Some think that the brilliant comprehend the universe in a way the rest of us can't. They see the world how it truly is—and that realit… ▶273ThoughtTruth
Harlan CobenThere is a certain fate to the universe and a certain randomness. ✨ Harlan Coben (2008). Hold Tight, p.289, Penguin274Politics
Harlan CobenI try to stress to my children that buying something never leads to true happiness.329Truth
Harlan CobenYears fly by, but the heart stays in the same place. ✨ Harlan Coben (2011). 3 Harlan Coben Novels: Promise Me, No Second Chance, Just One Look, p.74, Penguin297LoveReading
Harlan CobenI used to wonder why Lucy liked those songs so much. You know what I mean? She sits in the dark and listens and cries. Music does that to her...I didn't understand for a long time… ▶297SadnessTime
Harlan CobenI love to make even villains people you can relate to. When you find out who did it, I think you almost like the person, which is not easy to do.275HumanityLoveThought
