“I'm sharpest early, and though I can rewrite any time, day or night, I...” — Hallie Ephron Quote

“I'm sharpest early, and though I can rewrite any time, day or night, I'm useless after noon when it comes to writing first draft.”

“I don't think anybody in my family meant there to be any pressure for me to write. But our parents were incredibly verbal and wrote for a living. The house was full of books, and we all grew up steeped in language. I mean, our mother recited poetry at the dinner table.”

“As we got older, we grew comfortable in roles that met our parents' expectations. Nora was the smart one. Delia, the comedian. I was the pretty, obedient one. And Amy was the adventurous mischief-maker.”

“I have to write a first draft with a fountain pen before I type it up as a second.”

“I generally write a first draft that's pretty lean. Just get the story down.”

“I have always had great respect for those who served. In my time, we had the draft.”