You define a good flight by negatives: you didnt get hijacked, you didnt crash, you didnt throw up, you werent late, you werent nauseated by the food. So you are grateful. – Paul Theroux
When I started writing, I did have some idealised notion of my dad as a writer. But I have less and less of a literary rivalry with him as Ive gone on. I certainly dont feel I need his approval, although maybe thats because Im confident that Ive got it. – Paul Theroux
When I was in the Peace Corps I never made a phone call. I was in Central Africa I didnt make a phone call for two years. I was in Uganda for another four years and I didnt make a phone call. So for six years I didnt make a phone call, but I wrote letters, I wrote short stories, I wrote books. – Paul Theroux
The moment that changed me for ever was the moment my first child was born. I was happy, filled with hope, and thought, Now I understand the whole point of work, of life, of love. – Paul Theroux