There is only one way to defeat the enemy, and that is to write as well as one can. The best argument is an undeniably good book.

More from The Living Novel: A Symposium

• Conquered people tend to be witty.
• Goodness is achieved not in a vacuum, but in the company of other men, attended by love.
• With a novelist, like a surgeon, you have to get a feeling that you've fallen into good hands - someone from whom you can accept the anesthetic with confidence.
• Aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
• Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.