Stephanie Powell Watts quotes

I think it is a natural impulse to look to your own past and history to discover the stories that move and inspire you. The problem is that the past is nebulous and waiting for a shape. What ultimately gives it form and context is the present. That's the part of writing inspired by personal history that is exciting to me. (Stephanie Powell Watts)
Humor is absolutely necessary to keep going...So many of the people in my family and my community were wonderful storytellers. They would tell stories about just awful things that happened to them. But their humor made what happened into their own kind of triumph. View quote
Stephanie Powell Watts
Coco Chanel said something like, "When you're getting ready to go out, take off one thing.” I think it's similar with dialogue. Cut it off. Don't say too much, because then it gets to a place where it's not natural. Most people don't go on and on for sentences in real life. Also, when two characters are in a space that's emotionally raw, they can't always articulate everything. They're talking, but not saying the right things. Another thing is to never let people directly answer each other's questions if you're trying to create tension. View quote
Stephanie Powell Watts