The truth is ships and aircraft have been vanishing with tragic regularity in every part of the world since they were invented.
They screwed up 'Raise the Titanic!' so badly, I stay away from Hollywood. I won't cheat my readers with another piece of crap.
Nobody gives a damn about the Merrimac. You know how it is. Winners write the history books.
When I type 'The End,' it's like being paroled from prison.
I had horrible experiences in Hollywood.
After the Dirk Pitt books became best-sellers, I could afford to buy the more exotic examples of classic autos.
I purchased a 1955 Rolls-Royce that my wife liked because it was new the year we were married. Then came a 1926 Hispano-Suiza Cabriolet that I bought at my first classic car auction after I had three martinis. As more cars were added, I had to buy a warehouse.
I never had a highfalutin' view of what I write.
It's a job. I entertain my readers. I get up in the morning, and I start typing.
I want it to be easy to read. I'm not writing exotic literature.
My books are easy to read. No folderol.
Maybe some day they'll find me behind the computer, just bones and cobwebs.
When I started writing, I just hoped for a nice little paperback series.
My job is to entertain the readers in such a manner that, when they reach the end of the book, they feel like they've gotten their money's worth.
I can't retire. My readers won't let me.
I didn't have the great American novel burning inside me, but I felt I could try my hand at popular fiction.
I don't think of myself as a writer.
I'm not working on the Great American Novel. All I am doing, I hope, is entertaining readers.
After putting the kids to bed, I would think about what I wanted to write.
Either you've got the bug, or you haven't. There are many things I'd rather be doing than writing a book.
