The word war itself has a kind of glazing abstraction to it that conjures up bombs and bullets and so on, whereas my goal is to try to, so much as I can, capture the heart and the stomach and the back of the throat of readers who can lie in bed at night and participate in a story. Tim O'Brien abstractionbackbed share on social
Working as a journalist, I was always tempted to lie. I felt I could do dialogue better than the person I was interviewing. I felt I could lie better than Nixon and be more concise than some random person I was covering. Tim O'Brien concisecoverdialogue share on social
War is a fundamental aspect of human existence. It's good to know what war entails and what the human sacrifice is. Tim O'Brien aspectentailexistence Change image and share on social
With no draft, the only people who went to war were those who wanted to, or at least those who wanted to join the military. Tim O'Brien draftjoinmilitary Change image and share on social
Stories have a special way of putting us inside the people, inside the boots of the soldiers. You're absorbed in a way a documentary or nonfiction can't do for you. Tim O'Brien absorbbootdocumentary Change image and share on social
I grew up with the Gene Kelly look at war. The cheerful kind of stories you tell about a horrendous war. Tim O'Brien cheerfulgenegrow Change image and share on social
Storytelling is the essential human activity. The harder the situation, the more essential it is. Tim O'Brien activityessentialhard Change image and share on social
To be memorable and to have dramatic impact, informational detail must function actively within the dynamic of a story. Tim O'Brien activelydetaildramatic Change image and share on social
Above all, a well-imagined story is organized around extraordinary human behaviors and unexpected and startling events, which help illuminate the commonplace and the ordinary. Tim O'Brien behaviorcommonplaceevent Change image and share on social
In books or films, it is desirable to have a climactic battle scene, but the world does not operate in those gross dramatic terms. In Vietnam, there was a general aimlessness, not just in the physical sense, but beyond that in the moral and ethical sense. Tim O'Brien aimlessnessbattlebook share on social
