Welcome to the world of Michael Connelly, where gripping narratives and unforgettable characters come to life through the power of words. Michael Connelly is a renowned American author best known for his compelling crime fiction, particularly his series featuring LAPD detective Harry Bosch and criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller. With over thirty novels to his name, Connelly has captivated readers around the globe with his masterful storytelling and keen insights into the complexities of the human condition.
Through his works, Connelly delves deep into the gritty underbelly of Los Angeles, weaving intricate plots filled with suspense, intrigue, and moral ambiguity. His writing is marked by its authenticity, drawing inspiration from his own experiences as a former crime reporter. Connelly’s ability to craft vivid imagery and dialogue imbues his novels with a sense of realism that keeps readers eagerly turning pages until the very end. Whether it’s navigating the dark alleys of the city or unraveling the intricacies of a high-stakes legal case, Connelly’s characters confront challenges that resonate with readers long after the final chapter.
Below, you’ll find a collection of memorable quotes from Michael Connelly’s works. These snippets of wisdom and wit encapsulate the essence of his storytelling, inviting you to delve deeper into his rich literary universe. Whether you’re seeking inspiration, reflection, or simply a glimpse into the minds of Connelly’s unforgettable characters, these quotes are sure to leave a lasting impression.
As a former reporter, I wrote ‘The Scarecrow’ quickly – I didn’t have to think about what the character would do the way I do with Harry Bosch. Michael Connelly
I’m always looking at ways of shaking up the writing experience because I think it helps. Michael Connelly
When I was at a newspaper, I knew what an opportunity that was, and I religiously protected my time on the cop beat. Michael Connelly
I write my books never thinking of an actor. Michael Connelly
I’m just going to write the best books I can. Michael Connelly
I hate people thinking their city is unique, but there is a certain aura about Los Angeles; it’s not necessarily a beautiful thing, but it’s part of Harry Bosch. Michael Connelly
The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once wrote that when you look into the darkness of the abyss the abyss looks into you. Probably no other line or thought more inspires or informs my work. Michael Connelly
I wrote my first real murder story as a journalist for the Daytona Beach News Journal in 1980. It was about a body found in the woods. Later, the murder was linked to a serial killer who was later caught and executed for his crimes. Michael Connelly
When I was a teenager, I was a voracious reader of crime fiction, but only contemporary books. I was not interested in reading ‘The Glass Key’ or ‘The Maltese Falcon’ – stuff that was 40 or 50 years old. Michael Connelly
Write every day even if it is just a paragraph. Michael Connelly
People like the Bosch books because they like Harry Bosch, not because the plots are fantastic. Michael Connelly
I never miss L.A. because I’m there enough. Michael Connelly
My history is that I will create a character, and they will have a book to themselves, and then I’ll integrate the character into the larger world of all my books. Michael Connelly
Eight to ten years in a patrol car? I didn’t have that in me. Michael Connelly
The fulfillment I get from a good day of writing is addictive and will always bring me back the next day. Michael Connelly
I think the only boundaries are individual and personal. A writer should be free to write about anything he or she wants to, including the twin towers. I have made small references to 9/11 in my past two books. Michael Connelly
Deep in my heart it still feels like I’m a journalist even though I haven’t worked for a paper and carried a press pass for 14 years. Michael Connelly
As a reporter, you develop an ear for dialogue because it’s your job to capture it accurately. Michael Connelly
I’m going to have to be impressed and feel confident in the people I’m handing a book to – or I’m not going to do it. Once you hand it to them, you’re out. You have no control over it. Michael Connelly
I got lucky, and the first book, ‘The Black Echo,’ got published. Michael Connelly
When I lived in L.A. full time, I moved often – fourteen different neighbourhoods in sixteen years. Michael Connelly
My literary heroes all wrote about L.A.: Joseph Wambaugh, Ross Macdonald, and Raymond Chandler were the three writers that made me want to be a writer. Michael Connelly
That’s what I like most about writing fiction over journalism: the easy metaphors! Michael Connelly
When I am so intensely involved with writing my books, I don’t like to reread them. I feel like that story is done. Michael Connelly
I’m one hundred percent Irish, and I’m very proud that I’m Irish American, though I don’t know exactly where my ancestors came from. I just know County Cork. Michael Connelly
I used to tape over the top corner of my computer screen so I couldn’t see what time it was. I like the idea that I’m just with the words and not knowing what’s going on with the world, when it’s lunch or dinner. Michael Connelly
There are nineteen Harry Bosch books, and someone told me if you add up the descriptions of Harry from all of them, it would come to less than three pages. He’s very elliptically described over the two decades during which the novels occur. I did that by intention. Michael Connelly
I think there has to be an empathic strike between the reader and the protagonist. There has to be something said or known that connects the reader to this person you’re going to ride through the story with. Michael Connelly
There is a prevailing school of thought that something good must take time, sometimes years to create and hone. I have always felt that the books I have written fastest have been my best – because I caught an unstoppable momentum in the writing. Michael Connelly
I was a police reporter, so I got into the worlds that I write about, and I think many of the details in my books come from those days. Michael Connelly
I don’t miss being a reporter as a job, but I do miss the everyday interaction with the front line of law enforcement. I still have a cadre of cops who keep me up to date, but I don’t have the access I used to. Michael Connelly
In the real world, some defense lawyers never have an innocent client in their whole career. Michael Connelly
A movie is like a city. There’s, like, 150 people working, and it’s all because of something that came out of your head. Michael Connelly
My father was a builder. During my high school years, I worked for him. One summer, I was working with a guy who had just come back from Vietnam and had been a tunnel rat. He wouldn’t talk about the experience, but it sounded really scary to me. Michael Connelly
I think there’s a general misconception that anything written quickly lacks quality, and I don’t believe that. Michael Connelly
I think I would spend the first 30 weeks not writing, just clearing my head and seeing parts of the world I haven’t seen and going back to places I have seen and love. Michael Connelly
I was fired as an actor on ‘Bosch.’ Michael Connelly
The characters I write about are very internal. Michael Connelly
Every time I visit Brisbane, I think, ‘This is my childhood.’ Michael Connelly
I watched ‘Kojak’ religiously with my father. It was a great bonding time. He loved shows where the stakes were high. Life and death, justice prevailing, things like that. I think that helped set me on the path to what I do now. Michael Connelly
I’d be lying if I said the success means nothing to me. It does. I enjoy it and live a pretty great life. Michael Connelly
It’s about being fair. It’s about Black Lives Matter. Yes, they matter. Everybody counts or nobody counts, and I think if more cops had the philosophy of Harry Bosch, we’d have less of these situations happening. Michael Connelly
It wasn’t a decision to become a writer. I wanted to become a writer of crime fiction. I was very specific. Michael Connelly
A good day to me is writing from 6 A.M. ’til noon with a break to take my daughter to school. After lunch, if I still feel the momentum, I’ll hit it again. Michael Connelly
I not only read Raymond Chandler but read all the crime fiction classics. I was hooked. Michael Connelly
When I write about Mickey Haller as the Lincoln lawyer, I totally see Matthew McConaughey because he took that character when that character was still fairly new to me – only two or three years old – when I knew McConaughey was going to play him. He’s also the same age, the right age, in comparison to the book. Michael Connelly
I have a large collection of biographies about jazz musicians. Michael Connelly
I’d seen Titus Welliver in a few shows and felt he had some inner demons in his portrayals, as does Harry Bosch. Michael Connelly
We want our government to protect us, to make sure something like 9/11 never happens again. We quickly moved to give law enforcement more power to do this. But that now begs the question, did we move to fast? Did we give too much power away? I don’t have the answer. Michael Connelly
You have to write about what scares you. Michael Connelly
A newspaper is the center of a community, it’s one of the tent poles of the community, and that’s not going to be replaced by Web sites and blogs. Michael Connelly
I first discovered Tampa in my 20s when I met my wife, who was living there, and I instantly fell in love with the city. It’s somewhere between a big city and small town, so you get the feeling of both. Michael Connelly
I don’t put a lot of description in the books because I write books the way I like to read them, and that is I like to build images and be a creative reader, and so I write that way. Michael Connelly
I can’t say I’m an expert on public transport. Michael Connelly
I trust the readers to build their own visual images. To me, that’s part of the wonder of reading. Michael Connelly
I chose deliberately for Harry Bosch to age chronologically with the books. Michael Connelly
When I was in college, there were dollar movie nights. I went to see ‘The Long Goodbye,’ which was based on one of Chandler’s books but was contemporary and set in Los Angeles in 1973. I loved the movie, which motivated me to read the book. Michael Connelly
This next to never happens, but if I had time to sit on a beach and read, I wouldn’t read a cozy. But I’ve read cozies. That’s how I got interested in crime fiction: because my mother was a soft-boiled reader. Michael Connelly
L.A. is a long shot city, and those who make that shot – you can tell. You can see very clearly who’s made it and who hasn’t. Michael Connelly
I’ve sold 11 of my books to Hollywood. There are all kinds of my books on shelves in Hollywood because the scripts didn’t capture the characters. Michael Connelly
I think the best way to sell a made-up character is to plant his feet into the real earth. Michael Connelly
I want people to think I’m a creative genius. Michael Connelly
You know that song, ‘New York, New York?’ If I can make it here, I’ll make it anywhere? That’s kind of like L.A. Michael Connelly
As far as characters in fiction that I really admire – it’s pretty strong to say you would wish that you had created another character – but I’ll throw out Will Graham, the protagonist in ‘Red Dragon,’ a book I’ve read several times. Michael Connelly
I like stories about people who have to go into darkness for a good reason and then have to figure out how to deal with the darkness that seeps into their souls. Michael Connelly
I feel I’m functioning at some level as a journalist because even though I write fiction, I’m trying to get the world accurate. Michael Connelly
Ross McDonald had a greater influence on me than any other writer. His style of writing, the repeated theme of the past coming out to grab somebody, that’s very attractive to me as a reader and, now, as a writer. Michael Connelly
When I went home at 20 to tell my parents, ‘I don’t want to be an engineer, I want to try and write books,’ I was braced for, ‘That’s not gonna happen.’ But I didn’t get that response, and maybe it was because of my dad’s experience of having an artistic dream and having to put it aside. Michael Connelly
As a writer, you look for inspiration wherever you can get it. Michael Connelly
The LAPD, like most police departments, is a male-dominated bureaucracy. A woman faces a lot of pushback. Michael Connelly
Many writers learned their craft and work ethic at a newspaper. I benefited from that. Michael Connelly
When you’re working on a novel, you never think about how much it would cost to shoot one of your scenes. But that’s a huge consideration in film and TV. Michael Connelly
We’re all seeking order. We’re all seeking control. Michael Connelly
The books I’ve written the fastest were the best reviewed and sold the best. Michael Connelly
Now I’m writing about contemporary Los Angeles from memory. My process was to hang out, observe, research what I was writing about, and almost immediately go back to my office and write those sections. So it was a very close transfer between observation and writing. Michael Connelly
I’m a disciple of Raymond Chandler, who said in his essays that there’s a quality of redemption in anything that can be called art. Michael Connelly
My favorite is ‘The Last Coyote.’ I’m not saying that’s the best book I’ve written; I hope I haven’t written my best book yet, but that one was the first book I wrote as a full-time author, with my full-time focus. I have a nostalgic feeling about it. Michael Connelly
The criminal defense attorney is misunderstood if not despised by most of society. It doesn’t matter if we believe in our adversarial system and the ideal that everyone charged with a crime is entitled to a vigorous defense. Ideals give away to reality – defense lawyers working loopholes and angles to get their clients off. Michael Connelly
I think there’d be huge losses if there weren’t newspapers. I know everything’s shifting to the Internet and some people would say, ‘News is news, what you’re talking about is a change of consumption, not the product that’s out there.’ But I think there is a change. Michael Connelly
All my writing is fun, and that makes it hard to slow down or walk away. Michael Connelly
I’ve been able to write at least one book a year for 20 years, and I don’t think I would’ve had that kind of drive if I hadn’t come out of the journalism business. Michael Connelly
I get into this unfortunate thing when I’m touring for my books. I was in Spain, and the media asked me, ‘Who’s your favorite Spanish mystery writer?’ I’m totally flat-footed. I feel that I’m under-read when it comes to foreign writers. Michael Connelly
When I write about places in L.A. – like where the best taco truck is or something – it’s not about L.A. To me, it’s about Harry Bosch, because he’s the guy that does these things and has this experience. Michael Connelly
I mostly read on airplanes and right before sleep. Michael Connelly
I write at a pace that suits me, and sometimes it’s two books a year, but most often it’s one. Michael Connelly
I think books with weak or translucent plots can survive if the character being drawn along the path is rich, interesting and multi-faceted. The opposite is not true. Michael Connelly
I could not have been happier with ‘The Lincoln Lawyer.’ They got the essence, and the casting, starting with McConaughey, was just perfect. Michael Connelly
I get up to write while it’s still dark, 5 or 5:30. I start by editing and rewriting everything I did the day before, and that gives some momentum for the day. Michael Connelly
With age comes a greater understanding and a greater worldview. Michael Connelly
In writing on the page, you can be a bit elliptical, but on TV, you can’t dance around stuff. You either show it, or you don’t. Michael Connelly
What is overriding that and most important is that readers generally are interested in a good character. They might be more comfortable with Harry because they think they know him, but they always seem willing to give somebody new a chance. Michael Connelly
The TV audience is way bigger than a book audience, and no matter what I do, I’m always thinking if this will help people read my books. Michael Connelly
I want to tell stories that reflect how people are feeling. Michael Connelly
When you’re a detective on the midnight shift, you don’t have a specialty: you roll on any time they need a detective, whether it’s big or small. Michael Connelly
I realize now I could have gotten a whole book out of that and so I think that was a big mistake. But the truth is you write in the moment and with your head down and there is no way back then that I could have conceived of Harry having the longevity that he has had. Michael Connelly
I learned to write crime novels by reading people I hoped to emulate: people like James Lee Burke, Lawrence Block, Joseph Wambaugh, and Sue Grafton. Michael Connelly
That’s the irony in the work: the best stories are the worst things that happen. My best times were somebody else’s worst. Michael Connelly
Being a journalist always makes you a quick study of wherever you’re at. You’re out all the time and seeing places that normally you wouldn’t get to see. It gives you an unusual level of insight into any place. Michael Connelly
I’ve always thought of L.A. as the modern version of ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights.’ Michael Connelly
My entire career writing novels was wrapped up around Harry Bosch. This character was too important to me to just hand off. Michael Connelly