David Shields Narrative Quotations

Nonfiction, qua label, is nothing more or less than a very flexible (easily breakable) frame that allows you to pull the thing away from narrative and toward contemplation, which is all I've ever wanted.

Resolution and conclusion are inherent in a plot-driven narrative.

I'm not interested in collage as the refuge of the composition-ally disabled. I'm interested in collage as (to be honest) an evolution beyond narrative.

Momentum, in literary mosaic, derives not from narrative but from the subtle, progressive buildup of thematic resonances.