I had been writing for about twelve years. I knew pretty well how you could find things out, but I had never been trained in an academic way how to go about the research.

Quote by David McCullough

Topics: David McCullough Quotes

People are so helpful. People will stop what they're doing to show you something, to...

People are so helpful. People will stop what they're doing to show you something, to...

May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.

May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.

My shorthand answer is that I try to write the kind of book that I...

My shorthand answer is that I try to write the kind of book that I...

I just thank my father and mother, my lucky stars, that I had the advantage...

I just thank my father and mother, my lucky stars, that I had the advantage...

With the Truman book, I wrote the entire account of his experiences in World War...

With the Truman book, I wrote the entire account of his experiences in World War...

The pull, the attraction of history, is in our human nature. What makes us tick?...

The pull, the attraction of history, is in our human nature. What makes us tick?...

No harm's done to history by making it something someone would want to read.

No harm's done to history by making it something someone would want to read.

I'm very aware how many distractions the reader has in life today, how many good...

I'm very aware how many distractions the reader has in life today, how many good...

People ask me when I start one of these projects, what is your theme? I...

People ask me when I start one of these projects, what is your theme? I...

First of all, you can make the argument that there's no such thing as the...

First of all, you can make the argument that there's no such thing as the...

The title always comes last. What I really work hard on is the beginning. Where...

The title always comes last. What I really work hard on is the beginning. Where...

When I began, I thought that the way one should work was to do all...

When I began, I thought that the way one should work was to do all...

I work very hard on the writing, writing and rewriting and trying to weed out...

I work very hard on the writing, writing and rewriting and trying to weed out...

To me history ought to be a source of pleasure. It isn't just part of...

To me history ought to be a source of pleasure. It isn't just part of...

Real success is finding your lifework in the worth that you love.

Real success is finding your lifework in the worth that you love.

To go back and read Swift and Defoe and Samuel Johnson and Smollett and Pope...

To go back and read Swift and Defoe and Samuel Johnson and Smollett and Pope...

When I read that the British army had landed thirty-two thousand troops - and I...

When I read that the British army had landed thirty-two thousand troops - and I...

My next book is also set in the eighteenth century. It's about the Revolution, with...

My next book is also set in the eighteenth century. It's about the Revolution, with...

I can fairly be called an amateur because I do what I do, in the...

I can fairly be called an amateur because I do what I do, in the...

In time I began to understand that it's when you start writing that you really...

In time I began to understand that it's when you start writing that you really...