The writer probably knows what he meant when he wrote a book, but he … — William Golding

The writer probably knows what he meant when he wrote a book, but he should immediately forget what he meant when he's written it.

William GoldingNovelist · English · 1911 – 1993

More from William Golding

I forget a book as soon as I finish writing it, which is not always a good thing. — Anne Tyler
One must be an inventor to read well. There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Each age, it is found, must write its own books; or rather, each generation for the next succeeding. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Sleep is when all the unsorted stuff comes flying out as from a dustbin upset in a high wind. — William Golding
He who rides the sea of the Nile must have sails woven of patience. — William Golding
Language fits over experience like a straight-jacket. — William Golding