I love all of my children equally, all of my printed books, and each one bears a special piece of me. But the one I'm most proud of is the one no one will ever see - the very first manuscript I ever wrote, back in 1990. It took me a year to do it. Steve Berry
History serves as a model not only of who and what we are to be, we learn what to champion and what to avoid. Steve Berry
If what you know and what you love are the same thing, that's great. But if not, write what you love. I love history, secrets, conspiracies, action, adventure, international settings. Steve Berry
Ninety-five percent of all writers who write do not get published, but 100 percent of all writers write because they have a voice in their head. The vast majority of writers simply write because they have to. Steve Berry
When I wrote 'The Alexandria Link,' I discovered that we are only aware of about 10 percent of the knowledge of the ancient world. In the ancient world, most of the knowledge was destroyed. Every emperor of China who came in wiped out everything that came before them, to the point that the country completely forgot its past. Steve Berry
A concerted effort to preserve our heritage is a vital link to our cultural, educational, aesthetic, inspirational, and economic legacies - all of the things that quite literally make us who we are. Steve Berry
Sam Walton's values are: treat the customer right, take care of your people, be honest in your dealings, pass savings along to the customer, keep things simple, think small, control costs and continuously improve operations. Michael Bergdahl
When you compete with Wal-Mart, even if you think you've found a niche don't ever become complacent. Michael Bergdahl
Servant leadership is the foundation and the secret of Sam Walton's ability to achieve team synergy. Michael Bergdahl
The key to competing and surviving against Wal-Mart is to focus your business into a niche or pocket where you can leverage your strengths in the local marketplace. Michael Bergdahl
At Wal-Mart, if you couldn't explain an idea or a concept in simple terms on one page of paper Sam Walton considered the new idea too complicated to implement. Michael Bergdahl
Sam Walton was a master storyteller who used illustrative stories to reinforce his cultural standards. Michael Bergdahl
The key to Operations at Wal-Mart is their ability to maintain the highest standards while at the same time getting things done with lockstep execution. Michael Bergdahl
Sam Walton instilled ownership of the products in the stores into the collective consciousness of every associate regardless of what job they did for the company. Michael Bergdahl
Wal-Mart's success strategies and tactics are easy to understand yet hard to duplicate. Michael Bergdahl
Wal-Mart hires average people but squeezes above average performance and results out of them. Michael Bergdahl
The most distinguishing element of my novels is that I try as hard as I can - within the context of a popular commercial thriller - to make them feel authentic. Drawing on real locations and real events is part of that authenticity. Alex Berenson
Also, most people read fiction as an escape - and I wonder whether my books aren't a bit too grounded in reality to reach the widest possible audience. Alex Berenson