Faulkner is a writer who has had much to do with my soul, but Hemingway is the one who had the most to do with my craft - not simply for his books, but for his astounding knowledge of the aspect of craftsmanship in the science of writing.

García Márquez distinguishes between two kinds of literary influence: the spiritual or imaginative formation of a writer (“my soul”) and the practical discipline of making sentences, scenes, and narratives work (“my craft”). In his view, Faulkner shaped the deeper sensibility of his fiction—its moral atmosphere, ambition, and inner music—while Hemingway served as a model of technique: economy, precision, and an almost technical understanding of how prose achieves effects. The phrase “science of writing” underscores that artistry is not only inspiration but also method, revision, and control. The remark also situates García Márquez within a lineage of modern narrative craft, acknowledging apprenticeship even amid originality.