“How, then, does the written word work? What part of a reader absorbs it - or should that be a double question: what part of a reader absorbs what part of a text? I think that underneath, or alongside, a reader's conscious response to a text, whatever is needy in him is taking in whatever the text offers to assuage that need.” ReaderResponseNeedReadersTextAbsorbAssuage Book:Somewhere Towards The End Source: Somewhere Towards The End
“The extension of power offered by a pony, the ease and speed of movement, the tapping of unsuspected courage, the satisfaction of collaboration with another creature and of controlling it in order to improve the collaboration, the joy of fussing over it - of loving it - these, from the age of about eight to sixteen were the most completely realised delights of my life.” AgeJoyOrderMovementCreaturesHorseSatisfactionDelightEightSpeedEaseOver ItCollaborationExtensionsRealisedSixteenTappingPoniesFussing Author:Diana Athill
“Writing shouldn't come between the reader and what's being described. It should be as transparent as possible.” ShouldWritingReaderTransparent Author:Diana Athill
“You don't always have to go so far as to murder your darlings – those turns of phrase or images of which you felt extra proud when they appeared on the page – but go back and look at them with a very beady eye. Almost always it turns out that they'd be better dead. (Not every little twinge of satisfaction is suspect – it's the ones which amount to a sort of smug glee you must watch out for.” LooksLittlesEyeTurnsFeltWatchesAmountProudPagesMurderSatisfactionPhrasesExtrasSuspectsDarlingGlee Author:Diana Athill
“An important aspect of the ebbing of sex was that other things became interesting. Sex obliterates the individuality of young women more often than it does that of young men, because so much more of a woman than a man is used by sex.” MenDoeImportantYoungUsedSexInterestingAspectIndividualityYoung ManYoung Women Book:Somewhere Towards The End Source: Somewhere Towards The End
“Read it aloud to yourself because that's the only way to be sure the rhythms of the sentences are OK.” WayWritingSentencesRhythm Author:Diana Athill
