“Read Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande. Then do what it says, including the tasks you think are impossible. You will particularly hate the advice to write first thing in the morning, but if you can manage it, it might well be the best thing you ever do for yourself. This book is about becoming a writer from the inside out. Many later advice manuals derive from it. You don't really need any others, though if you want to boost your confidence, "how to" books seldom do any harm. You can kick-start a whole book with some little writing exercise.” IfsThinkingWantNeedsWritingFirstsWellsLittlesBookWholeMightHateMorningImpossibleAdviceBecomingExerciseTasksIncludingHarmManageBest ThingsKicksBeing The BestManualsBoostBoost Your Confidence Author:Hilary Mantel
“[Margaret Thatcher] assumed somehow that this would get the woman voter and all those juvenile male voters who wanted a well-regulated household with a woman who knew what she should be doing.” ShouldWellsWantedMalesVotersHouseholdJuvenile Author:Hilary Mantel
“To my astonishment, when Wolf Hall came out, people asked if I made it up - [Thomas More] burning of heretics. It was well documented. And he was proud of it! The Brits love lost causes.” PeopleIfsWellsMadeLostCausesProudMade ItBurningHallsLost LoveHereticAstonishmentBritsLost Cause Author:Hilary Mantel
“One of the frustrations of someone like Thomas Cromwell is that, before they step into the light of history, and become extremely well documented, they are not known. A king might be well documented but not everyone.” WellsLightMightKnownStepsKingsFrustrationCromwell Author:Hilary Mantel
“Fiction isn't made by scraping the bones of topicality for the last shreds and sinews, to be processed into mechanically recovered prose. Like journalism, it deals in ideas as well as facts, but also in metaphors, symbols and myths.” WellsMadeIdeasFactsLastsDealsFictionMetaphorBonesMythSymbolsJournalismProseScraping Author:Hilary Mantel
“It is all very well planning what you will do in six months, what you will do in a year, but it’s no good at all if you don’t have a plan for tomorrow.” IfsLifeYearsWellsPlansMonthsTomorrowSixPlanningSix Months Author:Hilary Mantel
“Write a book you'd like to read. If you wouldn't read it, why would anybody else? Don't write for a perceived audience or market. It may well have vanished by the time your book's ready.” IfsWritingWellsMayBookAudienceReady Author:Hilary Mantel
