“I think there are a lot of similarities between writing and music. Music is much more direct and much more emotional and that's the level I want to be at when I'm writing. Writing is much more intellectual and indirect and abstract, in a way.” ThinkingWayWantWritingLevelsEmotionalMusic IsIntellectualDirectAbstractSimilarityIndirect Author:Karl Ove Knausgard
“If you are disappearing from yourself, but you're still writing, then there is a kind of activity of thinking going on, which in my world is similar to what's going on in music.” IfsThinkingWorldWritingKindStillsActivityDisappear Author:Karl Ove Knausgard
“You don’t think when you play music, you just try to play and be in it. It is the same for me when the writing is going really well. It’s the same kind of feeling. I’m just in it. It’s not the words, it’s not the sentences, I’m not aware of it. Then it’s good.” ThinkingWritingTryingWellsKindPlayFeelingsSentences Author:Karl Ove Knausgard
“We live in the best of worlds. But still, it's like we've lost something on the way to here: a sense of life. I can't know for sure, I might be the only one who's lost it. Maybe everybody else is living the now, thinking they're having it well. Anyhow, that motivated me to write the books.” ThinkingKnowsWorldWayWritingWellsStillsI CanBookMightLostMotivated Author:Karl Ove Knausgard
“I've always been a fast reader. Now I had to do it slowly, discussing each sentence. And every time I wanted to change something I had to come up with an intelligent defense I could be pretty sure that they would turn my suggestion down, as they had so many aspects to keep in mind. However, if I argued well, I could have a chance. I had to think of every comma, every word.” IfsThinkingMindWellsWantedTurnsChanceReaderAspectIntelligentCome UpSentencesDefenseSuggestionsDiscussing Author:Karl Ove Knausgard
“I think that the best literature has a core that you can't lock to a time or place but that can generate lots of meanings and translations.” ThinkingLiteratureCoreLocksTranslationsBest Literature Author:Karl Ove Knausgard