“Most people in the West are not politicized. They're the most simplistic consumers - they're animals, basically.” Quote by Irvine Welsh
“I was in Athens for a football match when 9/11 went down, and it was quite spectacular - we went into this bar and tried to find out what happened, and the bartender said "it's only the American and the Arabs. They're not big football nations." So the feeling was, what's it got to do with us? Why are football games being cancelled in Europe? The intelligentsia in the West feel like they have to figure out the significance of it all, whereas people have other pressing concerns, related to basic needs.” PeopleNeedsFeelsSaidFeelingsBigsGamesNationsHappenedFiguresFootballEuropeConcernDown AndWestBarsRelatedSignificanceSpectacularFootball GameAthensBartenderBasic NeedsFootball Match Author:Irvine Welsh
“When you look at the whole explosion of the Internet, the decline of print journalism, there are all of these plus-or-minus ramifications, and you have to work it out. The great thing about books is that you have a tactile thing that's there. You can download this or download that, but how long do you want to be staring at a screen for the rest of your life? You've got to have some kind of proper interface for people that's not about the screen.” PeopleWantLooksKindLongBookWholeInternetScreensGreat ThingsJournalismStaringWorking ItPlusPrintDeclineRest Of Your LifeExplosionsMinusDownloadsInterfacesRamificationsTactile Author:Irvine Welsh
“People even split up by text message, they dump each other by text. Everything seems so disposable, so throwaway, but you have to engage with that if you're writing about the modern world. You've also got all these pop references that you feel obligated to make. They're just part of the bricolage of the whole thing, whether or not these are actually significant elements themselves.” PeopleIfsWorldFeelsWritingWholeSeemsModernElementsMessagesPopsSignificantSplitsModern WorldDumpDisposableText Message Author:Irvine Welsh
“I can see myself wanting to write a historical novel - you don't need to worry about references to reality TV or pop music, you can just get on with the basics of story and character.” NeedsWritingI CanCharacterStoriesRealityWorryNovelTvsHistoricalPopsPop MusicBasicsReality TvHistorical Novels Author:Irvine Welsh
“I always want to stay focused on who I am, even as I'm discovering who I am.” WantFocusedWho I AmDiscoveringStay Focused Author:Alicia Keys
“There's no one way of telling a story or looking at reality, so I think any device is up for grabs as long as it fits in with the tone.” ThinkingWayLongStoriesRealityFitOne WayToneDevices Author:Irvine Welsh
“I've always got a book in my hands, a novel in my hands. The more I get into film, the more paranoid I get that I'm going to stop seeing things.” BookHandsFilmNovelSeeingParanoid Author:Irvine Welsh
“When you start off with your first book, people assume that you're like all the characters in the book - and it does complicate things, when you're being constantly bombarded with it, but you have to embrace it.” PeopleFirstsDoeBookCharacterEmbraceAssumingBombarded Author:Irvine Welsh
“You're never going to get beyond other people's preconceptions of what you are and what you're about.” PeoplePreconceptions Author:Irvine Welsh
“I'm quite comfortable now with being misunderstood. I don't really feel the need either to pander to it or to refute it. Just go on, and do what I've got to do.” NeedsFeelsGoes OnComfortableMisunderstoodBeing Misunderstood Author:Irvine Welsh