“People don't settle for people. They resolve to be with them. It takes faith. You draw a circle in the sand and agree to stand in it and believe in it.” PeopleBelieveDrawsAgreeCirclesSettlingSandResolve Author:Zadie Smith
“I do my best work under pressure, so I’ll nick an artery, and my husband isn’t allowed to stanch the bleeding till I’ve banged out a chapter.” HusbandPressureMy HusbandChaptersBest WorkBleedingUnder PressureArteries Author:Zadie Smith
“To a novelist, fluidity is the ultimate good omen; suddenly difficult problems are simply solved, intractable structural knots loosen themselves, and you come upon the key without even recognizing that this is what you hold.” ProblemDifficultKeysUltimateNovelistsRecognizingKnotsOmenFluidityGood OmensDifficult Problems Author:Zadie Smith
“Sometimes Allah punishes and sometimes men have to do it, and it is a wise man who knows if it's Allah's turn or his own.” IfsKnowsMenSometimesTurnsWise Book:White Teeth Source: White Teeth
“SHOEBURYNESS (abs.n.) The vague uncomfortable feeling you get when sitting on a seat which is still warm from somebody else's bottom.” StillsFeelingsSittingBottomWarmUncomfortableSeatsVagueUncomfortable Feeling Author:Douglas Adams
“WOKING (vb.) To enter the kitchen with the precise determination to perform something only to forget what it is just before you do it.” ForgetDeterminationKitchenPrecise Author:Douglas Adams
“The last ever dolphin message was misinterpreted as a surprisingly sophisticated attempt to do a double-backwards-somersault through a hoop whilst whistling the 'Star Spangled Banner', but in fact the message was this: So long and thanks for all the fish.” LongFactsLastsStarsMessagesFishesThanksSophisticatedBackwardsGalaxyBannerDolphinsWhistlingHitchhikers Guide To The GalaxyHitchhikers GuideHitchhikingMisinterpreted Book:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: The Trilogy of Five Source: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: The Trilogy of Five
“Everybody's going through a lot of stress these days, no matter how well off you are and how many advantages you have, it's a stressful time in everybody's lives.” WellsMatterAdvantageStressThese DaysStressfulStressful Times Author:Chris Frantz
“Cut like crazy. Less is more. I've often read manuscripts - including my own - where I've got to the beginning of, say, chapter two and have thought: “This is where the novel should actually start.” A huge amount of information about character and backstory can be conveyed through small detail. The emotional attachment you feel to a scene or a chapter will fade as you move on to other stories. Be business-like about it.” FeelsShouldTwoCharacterStoriesMovingMy OwnNovelCuttingCrazyInformationEmotionalHugeAmountSceneIncludingDetailsAttachmentFadesChaptersManuscriptsLess Is MoreSmall Details Author:Sarah Waters