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After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.

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I am a strong believer in the tyranny, the dictatorship, the absolute authority of the writer.

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There are some themes, some subjects, too large for adult fiction; they can only be dealt with adequately in a children’s book. In adult literary fict...more

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I write almost always in the third person, and I don't think the narrator is male or female anyway. They're both, and young and old, and wise and sill...more

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It was a shocking thing to say and I knew it was a shocking thing to say. But no one has the right to live without being shocked. No one has the right...more

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Tolkien, who created this marvellous vehicle, doesn't go anywhere in it. He just sits where he is. What I mean by that is that he always seems to be l...more

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All writing is difficult. The most you can hope for is a day when it goes reasonably easily. Plumbers don’t get plumber’s block, and doctors don’t get...more

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I have said that His Dark Materials is not fantasy but stark realism, and my reason for this is to emphasise what I think is an important aspect of th...more

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Fritz had to stop himself from interrupting when Karl spoke about the difficulty of working. Stories are just as hard as clocks to put together, and t...more

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Finally, I’d say to anyone who wants to tell these tales, don’t be afraid to be superstitious. If you have a lucky pen, use it. If you speak with more...more

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Princess, princess, youngest daughter,Open up and let me in!Or else your promise by the waterIsn’t worth a rusty pin.Keep your promise, royal daughter...more