“You cannot write for children… They're much too complicated. You can only write books that are of interest to them.”

“THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN CONTROL PEOPLE IS TO LIE TO THEM. You can write that down in your book in great big letters. The only way you can control anybody is to lie to them.”

“I would love to write more children’s books. I think children can understand complex things so long as you explain them in words they can wrap themselves around.”

“The man writes with such genuine passion for the books he's discussing. With so many critics you feel they're writing so people will say they're good critics.”

“Write the book you want to read, the one you cannot find.”

“We write not only for children but also for their parents. They, too, are serious children.”

“Write books only if you are going to say in them the things you would never dare confide to anyone.”

“In order to write the book you want to write, in the end you have to become the person you need to become to write that book.”

“You can't really succeed with a novel anyway; they're too big. It's like city planning. You can't plan a perfect city because there's too much going on that you can't take into account. You can, however, write a perfect sentence now and then. I have.”

“It's much more entertaining to live books than to write them.”