Fantasy is silver and scarlet, indigo and azure, obsidian veined with gold and lapis lazuli.
But Tolkien doesn’t ask the question: What was Aragorn’s tax policy?
The girl had hoped for fog, but the gods ignored her prayers as gods so often did.
The eunuch had looked death in the face, so near he might have kissed her on the lips.
Men are mad and gods are madder, she told the grass, and the grass murmured its agreement.
I’m honest. It’s the world that’s awful.
The only game. The game of thrones.
In the world as I have seen it, no man grows rich by kindness.
If the novels are still being read in 50 years, no one is ever going to say: ‘What’s great about that sixth book is that he met his deadline!’ It will be about how the whole thing stands up.
There are worse ways to die than warm and drunk.
I was always intensely Romantic, even when I was too young to understand what that meant.
Sure. Some of the reviews have been very flattering, but the series is not finished yet. The end needs to be as strong as the beginning.
Tolkien made the wrong choice when he brought Gandalf back. Screw Gandalf. He had a great death and the characters should have had to go on without him.
Jon Snow had dreamed of leading men to glory just as King Daeron had, of growing up to be a conqueror. Now he was a man grown and the Wall was his, yet all he had were doubts. He could not even seem to conquer those.
Maybe you have billions of dollars and my Hugo, but you don’t have readers like these.
If H. P. Lovecraft and H. L. Mencken had ever collaborated, they might have come up with something like The Edge of Reason. This one will delight thinkers-and outrage true believers-of all stripes.
That little touch is not in the books, but I wish it had been in the books because it was a great addition.
I thank you for calling them off, young ser. I promise you, they would have found me indigestible.
It had been more of a wish, actually, but it sounded better to call it a dream.
I’d be anonymous. That’s what I’d do differently.