Despite my solitary life, I have found infinite joy in books and writing, and am by far too much interested in the affairs of the world to quit the scene before Nature shall claim me.
I couldn’t live a week without a private library – indeed, I’d part with all my furniture and squat and sleep on the floor before I’d let go of the 1500 or so books I possess.
The moon is dark, and the gods dance in the night; there is terror in the sky, for upon the moon hath sunk an eclipse foretold in no books of men or of earth’s gods.
The bookful blockhead ignorantly read, With loads of learned lumber in his head, With his own tongue still edifies his ears, And always list’ning to himself appears. All books he reads, and all he reads assails.
Manners with fortunes, humors turn with climes, tenets with books, and principles with times.
Heaven from all creatures hides the book of Fate.
To buy books as some do who make no use of them, only because they were published by an eminent printer, is much as if a man should buy clothes that did not fit him, only because they were made by some famous tailor.
Heav’n from all creatures hides the book of fate, All but the page prescribed, their present state: From brutes what men, from men what spirits know: Or who could suffer being here below?
It’s tough to stay married. My wife says no because she’s tired then stays up and reads her book.
As long as we’ve got somewhere to sleep, a bowl of cereal, and a coloring book we’ll be fine.
There’s more to life than books, you know. But not much more.
With no reason to hide these words I feel, and no reason to talk about the books I read, but still, I do.
Most people were startled to find out there were books that preceded Game Of Thrones. I’m a case of working forty years to be an overnight success.
Sleep is good, he said, And books are better.
No one will be alive by the last book. In fact, they all die in the fifth. The sixth book will be just a thousand-page description of snow blowing across the graves...
Ten years from now, no one is going to care how quickly the books came out. The only thing that will matter, the only thing anyone will remember, is how good they were. That’s my main concern, and always will be.
Nothing bores me more than books where you read two pages and you know exactly how it’s going to come out. I want twists and turns that surprise me, characters that have a difficult time and that I don’t know if they’re going to live or die.
I’ve been very lucky. There were times when I was afraid I would never sell another book, but I never doubted I’d write another book.
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.
That little touch is not in the books, but I wish it had been in the books because it was a great addition.