Of course I know that the twins are only words on a page, and I'm certainly not the sort of writer who talks to his characters or harbours any illusions about the creative process. But at the same time, I think it's juvenile and arrogant when literary writers compulsively remind their readers that the characters aren't real. People know that already. The challenge is to make an intelligent reader suspend disbelief, to seduce them into the reality of a narrative.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of immersing readers in a fictional narrative, despite knowing the characters are not real.
Michel Faber argues that while writers are aware that their characters are fictional constructs, it is essential to create a world that engages readers' imaginations. Dismissing the reality of characters may come off as pretentious; instead, effective storytelling should encourage readers to suspend their disbelief and fully embrace the narrative's reality.
In practice
In a writing workshop, when discussing the importance of creating believable characters, one might use this quote.
Total oblivion is the fate of almost everything in this world. I'm very likely to suffer that same fate; my work will probably not be remembered, and if any of it is, if any of those novels is fated to be one of those novels that is still being read 50 or 100 years after it was written, I've probably already written it.
Really good books need a chaos element: something weird or inexplicable.
I cannot imagine any writer who would not fight for his peace and quiet.
The audience is the most revered member of the theater. Without an audience, there is no theater. Everything done is ultimately for the enjoyment of the audience. They are our guests, fellow players, and the last spoke in the wheel which can then begin to roll. They make the performance meaningful.
What makes literature interesting is that it does not survive its translation. The characters in a novel are made out of the sentences. That's what their substance is.
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 silly, and sceptical and credulous, and innocent and experienced, all at once. Narrators are not even human - they're sprites.
Every painting is a voyage into a sacred harbor.
I think of myself as a theater animal instead of an intellectual animal.
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