The function of a book or a poem or a story is to delight, to enchant, to beguile.
Philip PullmanRead
I tried writing out a plot with the second or third novel I wrote, and it was so boring, so desperately boring.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the struggle of creating engaging narratives when constrained by rigid planning.
Philip Pullman expresses his frustration with the process of meticulously plotting a story, suggesting that such a formulaic approach can lead to dullness in writing. The author implies that creativity thrives in spontaneity and freedom rather than strict adherence to an outline, allowing ideas to flow naturally and engagingly.
Themes
WritingCreativityPlottingNarrativeEngagement
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, to emphasize the importance of spontaneity in creative writing.
More from Philip Pullman
All quotes →Education and health were always matters of charity. You educated children and you helped the sick because they were good things to do, not because you were going to make money out of them. If you let the money-making principle, the profit-seeking motive, anywhere near education and health, things go bad.
Philip PullmanRead
To get the best out of life here ...Good grief. There's plenty of it about, so indulge. Give yourself some thing to remember. Fall in love. Fall out of love. Gamble. Get drunk. See how long you can stay awake. Go for long walks at night. Discover what you're afraid of doing, and then do it.
Philip PullmanRead
People should decide on the books' meanings for themselves. They'll find a story that attacks such things as cruelty, oppression, intolerance, unkindness, narrow-mindedness, and celebrates love, kindness, open-mindedness, tolerance, curiosity, human intelligence.
Philip PullmanRead
I told him I was going to betray you, and betray Lyra, and he believed me because I was corrupt and full of wickedness; he looked so deep I felt sure he'd see the truth. But I lied too well. I was lying with every nerve and fiber and everything I'd ever done...I wanted him to find no good in me, and he didn't. There is none.
Philip PullmanRead
Lyra learns to her great cost that fantasy isn’t enough. She has been lying all her life, telling stories to people, making up fantasies, and suddenly she comes to a point where that’s not enough. All she can do is tell the truth. She tells the truth about her childhood, about the experiences she had in Oxford, and that is what saves her. True experience, not fantasy - reality, not lies - is what saves us in the end.
Philip PullmanRead
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