Writing a novel is not at all like riding a bike. Writing a novel is like having to redesign a bike, based on laws of physics that you don't understand, in a new universe. So having written one novel does nothing for you when you have to write the se...
If a person says or does something that we consider offensive, our first obligation is to refuse to take offense and then communicate privately, honestly, and directly with that individual. Such an approach invites inspiration from the Holy Ghost and...
Every kid goes to school full of questions about meaning. You know, 'What's my place in the universe? What does it mean to be a human being? What are human beings?' Existing courses cannot help you answer those questions. They can't even help you ask...
I've always been a very careful sailor. I know, me and being careful - doesn't really sound right, does it? But when I sail, I take it seriously and take along spares for everything. You have to be careful when you're 1,500 miles from land. There's n...
I think that every reader on earth has a list of cherished books as unique as their fingerprints....I think that, as you age, you tend to gravitate towards the classics, but those aren't the books that give you the same sort of hope for the world tha...
For example, I can doubt that 2 + 2 = 4; however, my doubting does not change the equation. When I test out that formula and find that it is true, then that becomes my reality. How can anything become real until it is tested in the crucible of doubt?
Many fantasy novels - 'Lord of the Rings', for instance, or 'Lavondyss' by Robert Holdstock - are beautifully written. Geoff Ryman's 'The Child Garden' is exquisite and utterly beguiling. Mervyn Peake's 'Gormenghast' trilogy is an astonishing piece o...
I am surprised people took so long to pick up on the fact that my contract expires at the end of this year. Eddie has to decide who he wants to drive, so there is no secret anywhere. I am not concerned. It does not sit with my objectives to be compet...
Language does have the power to change reality. Therefore, treat your words as the mighty instruments they are - to heal, to bring into being, to remove, as if by magic, the terrible violations of childhood, to nurture, to cherish, to bless, to forgi...
I played a lot of baseball growing up, and I always hit better if I kept moving before the pitch instead of standing still in the batter's box. I think a waggle does the same thing in the golf swing. It keeps you relaxed and gets your body ready to h...
In essence, what Innocentive does is it provides a platform where you can post a really challenging problem and offer a reward to anybody who can come and provide a solution. And it's been remarkably effective. People get very challenging problems an...
Dr. Alan Grant: [watching Gennaro jump out of the tour car and sprint to the porta-potty at the sight of the T-Rex] Well, where does he think he's going? Dr. Ian Malcolm: When you gotta go, you gotta go.
Some people can act Hollywood and others don't. I just try to live my life as a normal, everyday man. At times, fame does get to you. But you must stay positive and remember two things: It's easier to be happy, and without all those fans, life wouldn...
So far, I haven't met anyone, and with an average fifteen-hour workday schedule, I hardly think it's probable... For the sake of my making my point, however, let's stretch our imagination and believe that the damn girl does exist. When would we go th...
I love what the Valley does. I love company building. I love startups. I love technology companies. I love new technology. I love this process of invention. Being able to participate in that as a founder and a product creator, or as an investor or a ...
Adam: [reading] 'Handbook of the Recently Diseased'. Barbara: ...*deceased*. Adam: Deceased? Barbara: I don't know where it came from. Look at the publisher. Adam: [does so] 'Handbook for the Recently Deceased Press'. Barbara: You know what? I don't ...
If you have a sense of irony or humour, you're usually cut down, as you're usually distorted or misinterpreted. So it does lead to us being slightly more dour and staid and predictable than would otherwise be the case, which I personally find quite f...
Camera lies all the time. It's all it does is lie, because when you choose this moment instead of this moment, when you... the moment you've made a choice, you're lying about something larger. 'Lying' is an ugly word. I don't mean lying. But any arti...
'The 5th Wave' is sci-fi, but I tried very hard to ground the story in very human terms and in those universal themes that transcend genre. How do we define ourselves? What, exactly, does it mean to be human? What remains after everything we trust, e...
Sonmi-451: This is what General Apis asked of me. Archivist: What, to be executed? Sonmi-451: If I had remained invisible, the truth would stay hidden. I couldn't allow that. Archivist: And what if no one believes this truth? Sonmi-451: Someone alrea...
Li Mu Bai: She should come to Wudan and become a disciple. Yu Shu Lien: But Wudan does not accept women. Li Mu Bai: For her, they might make an exception. If not, I'm afraid she'll become a poisoned dragon.
