All the papers that matter live off their advertisements, and the advertisers exercise an indirect censorship over news.

England is the most class-ridden country under the sun. It is a land of snobbery and privilege, ruled largely by the old and silly.

In our age there is no such thing as 'keeping out of politics.' All issues are political issues....

I knew that I had a facility with words and a power of facing unpleasant facts, and I felt that this created a sort of private world in which I could get my own back for my failure in everyday life.

An illusion can become a half-truth, a mask can alter the expression of a face.

It is bound to be a failure, every book is a failure, but I do know with some clarity what kind of book I want to write.

But how conceive a God supremely good/ Who heaps his favours on the sons he loves, / Yet scatters evil with as large a hand?[Written after an earthquake in Lisbon killed over 15, 000 people]

In my perception, the world wasn't a graph or formula or an equation. It was a story.

Painting is a science, and should be pursued as an inquiry into the laws of nature.

My virgin sense of sound was steeped In the music of young streams; And roses through the casement peeped, And scented all my dreams.

If there is a God, his plan is very similar to someone not having a plan.

Confidence is something one acquires. It can come early or late but it is impossible to write without it. Mine came late.

Come, then, affliction, if my Father wills, and be my frowning friend. A friend that frowns is better than a smiling enemy.

There is more story in a minor character like Boba Fett than there is in all the clutter of various vampires in the Twilight franchise.

The depth of our belief in the Resurrection and the Atonement of the Savior will, I believe, determine the measure of courage and purpose with which we meet life's challenges.

Some by experience find those words mis-placed: At leisure married, they repent in haste.