Besides, if you're going to die horribly, you might as well do it with style.

And then, as if written by the hand of a bad novelist, an incredible thing happened.

That's usually how they start, the young ones. Meaningless waffle.

Then again, Solomon was human. And that meant he was flawed (Go on, take a look at yourself in the mirror. A good long look, if you can bear it. See? Flawed's putting it mildly, isn't it?)

One magician demanded I show him an image of the love of his life. I rustled up a mirror.

That's usuаllу hоw thеу start, thе young оnеs. Meaningless waffle.

The Amulet of Samarkand. It was Simon Lovelace's. Now it is yours. Soon it will be Simon Lovelace's again. Take it and enjoy the consequences.

Can you define "plan" as "a loose sequence of manifestly inadequate observations and conjectures, held together by panic, indecision, and ignorance"? If so, it was a very good plan.

That's a gesture of endearment in some cultures. Some hug, some kiss, some set each other on fire in small patches of woodland

When I write something that would have made me laugh as a 10-year-old, or would have scared me or would have excited me, I know I'm onto something.

Haven't you done enough for a lifetime? Think about it - two power - crazed magicians killed, a hundred power - crazed magicians saved.

Whatever it is you want in this life, be it material things, a place you want to be, or an experience you want to have, you must first make it real in the realm of your consciousness.

I'm practicing the discipline of not having to have the last word.

A lie can be halfway round the world before the truth has got its boots on.

An important art of politicians is to find new names for institutions which under old names have become odious to the public.

Envy is more irreconcilable than hate. It is the most corroding of all political vices and also a great power in our land. The friends of freedom are content to be envied, but envy not.

Institutional practices, it seems, perpetuate themselves mostly by their invisibility.

But there is a need to explore ways we can preserve the promise of Social Security for future generations.

What I look for in any character, good or bad, is whether I can hear him speak. If I can imagine him that clearly, then I can write about him.

As great scientists have said and as all children know, it is above all by the imagination that we achieve perception, and compassion, and hope.

See the long view: By all means "plant the corn, milk the cows, and feed the horses" but always keep the eventual "harvest" in mind.