19 Graham Swift Quotes for You to Enjoy

Graham Swift

British Author

Born: May 4, 1949

Me Think Time Will Writing You

Related authors: Dorothy L. Sayers George Eliot George Orwell Ian Fleming James Allen Marcus Buckingham Neil Gaiman Virginia Woolf

I think what I like to do is to begin with the ordinary and find the extraordinary in it. Graham Swift

Think Extraordinary Find Like Begin Ordinary

The novel that's contemporary in the sense of being wholly 'of now' is an impossibility, if only because novels may take years to write, so the 'now' with which they begin will be defunct by the time they're finished. Graham Swift

I tend to begin with what you might call the very small world of personal life. But I am certainly interested in how that small, intimate world connects or doesn't connect with a larger world. Graham Swift

Life You World Personal Life Intimate Small Tend Call How Am Very Begin Personal Interested Might Certainly Connect Connects Larger

As a novelist, I suppose I can say that I'm highly articulate. But I know, as a person, in other ways, I'm not always articulate. I think we are all, from time to time, inarticulate, at some level, about some things. Graham Swift

Time Think Other Say Ways Some Some Things About Highly Suppose Know Always Articulate Person From Time To Time Inarticulate Novelist Level Things

The pen is very quick for getting stuff from your brain to the page. I can do hieroglyphics in the margin. There are days when I really enjoy the flow of ink. I mean, nice pen, ink straight on to the page. Graham Swift

Nice Enjoy Pen Stuff Days Brain Quick Very Getting Mean Straight Really Page Your Ink Margin Flow

When I am writing, I'm very much on the ground, on the same ground my characters are treading. Graham Swift

Writing Characters Am Very Same Much Ground Treading

In my work you often get an abrupt shift in time, a jolt. But the emotional logic will take the reader on. I hope. I trust. After all, our memories do not work with any sequential logic. Graham Swift

Work Hope Time You Memories Trust Will Our Logic Abrupt Emotional Take Reader Shift Get Any Often After

I respond to the sound of London being spoken - to the sound of London. Graham Swift

Respond London Spoken Sound Being

The real art is not to come up with extraordinary clever words but to make ordinary simple words do extraordinary things. To use the language that we all use and to make amazing things occur. Graham Swift

Art Words Simple Amazing Language Clever Extraordinary Extraordinary Things Simple Words Come Make Occur Real Amazing Things Up Ordinary Ordinary Things Use Things

People die when curiosity goes. Graham Swift

People Curiosity Die Goes

I came from a lower-middle-class postwar family in a time of austerity and retrenchment, with no one in the family who was in any way artistic or a potential mentor to a budding writer, and yet this is what I became. Graham Swift

Time Family Way Postwar Potential Mentor Writer No-One Budding Became Came Austerity Any Artistic Who

Part of the very impulse of writing for me is actually wanting to get away from myself. Graham Swift

Myself Me Writing Part Very Get Impulse Wanting Away Actually

The idea of stopping is not unmeaningful to me. I think there might be a time when, in theory at least, you'd say, 'Well I've mostly done what I want to do.' But how could you ever prevent a few years down the line some germ of an idea getting at you and you've got to do it again? Graham Swift

Time Me You Few Down Think Say Some Prevent Could Idea Well Mostly Got How Least Line Years Germ Done Getting Stopping Want Again Might Theory Ever

Today's news, which may be yesterday's anyway, will be eclipsed tomorrow. Graham Swift

Today News Tomorrow Will Yesterday Eclipsed May Anyway Which

There's an undeniable thrill in seeing what's most current in our lives offered back to us in fictional guise, but it soon dates and it's never enough. Graham Swift

Enough Back Our Our Lives Guise Seeing Thrill Dates Never Soon Undeniable Most Offered Current Fictional Us Lives

I think the purveyors of e-books are only too happy for this atmosphere of 'everything belongs to everybody' to increase because it means they don't have to think so much about the original maker of the thing, or they can get away with paying them less. Graham Swift

Unfortunately writers take a very small part of the profit on their books, and I think in the e-book world there is a real danger they will take even less, unless they are vigilant and robust about protecting their own interests. Graham Swift

World Will Own Profit Think Unless Books Danger About Small Small Part Take Writers Part Protecting Robust Real Very Unfortunately Interests Less Vigilant Even

All novelists must form their personal pacts in some way with the slowness of their craft. There are some who demand of themselves a 'rate of production,' for whom it's a matter of pride to complete, say, a book every year. Graham Swift

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