40 John Niven Quotes for You to Enjoy

John Niven

Scottish Author

Day Love Me People Time You

Related authors: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn C. S. Lewis Frederick Douglass George Orwell Helen Keller Henry David Thoreau Mark Twain Zig Ziglar

The mechanic could lift up the bonnet of the car and show me four dwarves strapped to a pair of tandems and tell me that the motor was actually dwarf-powered and that one of the little fellows had to be replaced, and I'd just be numbly writing out a cheque and scribbling 'new dwarf - car' on the stub. John Niven

Me Writing Mechanic Car Just Be Out Tell Could Lift Had New Fellows Cheque Motor Up Replaced Just Dwarf Scribbling Little Show Strapped Pair Actually Four

The sight of people sleeping on the streets hits us hardest around Christmas and New Year. We see them camped out alone on the freezing concrete, and we think, with a rush of guilt, about heading home to our families and our soft beds. John Niven

Christmas Alone Home People Guilt Year Think Sleeping Our Sight Out See Rush About Heading New Freezing Around Concrete Beds Families Hits New Year Them Us Hardest Streets Soft

I once read Updike after writing a first draft, and I wanted to put my own book on the fire. I've since learned to read utter crap while I'm writing: pulp is the thing. John Niven

Book Writing Fire First Own Once My Own Put Since Read Learned Wanted Crap After While Utter Thing Draft Pulp

In your teens and twenties, death doesn't exist. In your thirties, you glance down the road occasionally. But then in your forties, it becomes a full-time job looking the other way. John Niven

My family went to Toronto to visit relatives when I was 13 or 14. It was the first time we had ever been abroad. This was the early Eighties, and I remember the impossible glamour of air travel - my mum spending days trying to decide what she was going to wear on the plane. John Niven

Time Family Travel Remember Impossible Relatives First Air Spending Air Travel Visit Toronto Wear Abroad Glamour Had Days She First Time Been Trying Going Decide Eighties Plane Mum Ever Early

When you are a novelist, you are used to making a narrative do what you want. John Niven

You Narrative Making Want Used Novelist

I do find the sight of small children eating very moving. Watch the way their tiny fingers clamp the cutlery. The exaggeratedly precise way they move cups or glasses to their lips. John Niven

Glasses Way Sight Find Eating Fingers Small Small Children Cups Very Lips Precise Move Tiny Children Moving Watch

If pushed to say what I like about Elizabeth, who, as I'm sure most of you know, overtook Queen Victoria this week to become our longest-serving monarch, it would be her uncomplaining, getting-on-with-it ethic. John Niven

It is publication week for my new novel 'The Sunshine Cruise Company.' Go me! Anyway, I may as well get the shameless plug over with right away - buy it. You'll like it. It's about a bunch of old ladies who rob a bank. John Niven

Buy Me You Sunshine Old Plug About Week Shameless Cruise Over New Rob Like Well Go Bunch Get May Bank Ladies Anyway Who Company Novel Publication Away Right Right Away

I have to confess to not being a great forward planner. I'm the kind of person who regularly arranges to have dinner with five different people on the same night. John Niven

Great People Dinner Kind Five Person Confess Same Being Different Different People Planner Regularly Who Forward Night

Certainly in the case of 'Kill Your Friends,' a book I wrote more than 10 years ago, I routinely meet interviewers who appear to know the book better than I do. But still, you have to talk about it. John Niven

You Book Better Meet About Case More Know Talk Wrote Still Years Years Ago Friends Than Your Certainly Who Appear

You know that thing where you repeat a word over and over until it just sounds like utter gibberish? That's what doing a day of press on a film is like. Ten interviews in a row, all asking pretty much the same questions until you find yourself giving pretty much the same answers. John Niven

Day You Yourself Word Giving Interviews Press Find Pretty Ten Over Like Know Until Answers Doing Sounds Repeat Questions Same Just Where Much Asking Film Utter Thing Row

It's tough being a dictator, but I've always thought it must be tougher being a hanger-on to a dictator. The late nights spent listening to his crazed ranting, the weary rictus grin from smiling at bad jokes, the draining knowledge that one misjudged comment could land you on the chopping block. John Niven

Knowledge You Jokes Weary Listening Thought Tough Nights Draining Late Spent Bad Must Could Tougher Smiling Always Block His Comment Dictator Being Grin Land Chopping

I returned from my last L.A. visit to find myself tipping the scales like Homer Simpson when he tries to gain enough weight to qualify as disabled to be allowed to work from home. All I was missing was his kaftan and Fat Guy Hat. So, I decided it was time to diet. John Niven

Work Time Myself Home Enough Scales Visit Hat Find Tries Guy Disabled Allowed Weight He Simpson Missing Like Qualify Returned His Diet Tipping Decided Gain Homer Fat Last

I've often found myself looking fondly at the Valentine's cultures in other countries. South Korea, for instance - where women must give chocolate to men. John Niven

Non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia can only celebrate Valentine's Day behind closed doors. Apparently, this has led to a huge black market for flowers and wrapping paper. John Niven

I had left the music industry at the end of 2001, after 10 years, and had spent three years writing every single day - producing two unpublished novels, one abandoned novel, and three unproduced screenplays. The word 'no' and I were on more than nodding terms. The word 'no' and I were talking about going on holiday together. John Niven

Music Day Together Writing Word Three Single Every Music Industry Spent Abandoned Unpublished About More Had Terms Industry Talking Single Day Were Years Left End Than Going Screenplays After Holiday Producing Novel Novels Two Every Single Day

On one level, of course, the notion of judging films or books or music against each other is completely ridiculous. Who's to say '12 Years A Slave' is a better film than 'The Wolf of Wall Street'? Or that one album in a certain genre is better than another in a completely different genre? John Niven

Music Better Wolf Films Other Books Say Genre Another Course Judging Years Than Wall Wall Street Different Against Certain Notion Each Ridiculous Film Street Level Album Slave

There are some sentences you cannot see yourself ever writing. 'I heartily endorse the Conservative Party' would be one. 'I look forward to Justin Bieber's new record' would be another. John Niven

I'm something of a black belt at break-ups. I have had two long-term relationships in my life, both of 10 years, both resulting in children, and both very much over. Things end. It is how you manage them being over that's key. John Niven

Life You Key Black My Life Relationships Something Both Resulting Had Long-Term Over How Years End Very Manage Being Children Them Much Things Two Belt

I cannot, will never, understand these couples who hate each other, who conduct open warfare in front of their children - the kind of people who have to drop the kids off at the end of the driveway in case they lay eyes on one another. At the very least, civility must reign. John Niven

Eyes Hate People Will Drop Other Kids Kind Must Case Civility Lay Never Open Driveway Couples Another Understand Least Off End Conduct Very Front Children Cannot Warfare Who Each Reign

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