Eleanor Catton Quotes & Sayings (Page 3)

“I believe really strongly in imitation, actually: I think it's the first place you need to go to if you're going to be able to understand how something works. True mimicry is actually quite difficult.”

“One of the things I really like about Victorian novels is the close anatomisation of character. People's gestures and mannerisms and the quality of their thought is very closely identified and analysed.”

“Teaching is a great complement to writing. It's very social and gets you out of your own head. It's also very optimistic. It renews itself every year - it's a renewable resource.”

“What I feel is that true creation happens when you're making something out of nothing - like it's divine, you know. Creation is a completely divine concept.”

“I think that, in principle, a workshop is such a beautiful idea - an environment in which writers who are collectively apprenticed to the craft of writing can come together in order to collectively improve.”

“The readership of Victorian novels, when they were published, was much less diverse. People were probably white, and had enough money to be literate. Very often, there are phrases in Italian, German and French that are left untranslated.”

“We throw at female artists this expectation that their work has to speak to the female experience. And if it doesn't, you're letting the side down. Throwing this stumbling block in the way of female artists is counterintuitive.”

“I am a New Zealander, but I don't want to swallow New Zealand identity in one gulp.”

“I have always loved reading books for children and young adults, particularly when those books are mysteries.”

“I often feel intellectually frustrated when I'm in a position where I'm not moving forward; when I'm not enquiring about something.”