Those who fear the imagination condemn it: something childish, they say, something monsterish, misbegotten. Not all of us dream awake. But those of us who do have no choice.

Imagination is the golden-eyed monster that never sleeps. It must be fed; it cannot be ignored.

At its best, fantasy rewards the reader with a sense of wonder about what lies within the heart of the commonplace world. The greatest tales are told over and over, in many ways, through centuries. Fantasy changes with the changing times, and yet it is still the oldest kind of tale in the world, for it began once upon a time, and we haven't heard the end of it yet.

I don't write about what I know: I write in order to find out what I know.

The odd thing about people who had many books was how they always wanted more.

Words, he decided, were inadequate at best, impossible at worst. They meant too many things. Or they meant nothing at all.