John M. Ford quotes

John M. Ford quotes

last updated: November 28, 2023

“I long for the simplicity of theatre. I want lessons learned, comeuppances delivered, people sorted out, all before your bladder gets distractingly full. That's what I want. What I know is what we all know, whether we'll admit it or not: every attempt to impose the roundness of a well-made play on reality produces a disaster. Life just isn't so, nor will it be made so.”
-- John M. Ford

#Reality Quotes #Play Quotes #Long Quotes
“We're not lost. We're locationally challenged”
-- John M. Ford

#Lost Quotes
“Well, it's an adventure story, and a Bildungsroman, of course, but there was also the intention to describe a culture that had been seen in rather narrow terms.”
-- John M. Ford

#Adventure Quotes #Culture Quotes #Stories Quotes
“There are readers who want every point to be clearly and unambiguously set forth, and there are those who want to pry ideas and meanings out for themselves.”
-- John M. Ford

#Writing Quotes #Ideas Quotes #Want Quotes
“If I were to write Web now, it would be a much, much darker book.”
-- John M. Ford

#Book Quotes #Writing Quotes #Would Be Quotes
“The language fictional characters use is chosen for effect, at least if the author is concentrating.”
-- John M. Ford

#Character Quotes #Use Quotes #Language Quotes
“We're all living on borrowed time. The trick is to come up with works of sufficient interest to pay off the debt.”
-- John M. Ford

#Debt Quotes #Pay Quotes #Borrowed Time Quotes
“I don't think anyone wants a reader to be completely lost - certainly not to the point of giving up - but there's something to be said for a book that isn't instantly disposable, that rewards a second reading.”
-- John M. Ford

#Giving Up Quotes #Book Quotes #Reading Quotes
“Creating the fictional background for a game world isn't significantly different from creating a background for fiction.”
-- John M. Ford

#Games Quotes #Creating Quotes #Different Quotes
“I'm very happy that the New York Times has spoken well of my stuff; who wouldn't be? But it's not a choice I made.”
-- John M. Ford

#New York Quotes #Choices Quotes #Stuff Quotes
“At one point I intended to write precursor and sequel novels, about the establishment of the Web and its next evolution, but I am very unlikely to now; they would take place in a different universe.”
-- John M. Ford

#Writing Quotes #Different Quotes #Next Quotes
“Every book is three books, after all; the one the writer intended, the one the reader expected, and the one that casts its shadow when the first two meet by moonlight.”
-- John M. Ford

#Book Quotes #Two Quotes #Shadow Quotes
“Sometimes the reader will decide something else than the author's intent; this is certainly true of attempts to empirically decipher reality.”
-- John M. Ford

#Reality Quotes #Sometimes Quotes #Reader Quotes
“Observe, don't imitate.”
-- John M. Ford

Source : George H. Scithers, Darrell Schweitzer, Isaac Asimov, John M. Ford (1981). “On Writing Science Fiction: The Editors Strike Back”, p.13, Wildside Press LLC

#Writing Quotes
“There are people who believe in an absolutely transparent prose; with every respect for clarity of expression, I don't.”
-- John M. Ford

#Believe Quotes #Expression Quotes #People Quotes

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