Val McDermid Quotes
It was a bit unimaginable when I began that I'd ever get to 25 books. But it was also unimaginable how much crime-writing would have changed.
Quotes to Explore
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The writer may very well serve a movement of history as its mouthpiece, but he cannot of course create it.
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In the case of my book, I don't think it's really the coming-out gay novel that everyone really needed, even though it was received as such. The boy is too creepy, he betrays his teacher, the only adult man with whom he's enjoyed a sexual experience, etc.
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The clash of civilizations or the clash between Islam and the West may be cliches. But there is an even bigger cliche around: that this clash actually goes on within Islam, between reformists and fanatics.
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The thing I find frustrating about rock music is, how different can you make an acoustic drum kit sound, an electric guitar and vocals? It's very stuck, whereas with electronic music, new sounds are being created.
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I grew up in uptown Jamaica; I went to a rich school. I was raised by my mother and my stepfather; they made sure education came before anything. I had a good childhood, grew up spending time with my bigger brothers and sisters. My people are good people. I was exposed to a lot of different kinds of people and culture.
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Morality is the basis of things and truth is the substance of all morality.
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You know what black hatred women feel toward me as soon as they see me, until I return inside my shell, they use every possible weapon. As soon as a generous man tries to help me out, a woman is here to hold his arm and prevent him from acting.
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You need the audience to go on the ride with you. You can't just isolate them.
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One of the enduring problems with certain societies in the world - and this is certainly true of a lot of places in the Middle East - is that the capacity for self-governance and self-organizing just isn't there. It has to do with history.
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The universe will put signposts in your life. You can either ignore them or embrace them. You can choose and wish for all the things you want, but the things that are coming to you, you will never be able to hide from and the things that you want so bad that are not supposed to be for you for whatever reason, they'll never come to you.
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That's really my goal now. I'm trying to be a positive role model to my kids and to just enjoy this ride, because it's hard. It's hard to enjoy it when you're in it.
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To mistrust science and deny the validity of scientific method is to resign your job as a human. You'd better go look for work as a plant or wild animal.
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I really appreciate family. I really can't imagine life without them!
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I don't think any actors love taking their clothes off on film, unless you're an exhibitionist, which I'm certainly not.
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Were women meant to do everything - work and have babies?
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My workouts include aerobic exercise for a healthy cardiovascular system; strength training to maintain muscle tone and bone density; core strength exercise for a stable mid-section; and stretching to maintain mobility.
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One of the best parts of being a writer means that researching all kinds of cool stuff actually counts as work!
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Stupidity is a talent for misconception.
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The best thing I can think of would be to create a union between something as beautiful and powerful and wonderful as Hollywood films and a criticism of the status quo. That's my dream, to make such a German film.
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Do you know anything that in all its innocence is more humiliating than the funny pages of a Sunday newspaper in America?
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To say that we are sorry for our sins is mere hypocrisy, unless we show that we are really sorry for them, by giving them up. Doing is the very life of repentance.
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Self-conscious, uncertain, I'm showered by the dust. But the spirit enters into me and I submit to trust.
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I don't exist without writing.
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It was a bit unimaginable when I began that I'd ever get to 25 books. But it was also unimaginable how much crime-writing would have changed.
