I was not a natural. . . . This is the story of becoming . . . the Hard Way. Cressida Cowell More Quotes by Cressida Cowell More Quotes From Cressida Cowell For a Hero cannot triumph all the time. Sometimes he will be defeated, and how he faces that defeat is a test of his character. Cressida Cowell triumph hero character There's no such thing as im-POSSIBLE, Hiccup, only im-PROBABLE. The only thing that limits us are the limits to our imagination Cressida Cowell hiccups limits imagination However small we are, we should always fight for what we believe to be right. And I don’t mean fight with the power of our fists or the power of our swords…I mean the power of our brains and our thoughts and our dreams. And as small and quiet and unimportant as our fighting may look, perhaps we might all work together…and break out of the prisons of our own making. Perhaps we might be able to keep this fierce and beautiful world of ours as free for all of us as it seemed to be on that blue afternoon of my childhood. Cressida Cowell dream beautiful believe We're all snatching precious moments from the peaceful jaws of time. Cressida Cowell precious-moments peaceful moments The past is another land, and we cannot go to visit. So, if I say there were dragons, and men who rode upon their backs, who alive has been there and can tell me that I'm wrong? Cressida Cowell dragons men past Remember, there is nothing wrong with a healthy sense of self-respect. Cressida Cowell healthy self remember But then I have always been somewhat of a square peg in a round hole. Cressida Cowell square-pegs holes squares The thing about grown ups is that they're always wanting you to be this Great Hero and Leader. What's wrong with being NORMAL, for Thor's sake? What's wrong with just being SO-SO at stuff? They're just totally unrealistic. Cressida Cowell leader hero stuff Attention spans are changing. It's very noticeable. I am very aware that the kind of books I read in my childhood kids now won't be able to read. I was reading Kipling and PG Wodehouse and Shakespeare at the age of 11. The kind of description and detail I read I would not put in my books. I don't know how much you can fight that because you want children to read. So I pack in excitement and plot and illustrations and have a cliffhanger every chapter. Charles Dickens was doing cliffhangers way back when. But even with all the excitement you have to make children care about the characters. Cressida Cowell reading book children Sometimes it is only a True Friend who knows what we mean when we try to speak. Somebody who has spent a lot of time with us, and listens carefully to what we are trying to say, and tries to understand. Cressida Cowell true-friend understanding mean A Chief must show no fear, no worry... A Chief is a leader first, and a man second. Cressida Cowell leader worry men The Hero cares not for a wild winter's storm. For it carries him swift on the back of the storm. All may be lost and our hearts may be worn, but a Hero fights forever. Cressida Cowell fighting hero heart That is a terrible plan." "Hiccup's plans are always t-terrible." "Hey! You're still here, aren't you? Cressida Cowell hiccups hey terrible I wanted to be a King who would found a New World, not in some misty country far across the seas, but right here, right now, at home. Cressida Cowell kings home country Most of us are lucky not to be Kings and Heroes, because we do not have to make the choices that Kings and Heroes have to make. Cressida Cowell choices kings hero Twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death Cressida Cowell twelve hopeless degrees And now that its ruby eyes are set into the gold, you cannot see their tear-shape, so they seem to be laughing rather than crying. It is a constant reminder to me of the human ability to create something beautiful even when things are at the darkest. Cressida Cowell eye beautiful laughing Hiccup: Thank You For Nothing You Stupid Reptile. Cressida Cowell hiccups reptiles stupid The dragons I would write about would not be the rather generalized, big, green things that I had read about in storybooks. What I wanted to create was a multiplicity of different dragon species, of all shapes and sizes, adapted to their environment and habitats in the same way as birds or other animals we see today. Cressida Cowell dragons writing animal Books were despised by the Viking Tribes, as they were seen as a horrible civilizing influence and a threat to the barbarian culture. Cressida Cowell barbarians culture book
