-"Then what," Lededje asked, trying to keep her voice cold and not get caught up in the avatar´s obvious enthusiasm, "is making you smile about a disaster?" -"Well, first, I didn´t cause it! Nothing to do with me, hands clean. Always a bonus. Iain Banks More Quotes by Iain Banks More Quotes From Iain Banks I enjoy it too much - even if I knew I'd never get a book published, I would still write. I enjoy the experience of getting thoughts and ideas and plots and characters organised into this narrative framework. Iain Banks writing character book Empires are synonymous with centralized if occasionally schismatized hierarchical power structures in which influence is restricted to an economically privileged class retaining its advantages through usually a judicious use of oppression and skilled manipulation of both the society's information dissemination systems and its lesser as a rule nominally independent power systems. In short, it's all about dominance. Iain Banks independent use class As a writer, you get to play, you get alter time, you get to come up with the smart lines and the clever comebacks you wish you'd thought of. Iain Banks smart clever play I just think people overvalue argument because they like to hear themselves talk. Iain Banks argument people thinking It looks perverted and wasteful to us, but then one thing that empires are not about is the efficient use of resources and the spread of happiness; both are typically accomplished despite the economic short-circuiting - corruption and favoritism, mostly- endemic to the system. Iain Banks empires use looks Maybe it wasn't anything remotely to do with religion, mysticism or metaphilosophy after all; maybe it was more banal; maybe it was just...accounting. Iain Banks mysticism accounting My gratitude extends beyond the limits of my capacity to express it. Iain Banks gratitude limits capacity Oh, they never lie. They dissemble, evade, prevaricate, confound, confuse, distract, obscure, subtly misrepresent and willfully misunderstand with what often appears to be a positively gleeful relish and are generally perfectly capable of contriving to give one an utterly unambiguous impression of their future course of action while in fact intending to do exactly the opposite, but they never lie. Perish the thought. Iain Banks opposites giving lying After doing extensive research, I can definitely tell you that single malt whiskies are good to drink. Iain Banks malt drink research Any theory which causes solipsism to seem just as likely an explanation for the phenomena it seeks to describe ought to be held in the utmost suspicion. Iain Banks suspicion causes theory There has seldom if ever a shortage of eager young males prepared to kill and die to preserve the security, comfort and prejudices of their elders, and what you call heroism is just an expression of this simple fact; there is never a scarcity of idiots. Iain Banks simple expression facts I just took [my cancer diagnosis] as bad luck, basically. It did strike me almost immediately, my atheist sort of thing kicked in and I thought "ha, if I was a God-botherer, I'd be thinking, why me God? What have I done to deserve this?" and I thought at least I'm free of that, at least I can simply treat it as bad luck and get on with it. Iain Banks cancer atheist thinking I am not being obtuse. You are being paranoid. Iain Banks paranoid You have to have something worth saying and then the ability to say it- writing's a double skill, really. Iain Banks ability skills writing Here, in the bare dark face of night A calm unhurried eye draws sight We see in what we think we fear The cloudings of our thought made clear Iain Banks eye dark night ...and I confess that, like a child, I cry. Ah, self-pity; I think we are at our most honest and sincere when we feel sorry for ourselves. Iain Banks sorry children thinking Most people are not prepared to have their minds changed, and I think they know in their hearts that other people are just the same, and one of the reasons people become angry when they argue is that they realize just that, as they trot out their excuses. Iain Banks heart people thinking Experience as well as common sense indicated that the most reliable method of avoiding self-extinction was not to equip oneself with the means to accomplish it in the first place. Iain Banks common-sense self mean There are no gods, we are told, so I must make my own salvation. Iain Banks my-own salvation Something in your voice tells me we approach the question of remuneration. Iain Banks remuneration approach voice
