Why the brevity? Because I'd rather people read my book twice than only half-way through Mohsin Hamid More Quotes by Mohsin Hamid More Quotes From Mohsin Hamid As a child I read all kinds of stuff, whether it was 'Asterix and Obelix' and 'Tin Tin' comic books, or 'Lord of the Rings,' or Frank Herbert's sci-fi. Or 'The Wind in the Willows.' Or 'Charlotte's Web.' Mohsin Hamid wind book children Chance plays a powerful role in every life - our brains and personalities are just chemical soup, after all; a few drops here or there matter enormously - but consequences often become more serious as income levels go down. Mohsin Hamid powerful personality play Living in a place like Pakistan, very often you meet people who are migrating abroad. And sometimes you'll ask their parents, you know - you didn't try to stop them? Like, why didn't you say, don't go - I'll miss you? Stay with me. And, you know, people say, well, it's best for them. They have to go. And parents, you know, take on that sadness because they know it's better for their children if they leave. Mohsin Hamid sadness children people For a combination of reasons, and despite evident fondness for American products and individuals, my impression is that most Pakistanis have extremely negative views of the US as a geopolitical player. Mohsin Hamid player views negative I come from an enormous and very close family. I have over a dozen aunts and uncles in Pakistan, dozens of cousins. I have many close friends. I have received so much love in Lahore that the city always pulls me. Mohsin Hamid aunt cousin uncles I don't want to be a Michael Moore-style artist, which is not to disparage Michael Moore. But he seems rather unsuccessful at winning people over who don't already agree with him. Mohsin Hamid artist winning people We can open up our computers and Skype with someone, and we see them. It's like looking through a window. And we can surf the internet through our phones, and it's like our consciousness is far away. Or we can step through a airplane door and be in another continent a few hours away. So technology feels, to me, like the doors sort of already exist, at least emotionally. Mohsin Hamid airplane technology doors I like the idea of an open, international London that thrives on attracting hard-working, talented people but has the confidence to tell them they must play by the same rules as everyone else. Mohsin Hamid hard-work play ideas I don't listen to music when I write. I need silence so I can hear the sound of the words. Mohsin Hamid silence writing needs Literature helps us transcend ourselves. Mohsin Hamid literature helping We keep the negative stuff because it's the negative stuff that's going to, you know, potentially kill us. That fin in the water - maybe it is a shark. That yellow thing behind the tree - maybe it is a lion. You need to be scared. Mohsin Hamid sharks yellow water For me, writing a novel is like solving a puzzle. But I don't intend my novels as puzzles. I intend them as invitations to dance. Mohsin Hamid invitations novel writing Growing up in Pakistan in the 1980s, I lived in the shadow of a tyrannical state. Mohsin Hamid pakistan growing-up shadow How many big businesses don't resort to underhand means? Mohsin Hamid resorts bigs mean You know, you get a bad review as a writer, you remember it for 10 years. You get a hundred good reviews, you forget them all. You say hello to a hundred people in the city and it doesn't mean anything to you. One racist comment passes by, and it sticks with you a decade. Mohsin Hamid cities mean years I am a strong believer in the intertwined nature of the personal and the political; I think they move together. Mohsin Hamid strong moving thinking I am not much of a researcher as a novelist; I write mainly from experience. Mohsin Hamid researchers novelists writing I believe one can gauge a book's impact only after about 10 years. Mohsin Hamid believe book years I take six or seven years to write really small books. There is a kind of aesthetic of leanness, of brevity. Mohsin Hamid writing book years I think there's a natural link between the fact that our self is a story that we make up and that we're drawn to stories. It resonates, in a way. Mohsin Hamid links self thinking
