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I don't think people need to know much about me to understand the book, or to enjoy it. The book stands by itself. Over the last several years, my life has been all about writing these books, but the books aren't about my life.

Patrick Rothfuss

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Patrick Rothfuss
Age: 51
Born: 1973
Born: June 6
Novelist
Teacher
Writer
Madison
Wisconsin
Patrick James Rothfuss
Needs
Aren
Writing
Books
Much
Lasts
Years
Last
Think
Enjoy
Thinking
Understand
Life
Book
Stands
People
Need
Several

More quotes by Patrick Rothfuss

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There is something powerfully beguiling about the excited eyes of a young woman. They can pull all manner of nonsense out of a foolish young man, and I was no exception to this rule.
Patrick Rothfuss
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Remember this son, if you forget everything else. A poet is a musician who can't sing. Words have to find a man's mind before they can touch his heart. And, some men's minds are woeful small targets. Music touches their hearts directly, no matter how small or stubborn the mind of the man who listens.
Patrick Rothfuss
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This is the nature of love. Vashet said. To attempt to describe it will drive a woman mad. This is what keeps poets scribbling endlessly away. If one could pin it to paper all complete, the others would lay down their pens. But it cannot be done.
Patrick Rothfuss
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Truth is a troublesome motherfucker unless it's handled properly
Patrick Rothfuss
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Beer dulls a memory, brand sets it burning, but wine is the best for a sore heart's yearning.
Patrick Rothfuss
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If you are going to impose your will on the world, you must have control over what you believe.
Patrick Rothfuss
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What are the three most important rules of the chemist? This I knew from Ben. Label clearly. Measure twice. Eat elsewhere.
Patrick Rothfuss
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I learned to love the feel of good words.
Patrick Rothfuss
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I grew up reading Tolkien, and I love him. But I love him in the way that you love that rambly old grandfather. You have to sit through some pretty off-topic stuff before he starts telling his cool old war stories.
Patrick Rothfuss
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It's easier to write about heartbreak after you've had your heart broken. You have more material to draw from, you can extrapolate from your own experiences and make reasonable assumptions about how your characters would feel and act.
Patrick Rothfuss
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A lot of new writers assume you have to know the where the story is going and that it flows out as molten gold. But really, sometimes you think you are going to one place, but then you decide that is dumb idea. Then you go somewhere else and it is a worse idea. But then you switch again and you might have a beautiful accident.
Patrick Rothfuss
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In brief, worldbuilding is different than setting in my opinion. Setting is a room. A backdrop. It's scenery. But without good worldbuilding, you can't have realistic feeling scenery. You can't have cool, unique backdrops for your story.
Patrick Rothfuss
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When someone writes something dazzlingly brilliant, people want to imitate it. The result is a lot of less-than-brilliant knock-offs. Elves, Dwarves, Goblin army, cursed ring, evil sorcerer. Tolkien did it. It rocked. Let's move on. Let's do something new.
Patrick Rothfuss
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I can't give you the moon,” the tinker said. “She doesn't belong to me. She belongs only to herself.
Patrick Rothfuss
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Some tropes are universal. Boy meets girl. Betrayal and revenge. The search to discover a hidden truth.... A mother's love isn't cliché, it's universal. These things are archetypes. They're the building blocks of myth and legend. They are a big part about what it means to be human.
Patrick Rothfuss
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Did I ever mention I used to be a delivery driver too? I was. I can read a map. What’s more, using a brilliant mixture of zen navigation, Aristotelian logic, and pure rage I can get you your package and/or delicious sandwich relatively close to on-time.
Patrick Rothfuss
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Using words to talk of words is like using a pencil to draw a picture of itself, on itself. Impossible. Confusing. Frustrating ... but there are other ways to understanding.
Patrick Rothfuss
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The seeds of the past bear fruit in the present.
Patrick Rothfuss
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All stories are true.
Patrick Rothfuss
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You need to realize that most writing rules aren't laws, they're rules of thumb.
Patrick Rothfuss