My first two novels were very black comedies. Hilary Mantel blackcomedynovel Change image and share on social
Once you're labeled as mentally ill, and that's in your medical notes, then anything you say can be discounted as an artefact of your mental illness. Hilary Mantel artefactdiscountill Change image and share on social
When you write, you are not either sex. But when you're read you are definitely gendered. Hilary Mantel genderreadsex Change image and share on social
I think if I hadn't become a writer I would just have suppressed that part of my personality. I think I would have put it in a box that I never opened. Hilary Mantel boxopenpart Change image and share on social
Fiction leaves us so much work to do, allows the individual so much input; you have to see, you have to hear, you have to taste the madeleine, and while you are seemingly passive in your chair, you have to travel. Hilary Mantel chairfictionhear share on social
For many imaginative writers, working for the press is a fact of their life. But it's best not to like it too much. Hilary Mantel factimaginativelife Change image and share on social
When I wrote about the French Revolution, I didn't choose to write about aristocrats; I chose characters who began their lives in provincial obscurity. Hilary Mantel aristocratbegincharacter Change image and share on social
I once dreamed a whole short story. Wrapped in its peculiar atmosphere, as if draped in clouds, I walked entranced to my desk at about 4 A.M. and typed it on to the screen. Hilary Mantel atmosphereclouddesk Change image and share on social
When you have committed enough words to paper, you feel you have a spine stiff enough to stand up in the wind. But when you stop writing, you find that's all you are - a spine, a row of rattling vertebrae, dried out like an old quill pen. Hilary Mantel commitdryfeel share on social
Write a book you'd like to read. If you wouldn't read it, why would anybody else? Don't write for a perceived audience or market. It may well have vanished by the time your book's ready. Hilary Mantel audiencebookmarket Change image and share on social
