I wanted to highlight that whole dreadful process in book publishing that nothing succeeds like success. – Doris Lessing
I dont know much about creative writing programs. But theyre not telling the truth if they dont teach, one, that writing is hard work, and, two, that you have to give up a great deal of life, your personal life, to be a writer. – Doris Lessing
What society doesnt realize is that in the past, ordinary people respected learning. They respected books, and they dont now, or not very much. That whole respect for serious literature and learning has disappeared. – Doris Lessing
It is terrible to destroy a persons picture of himself in the interests of truth or some other abstraction. – Doris Lessing
I feel like a hostage to fortune. Not that I am complaining. I wanted to play the role. But in truth I didnt think the show would be such a success. OK, I thought it would fail. Not because it was bad. I was confident it was good, but plenty of good things just sort of wither on the vine. – Hugh Laurie