Cassandra Clare
Nobody sells books like J.K. Rowling. We have a rule in publishing: Never compare anything to 'Harry Potter' because it's like lightning in a bottle.
When a movie is being made out of a book, there is a mixed reaction on the part of fans because they are both extremely excited and they are also terrified. 'They are going to take my story, and they are going to mess it up; they are going to ruin it; they're going to do this; they're going to do that.'
There are not that many parts for actors who are not white - even less substantive ones.
I get a lot of inspiration from research in mythology and folklore. I find that, you know, stories people told each other thousands of years ago are still relevant now.
I try to answer all my fan mail. Sometimes I get questions from people who obviously only read the Wiki but haven't read the books. I'm like, 'But you have to read the book or you're not going to get it.'
And write what you love - don't feel pressured to write serious prose if what you like is to be funny.
'City of Fallen Angels' ended on a cliffhanger. That was equally loved and hated by my readership.
Creating characters is like throwing together ingredients for a recipe. I take characteristics I like and dislike in real people I know, or know of, and use them to embellish and define characters.
I tend to write in coffee shops and restaurants with friends of mine because if I'm at home, I get distracted by the television or the cats or my husband, or... you know - all of those things that make it easy to procrastinate.
Music actually inspires me a lot. I listen to a lot of music, and often I find that if I can associate mentally a song or a piece of music with a particular character or scene, it helps me get back into the head of that character.
Perfect heroines, like perfect heroes, aren't relatable, and if you can't put yourself in the protagonist's shoes, not only will they not inspire you, but the book will be pretty boring.
You're a reader as well as a writer, so write what you'd want to read.
In my own work, I don't have favorite characters, but I have characters that I relate to the most. And I relate the most to Simon from 'The Mortal Instruments,' and also Tessa from 'The Infernal Devices.' They're more sort of bookish and shy characters.
In other people's books, I tend to love the really daredevil-y characters. I love Finnick from 'The Hunger Games.' And I think, probably, my favorite character of all time is Sherlock Holmes.
I have specific playlists for different books and characters. So, I need to have those with me. It helps me get into the mindset of the book.
I think that 'City of Heavenly Fire' is definitely a book where all the characters are tested to their limits, and they have to make really significant choices about who they are and who they wanna be.
I work on a word count basis, so I have to write three thousand words a day. I can write them in the morning, I can write them in the evening; as long as they get done.
I think the main thing to remember when writing a novel is to stay true to the characters.
There's a stigma that guys hate romance and hate love, but that's not true. Look at 'Iron Man.' There's a whole through-line plot about his relationship with Pepper, and everybody loves it.
In the same way that so many people read 'Harry Potter' and went to see 'Harry Potter,' just because a movie is about a kid, doesn't mean it's for kids, and just because a movie is about a girl, doesn't mean it's for girls.
There are so many stories about boys becoming heroes, learning their powers and becoming incredibly heroic. There have to be those stories for girls, too.
You put books out into the world, and people form their own visuals and images and attachments to characters; those characters become part of them, and they have their feelings about them.
You know that I had heard so many times people say things like, 'You could never write 'Harry Potter' and have it be about Harriett Potter because nobody would read it; people only want to read an adventure story if it's about a boy,' and I thought, 'I don't think that's true.'
I firmly believe that you can't get a good movie without risking a bad movie. A good adaptation of your book is worth it because it is such a wonderful experience to see your world translated onto the screen.
My grandfather was a movie producer, and so I grew up on movie sets.
My father is a big believer in nature over nurture.
We as artists are actively encouraged - by other authors, your agent, publisher, and society - not to think about money, strategy, how to manage your career, how to create a brand, because we're supposed to focus on the art.
I grew up in L.A., and I worked for 'The Hollywood Reporter.' I knew enough about the business to know that the usual role of the author on a movie is to get out of the way and not say anything.
As long as they're making beloved books into movies, people are going to be like, 'That's not my mental image of them.' It takes that moment for it to click and become their mental image.
For me, the triad of 'Harry Potter,' the 'Hunger Games' and 'Twilight' feature strong women, and as a declared feminist, it's a wonderful thing. These women have really opened up this particular world of storytelling, which I'm very grateful for.
I think as women we've always been very used to growing up reading and identifying with male protagonists, especially in fantasy. There's a saying in publishing that girls will read about boys, but boys will only read about boys, and it's important to give women strong heroines.
I had just moved to New York in September 2001, and immediately 9/11 happened, and of course it completely changed the city and everybody who lived there.
I love scuba-diving, but I hate all the equipment.
A lot of people have asked me about some of the characters that appear in 'Clockwork Prince,' like Aloysius Starkweather and Woolsey Scott. A lot of people like Woolsey Scott, which I was really happy about because he's very fun to write.
Read everything! Don't just read things that are in your comfort zone or things that you think you're already going to like. Experiment; try new stuff and try new genres. If you read a lot of romance, then start reading mystery. If you read a lot of mystery, start reading fantasy.
Write every day. Don't kill yourself. I think a lot of people think, 'I have to write a chapter a day' and they can't. They fall behind and stop doing it. But if you just write even one hundred words a day, it's not that much. By the end of a month, you'll have three thousand words, which is one chapter.
I believe that writer's block is a symptom. It's not a disease, it's the symptom of a disease. So what I try to do is kind of do it like 'House'; write down the symptom and write down the other symptoms. Try to work backwards to figure out what the problem is.
I am in the U.K. for inspiration because I'm doing a follow on series to 'The Infernal Devices,' called 'The Last Hours.' It's a re-telling of 'Great Expectations' with 'Shadowhunters'... because why not! It's set in 1903, so I'm doing a lot of locational research.
When I started 'City of Bones,' I knew exactly what was going to happen in 'City of Glass.' When I first started the six-book series, I thought of it as a three-book series.
No matter how many books you've written, whenever you sit down to write a new book, you always feel the same challenge - how do you shape this story into a book that people are going to love.
As long as there is love and memory, there is no true loss.Collection: Memories
I've heard the word 'fear'. I simply choose to believe it doesn't apply to me.Collection: Believe
Amor verus numquam moritur: True love never diesCollection: Amor
Your life is yours to live as you choose.Collection: Life Is
There were some memories, though, that never faded.Collection: Memories
I was thinking about the first time I ever saw you and how after that I couldn't forget you. I wanted to, but I couldn't stop myself.Collection: Thinking
As if I could stop loving you. As if I would want to give up the thing that makes me stronger than anything else ever has. Since the first time I saw you, I have belonged to you completely.Collection: Giving Up
If people ever look down upon you for crying for fictional characters, you should give them a gentle, pitying look and feel bad for them. If they've never cried for a fictional character, then they've never loved one (and what a joy that is). If they've never cried at a book, a movie, a piece of music, then they've missed one of the great pleasures life has to offer. Just because fiction does not contain things that are real doesn't mean it doesn't contain truth, and we find it through the alchemy of our tears.Collection: Real
Life is a book and there are a thousand pages I have not yet read.Collection: Book
It was books that made me feel that perhaps I was not completely alone. They could be honest with me, and I with them.Collection: Book