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Free Literature Study Guides
The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Free Literature Study Guides
The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Cassandra Clare Quotes

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.’

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.’

– 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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.’

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

There are not that many parts for actors who are not white – even less substantive ones.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

You’re a reader as well as a writer, so write what you’d want to read.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

My father is a big believer in nature over nurture.

– Cassandra Clare

And write what you love – don’t feel pressured to write serious prose if what you like is to be funny.

– Cassandra Clare

My grandfather was a movie producer, and so I grew up on movie sets.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

I think the main thing to remember when writing a novel is to stay true to the characters.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare

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.

– Cassandra Clare