Brad Thor Quotes & Sayings

I had been fascinated with Islam since college - particularly how it could inspire such fervor in our modern age and move a significant number of its followers to horrific acts of violence. That invisible hand moved me to study more and more about Islam. — Brad Thor

My #1 job as a thriller author is to give readers the best white-knuckle thrill ride I am capable of. I am first and foremost in the entertainment business. If that suspenseful ride is also terrifying because it hits really close to home, then I am once again doing what I am supposed to do as a thriller author. — Brad Thor

Making the best-seller list is a big deal; it's like being nominated for an Oscar. Hitting No. 1 is like actually winning the award. It's very gratifying. — Brad Thor

Carlton signaled and merged into a faster-moving lane. "Jacobson gave us his file with everything on the — Brad Thor

I have been blessed to have had many excellent teachers. The further I get away from school, though, the more I realize that the greatest teachers in my life have come from outside of academia. — Brad Thor

Anyone that goes to battle goes to battle knowing the mindset and tactics of their enemies. — Brad Thor

When you grow up with a name like Brad Thor, people expect you to be 6-foot-4 and a pile of muscles. — Brad Thor

My wife has a good sense of humor, and instead of calling me psychic with my novels, she simply refers to me as being 'psycho.' That's because multiple things in my books have come true. — Brad Thor

Visiting Lucerne is like going to Disneyland: You can't imagine that it is real because it looks like a movie lot. — Brad Thor

Muslim students would go through a bunch of feel-good exercises and leave with the impression that without Islamic contributions to science, there would be no U.S. space program. — Brad Thor

There aren't many honest men or women in Washington anymore. Politicians get where they are by the sheer force of their egos, not their convictions. And you know what? It's our fault as voters. We don't demand better candidates, so we end up getting what we deserve - on both sides of the aisle. — Brad Thor

Some of the best fan mail I get are from our men and women in the military and intelligence communities. They say, 'Boy you do your homework, this is exactly how we're doing it.' — Brad Thor

We have an incredible warrior class in this country - people in law enforcement, intelligence - and I thank God every night we have them standing fast to protect us from the tremendous amount of evil that exists in the world. — Brad Thor

My first novel, 'The Lions of Lucerne,' just poured out of me. It was an amazing feeling of accomplishment. My biggest fear and therefore my biggest obstacle to becoming an author had been, 'What if I spend all that time and the book is no good?' — Brad Thor

Anything that grows is, by definition, alive. Washington, D.C. was no exception. As a living organism, the Federal Government's number one job was self-preservation. Any threat to its existence had to be dealt with. — Brad Thor

If you steadfastly refused to quit, you rapidly narrowed your options to only winning. — Brad Thor

The great thing about the British SAS was that they viewed war the same way the American Special Operations community did. You didn't win by thinking inside the box and following someone else's rules. You turned the box upside down and made your own rules, no matter what the enemy threw at you. — Brad Thor

Show me one single patriot who has ever been in Barack Obama's life in any position of influence. You can't do it ... Barack Obama detests this nation as founded. He has zero respect for the founding documents. — Brad Thor

I write about things that are important for us as Americans. I'm concerned about al-Qaeda sneaking across the border with the illegal immigrants that are using the coyotes to get across the border. And that's not a Democrat or Republican issue, that's a national security issue. — Brad Thor

As the old saying goes, you can't spell unprofessional, unethical, or unaccountable without the UN. — Brad Thor

I like books that have razor-sharp plotting that snaps and moves along. It's not about the main character being different at the end. I don't want my main character to be different in the end. I still want him committed to his ideas, to be steadfast, true and loyal. — Brad Thor

Tell you the truth, Father, I don't think God has a favorite football team, or a favorite — Brad Thor

I really believe that a writer is someone who has trained their mind to misbehave. — Brad Thor

Well, my books - I think one of the hallmarks of my thrillers is that they're based in reality. — Brad Thor

The only people who might hope to survive were those who had exercised some degree of caution and had prepared in advance. — Brad Thor

Someone putting down $25 of his or her hard-earned money to buy my product, then doing it again because they felt the payoff was worth it. That's as good as it gets for an author. — Brad Thor

Even one death is horrible. — Brad Thor

'The Last Patriot' is set in the present day but is based upon the premise that the Prophet Mohammed had a final revelation, he shared it with his disciples, and they killed him to keep it hidden and out of the Qur'an. If this missing revelation can be found, its impact on the world will be incredible. — Brad Thor

If there's one lesson I've learned, it's that life is all about change, and stress comes from avoiding change. — Brad Thor

What has bothered and angered radical Muslims is that I'm a non-Muslim writing anything at all about Islam. But this is fiction, and I don't think Islam is above criticism or fictionalization any more so than Judaism, Christianity, Mormonism or Hinduism is. — Brad Thor

If we talk about the glass being half empty or half full, I want to know what does the glass look like from underneath the table? — Brad Thor

Less really is more. It's a tendency of beginning writers to want to prove what they're talking about by going too far with description. I think you've got to keep it short, crisp and clean. — Brad Thor

I tell people you should write what you love to read because that's where your passion is. — Brad Thor

My number one goal as a thriller writer is to entertain you. But I've got a chance to not only entertain people, but have them close my book and be smarter having read it. — Brad Thor

The reason socialism has failed around the world every time it's been tried is because people in socialist countries have looked at the United States and have said if they can have it that good, we can. It's a failed, flawed ideology, but if you ask socialists why it's always failed, it's because the United States has stood in the way. — Brad Thor

Success leaves clues, and if you sow the same seeds, you'll reap the same rewards. — Brad Thor

Project to battle terrorists on their own — Brad Thor

People who took themselves too seriously not only were no fun, but could also be very dangerous. — Brad Thor

There is no justice in social justice, and there is no equality in social equality. — Brad Thor

Human beings are the most successful of animals because of their capability to learn, and an abused animal learns very quickly to defend itself. It also learns very quickly to trust very few people - if any. — Brad Thor

My intent is not to inflame Muslims but to entertain readers of great thrillers. At the end of the day, I want people to see a good protagonist struggle against serious odds and do so with courage and honor and integrity. — Brad Thor

The Tea Party is clearing gunk out of the fuel lines of this country. It started with throwing out Democrats, but the Republicans are going to be next. We're doing what needs to be done for the sake of the country. — Brad Thor

I live in America. I have the right to write whatever I want. And it's equaled by another right just as powerful: the right not to read it. Freedom of speech includes the freedom to offend people. — Brad Thor

Happiness in life is all about three things - something to do, someone to love, and something to look forward to. — Brad Thor

I know my limits. You don't ever need to worry about me." "Thanks, Scot. I'll remind myself of that next time I see you looking like a flipped turtle. — Brad Thor

The rain forests of the Congo Basin contained so much water that they caused their own weather system, and were known as the Lungs of Africa. — Brad Thor

Power perceived is power achieved. — Brad Thor

While the words are yet unspoken, you are master of them; when once they are spoken, they are master of you. — Brad Thor

If he's like any other man I've ever met, it's not my smile he's going to be looking at. — Brad Thor

Most Americans are unaware that Thomas Jefferson was the first American president to go to war against radical Islam. Jefferson was very concerned with Islam's war-like doctrine and its inability to separate mosque and state. — Brad Thor

You can't kill an American Citizen without benefit of a trial."
"I can if you're on the list, traitor."
"LIST? What list? What the hell are you talking about?"
BLACK LIST, July 24 — Brad Thor

I wanted to live the life my characters were living, so I rented a yacht and sailed from Naples to Capri before taking a helicopter back. Got to write the whole thing off as research on my taxes. — Brad Thor

I am indeed honored to call him my friend. — Brad Thor

The worth of a culture, in his opinion, could be boiled down to one thing - how well that culture took care of its weakest members, particularly its women and children. — Brad Thor

From the political angle, I'm trying to be apolitical if you will. I mean people say, 'Are you a red state or blue state?', I say, 'I'm purple.' I think there are great ideas on both sides of the aisle and neither side has cornered the market. — Brad Thor

Aerotechnik Super Vivat Icarus motorgliders had an enormous wingspan and looked like a typical side-by-side pilot/passenger configuration sailplane that had been crossed with a small Cessna single-prop aircraft. — Brad Thor

There are many lay people and scholars alike, both with and without the Muslim community, who feel that the pure orthodox Islam of the fundamentalists could never survive outside the context of its seventh-century Arabian origins. Apply twenty-first-century science, logic, or humanistic reasoning to it and it falls apart.
They believe this is why Islam has always relied so heavily on the threat of death. Question Islam, malign Islam, or leave Islam and you will be killed. It is a totalitarian modus operandi that silences all dissent and examination, thereby protecting the faith from ever having to defend itself. — Brad Thor

My point is that bureaucrats - like everyone else - have a mind-set. The longer they work for government, the more they believe government is the answer, and the less they trust the everyday citizen. In fact, they begin to believe that certain groups of citizens are the root of the nation's problems. They see them as a threat. If those citizens can be brought to heel, the bureaucracy sees itself as doing the citizenry at large a greater good, actually making their lives better. — Brad Thor

The Afghans I met were some of the nicest and most honorable people I've ever encountered. There is a code called 'Pashtunwali,' so if someone invites you into their village, every last man will fight to protect your life. I was impressed by that. — Brad Thor

Good luck with that, Harvath thought. In his experience, life was predominantly made up of three distinct groups: sheep, sheepdogs, and wolves. And if there was one thing he had learned from a lifetime of hunting wolves and protecting sheep, it was that sheep had two speeds - graze and stampede. Now that word was out that the virus was loose, all bets were off. Very soon, chaos was going to ensue. "What else do you have?" he asked, bracing himself for more bad news. "The pharmaceutical companies Damien's involved with appear pretty benign. One focuses on dementia medication and the other on birth control drugs. — Brad Thor

Things do not happen. Things are made to happen. - JOHN F. KENNEDY — Brad Thor

Authors should do multiple submissions to agents. I mean, that's the way the business world works and whether or not the industry likes it or not, they can't stop you from submitting to multiple agents and you know what? If an agent misses out on you because they took too long with your query letter, tough luck for them. — Brad Thor

There are writers who go their whole lives and never hit that No. 1 spot. — Brad Thor

Robert Ashford possessed one of the key character flaws necessary to a traitor. He thought he was smarter than everyone else. This allowed the overeducated career bureaucrat to sell out his own country, because he believed he knew what was best for his nation and its people. — Brad Thor

In some ways, it's better that Obama got elected than McCain. I'd rather be stabbed in the chest with an Obama steak knife than to have been slowly bled to death with McCain paper cuts. Say what you will, but Obama has brought about a patriotic and civic renaissance, the likes of which I have never seen. — Brad Thor

Incredible brilliance often dwells on the razor's edge of madness ... — Brad Thor

Have a smile for everyone you meet and a plan to kill them. — Brad Thor

In the wake of 9/11, my wife Trish and I were stranded on the East Coast. We had planned a vacation to Greece, but flights had been halted. Instead, we ended up on a tiny island off the coast of Georgia. — Brad Thor

I've got more ideas for books than I'll ever be able to use in my lifetime. I'm very fortunate like that. — Brad Thor

All members of Congress should be required wear NASCAR uniforms. You know, the kind with the patches? That way we'd know who is sponsoring each of them. I think he was kidding; they'd never be able to do it but it's a great idea and would wake people up in this country. — Brad Thor

When I came to New York as a writer, I was taken with the idea that you're only getting in on bridges and ferries and through tunnels. The idea behind 'Takedown' is that it would be very hard to get out. — Brad Thor

After the Berlin Wall came down and Communism was on the run, I looked around and wondered what the next threat to the United States would be. — Brad Thor

1. Decrease current human population below five hundred million and keep it in perpetual balance with nature. 2. Guide reproduction wisely - improving fitness and diversity. 3. Unite humanity with a "living" new language. 4. Redistribute global wealth under the more acceptable term "global public goods." 5. Rebalance personal rights with "social duties." 6. Replace passion, faith, and tradition with reason. 7. Make clever use of new technologies to go around national governments and establish direct ties with citizens. 8. Rebrand global governance as equitable, efficient, and the logical next step in human evolution. 9. Discredit, delegitimize, and dismantle the idea of the nation state/national sovereignty. 10. Prepare a mechanism to neutralize any challenges to United Nations' authority. — Brad Thor

In America, only opportunity is assured, not outcomes. Anyone who promises otherwise is acting contrary to the values upon which our Republic was founded. — Brad Thor

Let me make this very clear: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, our digital exhaust is being sucked up by the government. It is being compiled on big server farms and it's being analyzed by different computer programs, looking for any hint that you and I are up to no good. — Brad Thor

Al Qaeda doesn't abide by the Geneva Conventions, so in my opinion, they should not be afforded the protections of them. — Brad Thor

You know when I told you the joke about how a friend will help you move, but a real friend will help you move a body? I was only kidding. — Brad Thor

Benjamin Franklin, that those who trade some of their liberty for a little temporary security deserve neither and will lose both. The wisdom of the founders never ceased to amaze him. — Brad Thor