Westerfeld Quotes & Sayings

But they're already singing our praises!"
"They are Americans. They toot their horns for anything. — Scott Westerfeld

The night went on like this, a mix of serious talk, utter bullshit, self-promotion, and slumber-party giddiness. — Scott Westerfeld

Maybe human beings are programmed ... to help one another, even to fall in love. But just because it's human nature doesn't make it bad ... — Scott Westerfeld

Fifteen!" Dess's distant cry reached him. "Where the hell are you, Rex? Ten. You're-an-idiot-nine, get-back-here-eight, you-dimwit-seven ... — Scott Westerfeld

And barking famous, these friends are — Scott Westerfeld

The word "happy" had started to sound wrong in Darcy's head, like a random collection of Scrabble letters. "What about — Scott Westerfeld

Nature can blow me. — Scott Westerfeld

Ring around the rosie.
A pocket full of posie.
Ashes ashes, we all fall down.
Some people say that this poem is about the Black Death, the fourteenth-century plague that killed 100-million people ...
Sadly, though, most experts think this is nonsense ...
How can I be so sure about this rhyme when all the experts disagree?
Because I ate the kid who made it up. — Scott Westerfeld

I know what it's like to be manipulated, Aya-la. And I know what it's like to be in danger. While your city was building you mansions to live in, my friends and I have been protecting this planet. We've spilled more blood than you have flowing in your veins. So don't try to make me feel guilty!
-Tally Youngblood, Extras — Scott Westerfeld

Barking machines!" Dylan exclaimed. "Didn't I tell you? I've never seen a beastie that couldn't get up on its own. Well, except a turtle. And one of my auntie's cats."
Alek raised an eyebrow. "And I'm sure your auntie's cat would have survived that aerial bomb."
"You'd be surprised. He's quite fast. — Scott Westerfeld

Perhaps Clankers and Darwinists would always be at war, if only in their hearts. — Scott Westerfeld

Not everything made you stronger. It was possible to survive, yet still be crippled for your trouble. Sometimes it was okay to run away, to skip the test, to chicken out. Or at least to get some help. — Scott Westerfeld

The Shrink always warned me that carriers stay wracked with lifelong guilt. It's not an uplifting thing having turned lovers into monsters. We feel bad that we haven't turned into monsters ourselves
survivor's guilt, that's called. And we feel a bit stupid that we didn't notice our own symptoms earlier. I mean, I'd been sort of wondering why the Atkins diet was giving me night vision. But that hadn't seemed like something to worry about ... — Scott Westerfeld

You don't think happy endings are stupid anymore?"
"Your question is irrelevant," Imogen said. "This isn't the end. — Scott Westerfeld

I have no problem with commenters stating strong opinions, except for my usual annoyance with people who don't agree with me. — Scott Westerfeld

Hiding from the truth was worse than being lied to. — Scott Westerfeld

Rex lost his specs. — Scott Westerfeld

Let me get this stright, Aya-Chan. You want me, a person who can't lie, to lie about the fact that I can't lie?
-Frizz mizuno — Scott Westerfeld

Hi guys the book Im reading right this moment is called Uglies — Scott Westerfeld

Have a little faith in me, Volger." "I have great faith, tempered with vast annoyance. — Scott Westerfeld

Be careful with the world , or the next time we meet, it might get ugly. — Scott Westerfeld

She carried a knife inside of herself now, one that was always cutting her. She could feel it every time she swallowed, every time her thoughts strayed from the splendor of the wild. — Scott Westerfeld

He thinks Goliath can end the war," Alek managed at last. "The man wants peace!"
"As do we all," Count Volger said. "But there are many ways to end a war. Some are more peaceful than others. — Scott Westerfeld

And you've actually watched it yourself?' I asked. 'Willingly?'
Sure. I had to see it, you know? Besides we should be safe. Only one in twenty viewers actually had a bad reaction. And it was mostly kids who were affected. I mean younger than you guys. I think the average age was about ten.'
That made me feel somewhat better.
But that was a kid's show,' said Jen. 'Maybe it affects everyone, but not that many adults were watching.'
That made me feel less better. I wanted my protective bangs back. — Scott Westerfeld

It's amazing how quickly nature consumes human places after we turn our backs on them. Life is a hungry thing. — Scott Westerfeld

I want those perfect eyes and lips, and for everyone to look at me and gasp. And for everyone who sees me to think Who's that? and want to get to know me, and listen to what I say."
"I'd rather have something to say. — Scott Westerfeld

What did a happy ending even mean in real life, anyway? In stories you simply said, 'They lived happily ever after,' and that was it. But in real life people had to keep on living, day after day, year after year. — Scott Westerfeld

This is life. Right here in this room, with you, is life. — Scott Westerfeld

Maybe they're not as mindless as we thought, or so dedicated to turning every last human into one of them. Like Kalyn says, they were just bored, waiting for something better to happen.
And that better thing is us. — Scott Westerfeld

And a special thanks for not burning up the whole ship. Including yourself, you daft bum-rag. — Scott Westerfeld

For me, writing's the only thing that's always real. I've never regretted a day I wrote a good scene, whatever else I screwed up that day. That's what's fucking real. — Scott Westerfeld

Ignorance doesn't lead to salvation, nor does knowledge pave the way to sin. - Cinda Williams Chima — Scott Westerfeld

That was the trick- to keep punching, no matter what. — Scott Westerfeld

Sometimes Tally felt she could almost accept brain damage if it meant a life without reconstituted noodles. — Scott Westerfeld

So, there was this beautiful princess.
She was locked in a high tower( ... )She was stuck up there( ... )So the only thing was to jump. — Scott Westerfeld

She was nothing in particular. But at least she had a purpose. — Scott Westerfeld

She turned to Frizz. "So you understand the problem? You can't let Tally know about Radical Honesty. There's no telling what she'll do if she finds out you could ruin her plans."
Frizz's eyebrows rose. "So let me get this straight, Aya-chan. You want me, a person who can't lie, to lie about the fact that I can't lie?"
"We need another plan," Hiro said. — Scott Westerfeld

The opening chapter was the book's unique selling point, the singular idea that had carried Darcy through last November, and Coleman had just come up with it off the top of his head. — Scott Westerfeld

Looking for a thousand years is worth it, if in the end you find what you need. — Scott Westerfeld

It's just . . . it feels like someone's going to ask me for ID. Like, writer ID. The — Scott Westerfeld

And hidden within the agony the strange clarity came again, as if the world had ordered itself into something that made perfect sense. — Scott Westerfeld

You're infamous, Tally. Everyone's terrified of you. The new system may have made the other cities nervous, but they seem to think my little gang of psychotic sixteen-year-olds is worse - Cable to Tally — Scott Westerfeld

There are probably a dozen perfect happy endings you could write. And a thousand bittersweet ones, and at least a million that are gloriously tragic. Alas, you only get to pick one. — Scott Westerfeld

Yeah, exactly. But, actually, boards prefer iron. All that glitters is not hovery. — Scott Westerfeld

What you do, the way you think, makes you beautiful. — Scott Westerfeld

They walked with a pedatory grace ... one of them ripped off their hood and said, "my name is Tally Youngblood and is a special circumstance" ... — Scott Westerfeld

You and David could both be right. Maybe human beings are programmed ... to help one another, even to fall in love. But just because it's human nature doesn't make it bad, Tally. Besides, we had a whole city of pretties to choose from, and we chose each other.-Zane — Scott Westerfeld

She smiled, turning toward Alek. You don't know what a friend you have in Dylan. — Scott Westerfeld

Sometimes the thoughts in my head get so bored they go out for a stroll through my mouth. This is rarely a good thing. — Scott Westerfeld

Sometimes it felt like her life was a series of falls from ever-greater heights. — Scott Westerfeld

I spilled more times than a glass of milk on a roller coaster. — Scott Westerfeld

Once there was a girl named Riley, the story began. Her heart was a secret garden, its stone walls cracked and weathered. And it was hungry. p160 — Scott Westerfeld

A rousing tale of techno-geek rebellion, as necessary and dangerous as file sharing, free speech, and bottled water on a plane. — Scott Westerfeld

Assisted him? Dylan made the repairs. I only fell and hit my head, from what I can recall. Yes, I make excellent deadweight. — Scott Westerfeld

Tally sighed, tipping her feet again to follow. "Maybe that's because they have better stuff to do than kid tricks. Maybe partying in town is better than hanging out in a bunch of old ruins."
Shay's eyes flashed. "Or maybe when they do the operation-when they grind and stretch your bones to the right shape, peel off your face and rub all your skin away, and stick in plastic cheekbones so you look like everyone else-maybe after going through all that you just aren't very interesting anymore. — Scott Westerfeld

Okay... That's still blind-making. — Scott Westerfeld

Deryn was quite astounding, really, and entirely worth throwing away an empire for. — Scott Westerfeld

It's not the traveling that takes courage Tally. I've done much longer trips on my own. It's leaving home. — Scott Westerfeld

You know,' I called, 'you're the one that's going to have to explain to Max how you got your blender back.'
I'll tell him I astral-projected. Butt-head. — Scott Westerfeld

You can tell a million different stories about love. Especially when it's love with someone who's different."
You mean a monster?" Coleman said.
"Well, that's what you think at first. But it's like, um, Beauty and the Beast. When you find out that the monster is actually ... nice."
...
"But doesn't real love work the other way round?" Kiralee asked. "You start by thinking someone's fabulous, and by the end of the piece you realize he's a monster!"
"Or that you're the monster yourself," Oscar said. — Scott Westerfeld

The thought of publishing - of the whole world reading Afterworlds - had always made Darcy feel naked and exposed, but loving had left her skinless. — Scott Westerfeld

Over his years of helping runaways to find the Smoke, David had encountered wild animals, forest fires, and bio-engineered poisonous plants. But nothing was more dangerous than a city afraid of change. — Scott Westerfeld

Shay's eyes flashed. "Or maybe when they do the operation - when they grind and stretch your bones to the right shape, peel off your face and rub all your skin away, and stick in plastic cheekbones so you look like everybody else - maybe after going through all that you just aren't very interesting anymore." Tally — Scott Westerfeld

Happy endings are popular. Do you not watch movies?"
"Yeah, but that's movies," Darcy groaned. "Books are above all that! — Scott Westerfeld

It's exciting. But you can't keep fighting the way things are forever. — Scott Westerfeld

As the serpentine expanse of glass drew open, the city seemed to wrap around them: rooftop gardens with stunted trees in pots, water towers like chunky flying saucers, the spires of distant skyscrapers. — Scott Westerfeld

I swallowed my screams whole. They went down my throat as sharp-cornered and cold as ice cubes. — Scott Westerfeld

In a novel you always knew the moment when something Happened, when someone Changed. But real life was full of gradual, piecemeal, continuous transformation. It was full of accidents and undefineables, and things that just happened on their own. The only certainty was 'It's complicated,' whether or not unicorns tolerated your touch. — Scott Westerfeld

Tally-When you looked around at everyone else how come you didn't notice they were brain damaged?
Az - We didn't have much to compare our fellow citizens with. Only a few colleagues who seemed different from most people, more engaged, but that was hardly a surprise.
History would indicate that the majority of people have always been sheep. Before the operation there were wars and mass hatred and clear cutting. Whatever these lesions make us, it isn't a far cry from how humanity was in the rusty era. These days we're just a bit easier to manage. — Scott Westerfeld

Bubbly is bogus. — Scott Westerfeld

It's just the way things are." she shrugged. "It's no one's fault."
"Or everyone's. — Scott Westerfeld

Don't worry," he kept saying. "The overworld can't hurt you if you stay calm." I wasn't calm at all. But my panic was like a poisonous snake at a zoo, staring at me from the other side of thick glass. Only Yamaraj's touch on my arm kept the glass from shattering. His skin seemed to burn against mine. — Scott Westerfeld

God, you mean I lost my virginity to the apocalypse?"
Morgan sighed again. "The whole thing was really embarrassing; my parents sent me to Brooklyn when they found out." She shrugged. "I thought I'd be safe in a gay bar, okay? What were you doing in there anyway?"
Lace looked at me sidelong. "You were where?"
I took a sip of beer, swallowed it. "I, uh, hadn't been in the city ... very long. I didn't know. — Scott Westerfeld

I knew what she was asking, of course. I'd been asking it myself a moment before. But I wasn't sure how you went from dreams to reality without the magic leaking out - or becoming too wild and powerful. — Scott Westerfeld

The world always had more details than you could remember, more than you could even see, and a thousand times more than you could ever write down. You were always deleting and forgetting far more than you could express in words. — Scott Westerfeld

What about a hoverboard?"
"It's waiting on the roof, of course." Dr. Cable snorted. "What is it about you miscreants and those things? — Scott Westerfeld

Alek: "Am I that obvious?"
Deryn: "No. Im just dead clever. — Scott Westerfeld

It's just programming" "No. It's because I love him — Scott Westerfeld

We writers always get our revenge on paper — Scott Westerfeld

Do you love him?"
Deryn swallowed, then pointed at the screen. "He makes me feel like that. Like flying. — Scott Westerfeld

A country with two kings will always falter. — Scott Westerfeld

Deryn felt brilliant, rising through the air at the center off everyone's attention, like an acrobat aloft on a swing. She wanted to make a speech:
Hey, all you sods, I can fly and you can't! A natural airman, in case you haven't noticed. And in conclusion, I'd like to add that I'm a girl and you can all get stuffed! — Scott Westerfeld

We don't have to look like everyone else...and act like everyone else. We've got a choice. We can grow up any way we want...It's about becoming what I want to become, not what some surgical committee thinks I should. — Scott Westerfeld

Their bodies fit perfectly like this, two continents pulled eons ago but now rejoined. — Scott Westerfeld

Hoverboarding looks so fun, like being a bird. But actually doing it is hard work."
Shay shrugged. "Being a bird's probably hard work too. Flapping your wings all day, you know? — Scott Westerfeld

Probably? So you're asking me to trust my life to steel wool and peanut butter?"
"Poisoned peanut butter."
"Cal, I don't care if it's nuclear peanut butter. — Scott Westerfeld

Do you promise?" He demanded again.
"I can't let you go, Alek." She said softly.
"You...what? — Scott Westerfeld

Aya, that's the barking strangest thing about battle - that it's real — Scott Westerfeld

You don't look very happy."
Tally tried to smile. David had shared his biggest secret with her; she should tell him hers. But she wasn't brave enough to say the words. "It's been a long night. That's all."
He smiled back. "Don't worry, it won't last forever. — Scott Westerfeld

The very idea of making shoes by hand boggled her mind. — Scott Westerfeld

Weird, even for one of us. Or maybe she's worse."
"Worse how?"
"Normal. — Scott Westerfeld

The sight of Ethan - of Scam, since this was a mission - sent a trickle of annoyance down Crash's spine. Not like all the little itches of tech, just the ever-present need to punch him in the face. — Scott Westerfeld

You just took on five million years of evolution again — Scott Westerfeld

Gravity was something you could beat; all it took was hydrogen, hot air, or even a bit of rope. But being a girl was a miserable, never-ending struggle. — Scott Westerfeld

Tally turned away. Five minutes was suddenly too long to stand here, eyes burning, unable to cry. — Scott Westerfeld

Perhaps the logical conclusion of everyone looking the same is everyone thinking the same. — Scott Westerfeld

humanity is a cancer on the body of the world — Scott Westerfeld

Blurbs don't work anymore!" was another. "You should make sure that the quotable lines of dialogue in your book never exceed a hundred and forty characters!" seemed at best debatable. — Scott Westerfeld

Even bloody and bruised, he had an odd sort of swagger, as if he crash-landed in giant air ships every day. — Scott Westerfeld

He turned to face her again, his late-pretty composure crumbling. "But you're ... "
"Pretty? Think again." She smiled. "I'm Tally Youngbood. My mind is very ugly. And I'm taking your car. — Scott Westerfeld