Natalie Babbitt Quotes

I believe that curiosity, wonder and passion are defining qualities of imaginative minds and great teachers; that restlessness and discontent are vital things; and that intense experience and suffering instruct us in ways that less intense emotions can never do.

Writing for children hadn't occurred to me when I was younger, but nine years of teaching in the upper elementary grades had given me a deep appreciation of the gifts and graces that are specific to individuals with 10 or 11 years of experience as human beings.

Fantasy is my genre and my home in the writing world. I consider it the biggest writing room in all literature, where there are literally no boundaries at all.

Children will often write, 'We love your books because there are no adults in them.'

When I'm in a place like Iceland, I allow myself to take a little more time to divert off onto other paths creatively for a while and see what comes to me.

I never know what's going to happen or what opportunities are going to be given to me. I've found with the opportunities that I've been given have made it possible for me to explore different characters and exciting stories.

I like feeling my way into different minds and experiences. It comes naturally and always has.

I write books that seem more suitable for children, and that's OK with me. They are a better audience and tougher critics. Kids tell you what they think, not what they think they should think.

I resisted children's writing for a long time. I saw myself as a writer of literary fiction. But I had so much more fun writing kids' books.

When I don't know what to do with a character, that's when I say yes to it. When it's far away from the way I am, the way I feel or the way I think, that's when it's more attractive.

I do not want to say I'm a product designer. I've been trying all my life to not be categorized, to learn something and then to forget about it.

Fantasy enabled me to break the shackles and create a whole new level of 'the world is in danger' stakes.

You are always drawing from your personal life and using your imagination to fill in the blanks.

The words come from here. From memories, from dreams, from people I've known. I'm always writing and reflecting on life. I want to suck it all in.

I think I'm constantly surprised that adults can't deal with illogical things or thing that are weird or psychedelic. I've never really lost that.

It's a delightful thing to do, to entertain kids. They're a completely different audience because of their total lack of irony. You're always after a total suspension of disbelief, but the only people you can really achieve it with is children.

I'd always wanted to do a children's series.

It's really fun to write something for kids. You can make it a little bit more extreme and crazy than you would for adults.

Holding women to the idea of 'write what you know' subtly reinforces the status quo. Writing is a chance to celebrate who we are. But it's also a chance to celebrate who we could be.

There's a children's book by Anthony Browne called 'The Tunnel' that I've always loved.

The last thing I want to do is to write about real things. I am not interested in reality and in real human beings and their real day-to-day problems - I just want to say to them, 'Hold still, and I'm just going to unpack, see what's inside.'

The idea that I'm 45 doesn't mean that I have no creativity. I'm like a student: it's the same - it's not a war!

To play is to act out and be willful, exultant and committed, as if one is assured of one's prospects.

I've always loved massive worlds, whether in fantasy or science fiction. I like the idea of making my own rules as well as utilizing everything that I love or inspires me. It's very freeing to know you can write a story that can be as big as your own imagination.

Use your imaginations, and use your empathy. If you don't do that, you're limiting yourself as an artist, and you're hurting the world.