Sarah Waters Quotes

Powerful Sarah Waters for Daily Growth

About Sarah Waters

Sarah Waters, a renowned British novelist, was born on November 20, 1966, in Slough, England. Raised primarily by her grandmother, Waters developed a deep affection for the Victorian era, which would later become the backdrop for many of her novels. She studied English at Hull University and King's College London, where she honed her skills as a writer. Waters' writing career began in earnest in 1995 with the publication of 'Tipping the Velvet,' a lesbian love story set in late-Victorian England. This debut novel earned her the £15,000 Betty Trask Award and critical acclaim. Her second novel, 'Affinity' (1999), also set in Victorian times, delved into themes of spiritualism and lesbian identity. In 2000, Waters published 'The Night Watch,' a complex narrative exploring the lives of four women in post-World War II London. The novel was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won the Stonewall Award. Her next book, 'Fingersmith' (2002), a Victorian crime novel with lesbian romance, was also shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won the Orange Prize for Fiction. Waters' most famous work, 'The Little Stranger' (2009), returned to her love of the Victorian era and explored themes of decay, class, and the supernatural. The novel was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and adapted into a film in 2018. Sarah Waters continues to write and explore historical fiction, often with a focus on marginalized voices and hidden histories. Her works are noted for their rich detail, intricate plotting, and complex characters.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"In every closed eye, in every turned back, there is a world."

The quote by Sarah Waters suggests that within each person who seems distant or unapproachable, there exists an entire universe of thoughts, feelings, and experiences waiting to be discovered. It encourages empathy and understanding, as it invites us to imagine the complexities and richness hidden behind closed eyes and turned backs.

"Secrets defuse slowly, like smoke, and even when they've risen high into the air, you can still smell their origin."

This quote by Sarah Waters suggests that secrets, much like smoke, don't vanish instantly but linger, diffusing slowly over time. Even when a secret appears to be fully exposed or resolved, its influence or impact can still be felt, as one can still "smell its origin" - a lingering reminder of where it came from or the consequences it had. This quote underscores the lasting effects that secrets can have on individuals and relationships, long after they've been disclosed.

"We live in the flicker – to us it appears continuous. A steady lighting in a room."

This quote by Sarah Waters emphasizes the human tendency to perceive continuity in our experiences, when in reality, life is often filled with moments of change or "flicker". The "steady lighting" in a room is an analogy for this perceived continuity; we see the light as constant even though it's actually flickering. This quote encourages us to recognize that our perception of life may not always reflect its true, constantly changing nature.

"There are many kinds of women in this world... but, generally speaking, there are two: girls and ladies."

This quote by Sarah Waters suggests that there are primarily two distinct categories of women: "girls" and "ladies." The term "girls" may represent women who are more youthful, carefree, or less constrained by societal expectations, while "ladies" could symbolize women who have been molded by society to embody traditional feminine qualities such as grace, elegance, and refinement. This dichotomy may imply a critique of the constraints that society places on women, suggesting that there should be more diversity and freedom for women to express themselves authentically without being confined to these narrow definitions.

"The past is not the past. It isn't even past."

Sarah Waters' quote, "The past is not the past. It isn't even past," suggests that our understanding and interpretation of history can be continually challenged, revised, and reevaluated as we grow, learn, and gain new perspectives. The past is never truly behind us; it remains relevant in shaping our present and influencing our future. This quote encourages the reader to question historical narratives, consider the impact of personal experiences, and acknowledge that the truth can be fluid and evolving.

The early '20s were like the waist of an hourglass. Lots of things were hurtling toward it and squeezing through it and then hurtling out the other side.

- Sarah Waters

Through, Other, Early 20s, Hourglass

I love research. Sometimes I think writing novels is just an excuse to allow myself this leisurely time of getting to know a period and reading its books and watching its films. I see it as a real treat.

- Sarah Waters

Love, Treat, Allow, Real Treat

I used to hate flying. I would sit there, rigid, convinced that if I relaxed, the plane would drop out of the sky.

- Sarah Waters

Sky, Drop, Plane, Relaxed

My story is the story of many postwar British families. Upward mobility. A council house and then new affluence.

- Sarah Waters

New, Mobility, British, Postwar

I never expected my books to do even as well as they have. I still feel grateful for it, every single day.

- Sarah Waters

Grateful, Still, Expected, Every Single Day

People say, 'You're like Dickens', but I'm not like Dickens. Zadie Smith is a Dickensian writer because she's writing about society now, just as Dickens was writing about his society.

- Sarah Waters

Like, About, Smith, Dickens

I was mad about the theatre growing up, really mad. We had a local theatre, the Torch, and I used to usher there. I would see the shows over and over again.

- Sarah Waters

Over, Again, About, Usher

My nan was a nursery maid. Most people weren't in big houses. They were maids of all work.

- Sarah Waters

Big, Most, Nursery, Maids

Ours is a world which feels so unsettled and dangerous in large ways, whether it's terrorism or global financial meltdown or climate change - huge things that affect us deeply, and yet things about which we can do, individually, very little.

- Sarah Waters

Financial, Very, Feels, Unsettled

Novels are nothing but evolution, but there does come a point when that stops, and the story is sealed within the pages of the book. That doesn't happen with a play. Even performances are different every night.

- Sarah Waters

Play, Happen, Within, Novels

I've ended up feeling fonder of 'The Paying Guests' than of any of my other novels.

- Sarah Waters

Other, Fonder, Paying, Novels

I like dramas because there's a big overlap between film and fiction, so I feel relatively qualified to talk about plot and characterisation and that sort of thing.

- Sarah Waters

Big, Like, Qualified, Overlap

The relationship you have with your mother is like nothing else. They do kind of know everything about you, even though they don't confront it. That is often a dynamic from childhood onwards. As a teenager, you want to be independent and do slightly furtive things.

- Sarah Waters

Independent, About, Slightly, Teenager

Sometimes I think I'd be perfectly happy to go on rewriting 'Tipping the Velvet' forever because it was so much fun.

- Sarah Waters

Think, I Think, Perfectly, So Much Fun

I knew I'd always be a second-rate academic, and I thought, 'Well, I'd rather be a second-rate novelist or even a third-rate one'.

- Sarah Waters

Thought, Always, Rather, Novelist

I love film and, particularly, shorts. You don't get to see them often, and they're a great little form, like a short story.

- Sarah Waters

Love, Like, Particularly, Shorts

When theatre works, it's like nothing else, and when it doesn't, which is often, it's excruciating. It's perhaps not so excruciating when a novel goes wrong, but there is a kind of magic that can and should happen.

- Sarah Waters

Magic, Happen, Which, Excruciating

I was encouraged to be imaginative and read, and it was a great childhood for a budding writer because I had the time and the freedom to go into a world of my own.

- Sarah Waters

Childhood, My Own, Read, Imaginative

I used to write at home, but it didn't ever occur to me to be a writer.

- Sarah Waters

Me, Used, Ever, Occur

I've never managed to get very far with Henry James.

- Sarah Waters

Never, Very, Far, Henry

My parents were the first in our family to go to grammar school. My grandparents were in service.

- Sarah Waters

School, Grammar, Grammar School

It was a great childhood. We weren't especially wealthy or anything, but I felt I had a kind of safety and freedom.

- Sarah Waters

Freedom, Childhood, Wealthy, Safety

I wouldn't mind being a fly on the wall in a few Victorian parlours.

- Sarah Waters

Mind, Fly, Few, Victorian

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