I waste most of the day, then finally start to write around 3 P.M., totally disgusted with myself for my wasteful nature. – Alain de Botton
All tours are filled with humiliation. My publisher once hired a private jet to fly me to a venue where 1,000 people were waiting. It almost bankrupted him. – Alain de Botton
There’s something called religion, and it was invented a long time ago by people who felt very out of control with their lives, who didn’t know… why the sun always rose over the mountains. – Alain de Botton
I love novels where not much ‘happens’ but where the interest is in the ideas and analyses of characters. – Alain de Botton
The number one person who needs my books is me. I’m not some sort of disinterested guru who has worked life out and is handing things out to the poor people who might not have life worked out. – Alain de Botton
The greatest compliment I get about my writing is when people say, ‘How did you know so much about me?’ And of course, the answer is very simple: ‘I just observed myself without sentimentality.’ – Alain de Botton
I keep a picture of my beloved children close by. Also, water and plenty of pads and pens. – Alain de Botton
The claims I’m making for art are simply the claims that we naturally make around music or around poetry. We’re much more relaxed around those art forms. We’re willing to ask, ‘How could this find a place in my heart?’ – Alain de Botton