People were always sorry. Sorry they had done what they had done, sorry they were doing what they were doing, sorry they were going to do what they were going to do; but they still did whatever it is. The sorrow never stopped them; it just made them feel better. And so the sorrow never stopped.
Iain BanksHalf the fun of writing a novel is finding out from other people later on what you actually meant.
Iain BanksSmell is a very animal thing, almost reptilian, where the more cerebral things like reading less so.
Iain BanksTechnology determines the possibilities of society. It doesn't matter whether you start out from a fascist state or a communist state or a free-market state
Iain Banks