the story is not a pretty one. there is violence in it. And cruelty. But stories that are not pretty have a certain value, too, I suppose. Everything, as you well know (having lived in this world long enough to have figured out a thing or two for yourself), cannont always be sweetness and light.

I actually do like traveling.

There can be a lot of longevity in the repetition of things being told again and again in a variety of ways.

In The Tale of Despereaux, there is a lot of darkness, a lot of despair. There's also a lot of light, redemption, hope. There's forgiveness, there's friendship, there's love. But the world in all of its potential craziness is also there.

Men and boys always want to go fight. They are always looking for a reason to go to war. It is the saddest thing. They have this abiding notion that war is fun. And no history lesson will convince them differently.

In a dark time, doors will sometimes magically open and let us step inside to the warmth and light of a community.

I didn't know anything about writing a screenplay, but somehow I ended up rewriting a screenplay.