History tends to change people who think they're changing it.

Granny Weatherwax was not a good loser. From her point of view, losing was something that happened to other people.

A number of religions in Ankh-Morpork still practiced human sacrifice, except that they didn't really need to practice any more because they had got so good at it.

Knowing things is magical, if other people don't know them.

The ideal death, I think, is what was the ideal Victorian death, you know, with your grandchildren around you, a bit of sobbing. And you say goodbye to your loved ones, making certain that one of them has been left behind to look after the shop.

But there was more to it than that. As the Amazing Maurice said, it was just a story about people and rats. And the difficult part of it was deciding who the people were, and who were the rats.

The reason that clichés become clichés is that they are the hammers and screwdrivers in the toolbox of communication.