Political activists of all stripes are usually a wacky bunch, and never more so than in a system like Britain's, where power is effected via the quiescence of the electorate as much as its convictions.

There's a flip side to having prominent public intellectuals, which is that they start meddling in politics and often with quite disastrous results.

Schadenfreude is so nutritious.

Don't look back until you've written an entire draft.

The high arts of literature and music stand in a curious relationship to one another, at once securely comfortable and deeply uneasy - rather like a long-term marriage.

When anyone starts out to do something creative - especially if it seems a little unusual - they seek approval, often from those least inclined to give it. But a creative life cannot be sustained by approval, any more than it can be destroyed by criticism - you learn this as you go on.

The fictional work is a kind of actor that wears a satirical garb but can put on other costumes as well.