In The Last 15 Or 20 Years,

Completing A Book, It's A Little Like Having A Baby.

It's Part Of A Writer's Profession, As It's Part Of A Spy's Profession, To Prey On The Community To Which He's Attached, To Take Away Information - Often In Secret - And To Translate That Into Intelligence For His Masters, Whether It's His Readership Or His Spy Masters. And I Think That Both Professions Are Perhaps Rather Lonely.

A Good Writer Is An Expert On Nothing Except Himself. And On That Subject, If He Is Wise, He Holds His Tongue.

The Longing We Have To Communicate Cleanly And Directly With People Is Always Obstructed By Qualifications And Often With Concern About How Our Messages Will Be Received.

It Was A Charming Fantasy Of Romantics That The Spies Would Stop Spying, That Political Conflict Would End And Politicians Would Tell The Truth. Unfortunately That Has Not Been The Case.