On writing, and the Bunny Booker

So, the 26 Annual Speech last night, with the Booker-winning Howard Jacobson. As you might expect, he was in ebullient form. Highlights included:

"You are not a writer if you are not thin-skinned... You wish to remake the world a little with your words."

"The publishing world has got very scared of comedy in literature."

"Being given the idea that you have a gift can actually give you the gift."

"I cannot side with [Richard] Dawkins; the current language of atheism is pathetic."

"Without the 'thou shalt not', adultery is not worth committing."

"If you are involved in language, the Judeo-Christian God is important - he had some very good words."

"The point of a novel is that it questions everything."

"Your touch must be light; if you know where you want to go, things will be forced... The act of writing goes beyond the mere you."

"The importance of art is that it doesn't have opinions."

"We're being clumsy and gross when we tell people what we think."

"You mustn't use a novel as a vehicle of vengence. You need a smattering of hate, but it can't be your engine, because your characters are dead before they've lived."

We also got introduced to the Bunny Booker. Howard the winner there too: