David Gemmell
David Gemmell
David Andrew Gemmellwas a British author of heroic fantasy, best known for his debut, Legend. A former journalist and newspaper editor, Gemmell had his first work of fiction published in 1984. He went on to write over thirty novels. Gemmell's works display violence, yet also explore themes of honour, loyalty and redemption. There was always a strong heroic theme but nearly always the heroes were flawed in some way. With over one million copies sold, his work continues to sell...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth1 August 1948
Never violate a woman, nor harm a child. Do not lie, cheat or steal. These things are for lesser men. Protect the weak against the evil strong. And never allow thoughts of gain to lead you into the persuit of evil.
Heroes are people who face down their fears. It is that simple. A child afraid of the dark who one day blows out the candle; a women terrified of the pain of childbirth who says, 'It is time to become a mother'. Heroism does not always live on the battlefield.
Many fantasy novels - 'Lord of the Rings', for instance, or 'Lavondyss' by Robert Holdstock - are beautifully written. Geoff Ryman's 'The Child Garden' is exquisite and utterly beguiling. Mervyn Peake's 'Gormenghast' trilogy is an astonishing piece of multi-faceted storytelling. So quality of writing does not condemn the genre.
You may think life is sweet now, but when death is a heartbeat away then life becomes unbearably desirable. And when you survive, everything you do will be enhanced and filled with greater joy: the sunlight, the breeze, a good wine, a woman's lips, a child's laughter.
Warriors fear surrender. They are proud and defiant. They will fight to the death for what they believe in. They will struggle to conquer. Love is not about conquest. The truth is a man can only find true love when he surrenders to it. When he opens his heart to the partner of his soul and says: 'here it is! the very essence of me! It is yours to nurture or destroy.
If you look at any ancient civilization, they've all used fantasy stories to train the young.
Societies need heroes. So we travel to places where the revisionists cannot dismantle the great.
When healers yearn to kill then hope begins to die ... Evil cannot be overcome by evil.
A man's strength is ultimately born of his knowledge of his own weakness ...
I don't give a damn, laddie. Until the actual moment, when they cut me down, I shall still be looking to win. And the gods of war are fickle at best.
No one can take away the freedom of a man's soul.
The point is [...] that you never know whether you've lost until you've lost. Anything can happen.
They dont understand what real treasure is. They see it in gold and copper, and tin. They see in herds of horses or cattle. They gather treasures to themselves, building great storehouses, which they guard ferociously. Then they die. What good is it then?
I am a stranger. You do not need to lie to me or pretend. Only with friends do you need masks..