Patrick Rothfuss Quotes

Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Practice makes the master.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I needed to let them know they couldn't hurt me. I've learned that the best way to stay safe is to make your enemies think you can't be hurt.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“This story is for all the slightly broken people out there. I am one of you. You are not alone. You are all beautiful to me.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“You are not wise enough to fear me as I should be feared.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Poor manners on my part. What is your name?"
"Ria."
"Ria, is that short for Rian?"
"Yes, it is," she smiled.
"Rian, would you please cross your legs?"
The request was made with such an earnest tone that not even a titter escaped the class. Looking puzzled, Rian crossed her legs.
"Now that the gates of hell are closed," Hemme said in his normal rougher tones. "We can begin.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Why would I want to win anything other than a beautiful game?”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“All stories are true," Skarpi said. "But this one really happened, if that's what you mean.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I cannot help but wonder how many of us walk through our lives, day after day, feeling slightly broken and alone, surrounded all the time by others who feel exactly the same way.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

I've never really understood the desire people have to quantify a baby. "He's X big and Y long," As if the baby is a fish you're not sure you're going to keep. Or some prize potato you're hoping will win a prize at the county fair.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“After an awkward pause, Bast extended his hand. Chronicler hesitated for a bare moment before reaching out quickly, as if he were sticking his hand into a fire.
Nothing happened, both of them seemed moderately surprised.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Kvothe addressed them bitingly. "Five fingers and flesh with blood beneath. One could almost believe that on the other end of that hand lay a person of some sort.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“But to love something despite. To know the flaws and love them too. This is rare and pure and perfect.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“There is something powerfully beguiling about the excited eyes of a young woman. They can pull all manner of nonsense out of a foolish young man, and I was no exception to this rule.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I heard the silence pouring from them. The audience held themselves quiet, tense, and tight, as if the song had burned them worse than flame.
Each person held their wounded selves closely, clutching their pain as if it were a precious thing.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I shook again, tasted plum, and suddenly the words were pouring out of me."She said I sang before I spoke. She said when I was just a baby she had the habit of humming when she held me. Nothing like a song. Just a descending third. Just a soothing sound. Then one day she was walking me around the camp, and she heard me echo it back to her. Two octaves higher. A tiny piping third. She said it was my first song. We sang it back and forth to each other. For years."I choked and clenched my teeth.
"You can say it,"Auri said softly."It's okay if you say it."
"I'm never going to see her again,"I choked out. Then I began to cry in earnest.
"It's okay,"Auri said softly."I'm here. You're safe.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Maple. Maypole
Catch and carry.
Ash and Ember.
Elderberry.
Woolen. Woman.
Moon at night.
Willow. Window.
Candlelight.
Fallow farrow.
Ash and oak.
Bide and borrow.
Chimney smoke.
Barrel. Barley.
Stone and stave.
Wind and water.
Misbehave.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Vashet shook a finger and cuffed the young girl on the side of her head. It was the same scolding any child receives. Stay out of the neighbor's garden. Don't tease the Bentons' sheep. Don't play tag among the thousand spinning knives of your people's sacred tree.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“The sweet smile of a young woman. There is nothing better in the world. It is worth more than salt. Something in us sickens and dies without it. I am sure of this. Such a simple thing. How strange. How wonderful and strange.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“It was the sort of anger that comes to a slow boil inside the hearts of good men who want justice, and finding it out oftheir grasp, decide vengeance is the next best thing.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

You don't understand," I said, growing irritated. "I don't have the slightest idea what the Lethani really is! It's not a path, but it helps choose a path.It's the simplest way,but it is not easy to see.
Honestly,you people sound like drunk cartographers.
-Kvothe

— Patrick Rothfuss

I was no stranger to bar fights. You'd think they'd be rare in a place like the University, but liquor is the great leveler. After six or seven solid drinks, there is very little difference between a miller on the outs with his wife and a young alchemist who's done poorly on his exams. They're both equally eager to skin their knuckles on someone else's teeth.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“For without hope, what do any of us have?”

— Patrick Rothfuss

If whatever you're going to do is wrong, you might as well do whatever you want.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“A story is like a nut. A fool will swallow it whole and choke. A fool will throw it away, think it of little worth. But a wise woman finds a way to crack the shell and eat the meant inside.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

What makes you think I am not teaching you? Aside from the fact that you refuse to learn.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Sleep met him like a lover in an empty bed.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Eventually, Bast spoke up. "May I ask a question, Reshi?" Kote smiled gently. "Always, Bast." "A troublesome question?" "Those tend to be the only worthwhile kind.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Appearance is a type of power.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“You were a little wild around the eyes there," she (Denna) said gently. "I don't think I've ever seen you out of sorts before."
I took another slow breath. I'm out of sorts all the time," I (Kvothe) said. "I just don't show it.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“These were bad memories, but over the years I had brought them out and handled them so often there was hardly a sharp edge left to them.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Stories don't need to be new to bring you joy. Some stories are like familiar friends. Some are dependable as bread.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“The point of all of this is control. First you must have control of yourself. Then you can gain control of your surroundings. Then you gain control of whoever stands against you. This is the Lethani.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I sat still as stone with my fingers aching. I wanted to play, not listen. Want isn't strong enough a word. I was hungry for it, starved. I'm not proud of the fact that I thought about stealing his lute and leaving in the dark of the night.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

They fight like puppies. They are young, and boys. They are full of anger and impatience. Women have less trouble with these things. It's part of what makes us better fighters.

— Patrick Rothfuss

If it's something everyone knows, I can't afford to ask.

— Patrick Rothfuss

But Teccam claims that out of all the spirits, only wine is suited to reminiscence. He said a good wine allows clarity and focus, while still allowing a bit of comforting coloration of the memory.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I imagine I could do anything," I said easily. "If you would ask it of me.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

I am not accusing you of engaging in boyish fancy. I am advising you to avoid the appearance of boyish fancy.
Master Loren to Kvothe

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Congratulations, he said. "That was the stupidest thing I've ever seen." His expression was a mix of awe and disbelief. "Ever.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

This was appropriate, as it was the greatest silence of the three, wrapping the others inside itself.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“No matter where you are, people are basically the same.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Careful boy, that one will steal your heart. Men fall for her like wheat before a sickle blade.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Luckily, languages are like musical instruments: the more you know, the easier it is to pick up new ones.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“Denna lifted her glass in a salute. To the gullibility of the well-educated.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I'm a fan of books that are almost languorous in their storytelling. That is a little bit lost sometimes in the modern media that we have.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

I think one of the biggest mistakes you can make as a writer is to follow your initial [writing] plan too stringently. A story needs room to grow and evolve.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I can sell anything to anyone. That is actually my superpower. I am really good at negotiating and persuading.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

Don't get me wrong, hard and soft fantasy stories can both be good. But you need to know which camp you're in. I'm into realism. I'm a hard fantasy guy.

— Patrick Rothfuss

“I'd like to work with some of the videogame companies for the simple fact that they obviously need some sort of writer's help. I play videogames, and lately it's hard for me to enjoy them because I'm spending all my time cringing at the corny dialogue, thin characters, and glaring plot holes.”

— Patrick Rothfuss

I'm just very careful with my words when I write. Obsessively careful. I'm the sort of person who worries about the difference between "slim" and "slender.

— Patrick Rothfuss