I'm intrigued by the way in which physical appearance can often direct a person's life; things happen differently for a beautiful woman than for a plain one. Penelope Lively appearancebeautifuldifferently Change image and share on social
It was a combination of an intense interest in children's literature, which I've always had, and the feeling that I'd just have a go and see if I could do it. Penelope Lively childcombinationfelt Change image and share on social
The present hardly exists, after all-it becomes the past even as it happens. A tricky medium, time - and central to the concerns of fiction. Penelope Lively centralconcernexist Change image and share on social
I'm now an agnostic but I grew up on the King James version, which I'm eternally grateful for. Penelope Lively agnosticeternallygrateful Change image and share on social
I didn't write anything until I was well over 30. Penelope Lively write Change image and share on social
I have long been interested in landscape history, and when younger and more robust I used to do much tramping of the English landscape in search of ancient field systems, drove roads, indications of prehistoric settlement. Penelope Lively ancientdriveenglish share on social
The pleasure of writing fiction is that you are always spotting some new approach, an alternative way of telling a story and manipulating characters; the novel is such a wonderfully flexible form. Penelope Lively alternativeapproachcharacter Change image and share on social
I'm not an historian and I'm not wanting to write about how I perceive the social change over the century as a historian, but as somebody who's walked through it and whose life has been dictated by it too, as all our lives are. Penelope Lively centurychangedictate share on social
Conventional forms of narrative allow for different points of view, but for this book I wanted a structure whereby each of the main characters contributed a distinctive version of the story. Penelope Lively bookcharactercontribute Change image and share on social
