J.A. White > Quotes

“And now I realize---so what if I write scary stories? I might hurt someone with nouns and adjectives, but I would never hurt someone for real.”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Why destroy the World when you can watch the World destroy itself?”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees

“Nothing quells the dark temptations of power better than empathy.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“What if she was thinking about this all wrong? What if she did deserve her powers after all? What if her fault was . . . Self-doubt.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“Alex woke up in the lower half of a bunk bed. He had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there. He lay perfectly still, his body frozen with fear. Gradually, the events of the previous night returned to him. The elevator. The apartment. The witch. Except she’s not really a witch, Alex thought, his mind racing. Witches aren’t real. She’s just some crazy lady who thinks she’s a witch. But then why did I see a TV that wasn’t really there? Did she hypnotize me or something? Alex clutched his blanket as a question of more immediate concern popped into his head. Who’s sleeping on the top bunk?”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Of course, if he accepted what the woman had said at face value, that meant the apartment was capable of reading children’s minds in order to lure them with the appropriate bait. Like a smarter version of the candy house in “Hansel and Gretel,” Alex thought. In my case, a scary movie did the trick. He stared at the clothes before him.”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Our village has its own brand of sickness," Kara said. "Besides, I think you can find beauty anywhere if you look hard enough. Even here." "Perhaps," Mary said, "but it's a dark, diseased sort of beauty.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“She could see her many faults reflected in nearly all the objects littering the floor. I'm lacking in so many ways, she thought.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“Kara nodded, and then watched with surprise as her mind leaked a thought she didn't even know she had into the ground. There is good in everyone. It slipped into the sludge and flowed away.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“You can use the grimoire, but you don't need it," Mary continued. "Not when it comes to animals. That is your special gift. This is true magic, not magic stolen from the pages of a spellbook. You will have to learn how to wield it. It will not be easy.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“Impossible," Kara said. "I'm surprised, Kara Westfall," replied a man sitting against the opposite side of the tree. "After everything you've been through, I was certain you would have stricken that deceitful word from your vocabulary by now.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“You don't have to understand," Natacha said. "That's the joy of being a child. You just have to do as you're told.”
― J.A. White

“Possibility is not universal, Kara. It's a matter of ability.”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees

“Four hours?”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“A pair of bushy-tailed squirrels down the railing of the ramp, teeth flashing; Cordelia swatted them over the side.”
― J.A. White

“Just because students failed to solve a riddle, you made them hide their faces in shame and become servants? That was beyond cruel.”
― J.A. White

“zombie now banging on the window of Barbara’s car—yet she was”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Good stories build their own worlds. Events that might seem crazy or unlikely in reality can make perfect sense within the right context. That's called Interior Logic.”
― J.A. White

“And I don't need anything from this room to prove that I deserve my powers back. I know I do. I am-and always will be-what my people claimed was impossible: a good witch!”
― J.A. White

“satisfaction. “Good news,” she said. “Your story might not have made any sense, but it still got the job done.” Alex’s face flushed, this time with anger instead of embarrassment. He was tired of hearing his writing criticized.”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Stories are just stories," Kara said. "People used to speak ill of me all the time. Doesn't make it true." "Sometimes lies do grow in the telling," Mary said. Then she leaned forward, her gray eyes flickering in the firelight. "But in my particular case, everything you've heard is true. Every unimaginable horror happened just the way the talespinners say. It's important you know that, Kara Westfall.”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees

“You're not like that anymore! I know you! The real you! You helped us! You're good! The witch who did all those terrible things is gone forever!" There was a long silence. And then, from deep within the shadows, came a hoarse response: "Are you so sure?”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees

“Because we were kind" Alex said. "And kindness beats cruelty every time”
― J.A. White

“There can be no redemption for me . . . unless you can restore all the children whose lives I stole back to the way they were. Can you do that, wexari?" Her face brightened with a brief glimmer of hope. "Can you make everything go back to the way it was?" "I can't," Kara said softly. "No one can." "You world, though," Mary said, "if it were within your power to do so. Perhaps that's enough. And perhaps I can still offer you a tiny bit of help in return.”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees

“If I had used my powers better, none of this world have happened. Father would still be Father. Rygoth would still be imprisoned. I don't deserve to be a witch.”
― J.A. White, Well of Witches

“Alex stepped inside and clicked the B button. The basement was his favorite place in the entire apartment building. It was spooky and weird and packed ceiling-high with towers of knickknacks left behind by former tenants, like a graveyard for unwanted items. The most amazing part, however, was the boiler, an iron monster built nearly sixty years ago. Alex called it Old Smokey. It was his destination tonight. The elevator doors closed, and the car began”
― J.A. White, Nightbooks

“Sorry.”

“Never had much use for that word,” Natacha said. “It ain’t magic. It don’t undo what you’ve done. It’s just a word.”
― J.A. White

“Believe you have the power to change the world, and you will. Forget the Forest Demon. Doubt is your greatest enemy right now.”
― J.A. White, The Whispering Trees