It doubles your perception, to write from the point of view of someone you're not.
Michael Ondaatje

The past is still, for us, a place that is not safely settled.
Michael Ondaatje

Right now, I have no idea what I will write or if I will write again.
Michael Ondaatje

I tend not to know what the plot is or the story is or even the theme. Those things come later, for me.
Michael Ondaatje

Truth, at the wrong time, can be dangerous.
Michael Ondaatje

It's why you create characters: so you can argue with yourself.
Michael Ondaatje

You don't want to write your own opinion, you don't want to just represent yourself, but represent yourself through someone else.
Michael Ondaatje

Once I've discovered the story, I might restructure it, maybe move things around, set up a clue that something is going to happen later, but that happens much later in an editorial capacity.
Michael Ondaatje