Snapshot Quotes

“This is the sort of thing I talk about when I explain to readers the difference between what I perceive as a science fiction writer (someone who tries to realistically extrapolate the future) and a fantasy writer (someone who comes up with an interesting effect to explore, then justifies it with worldbuilding). In the end, both are trying to explore what it means to be human. One starts with what we have, and works forward to reach something interesting, then extrapolates the ramifications. The other starts with the interesting thing, then asks how this could have come about. That’s obviously not a catch-all definition, but it has worked for me as one way to explore the genres.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“that skill, which seemed so natural to children. They didn’t have to work at having fun.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Some people were reliable even after finding out that nothing they did mattered in the slightest.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“This Snapshot had been created overnight, and was an exact replica of a day ten days back: the first of May, 2018.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“This life is too broken. Too many people gone wrong, too many neighborhoods left to rot. The Snapshot is . . . is falling apart. Too many Deviations.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Don’t let the runner draw you into being careless. Be quick, but efficient. Control the situation.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Serial killers like this . . . lots of them are looking for power. Control. They feel they don’t have control in their lives, so they control others. Imagine being paranoid. You get the idea you’re in a Snapshot, that you’re not real.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Best way to catch someone is to not let them know they’re being chased.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Something about wanting to fix the world. Whether you joined up because your family pushed you into it, or just because you got recruited at the right time, there was a story you told yourself. That you were doing something good, something right.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“You saw something about a person in that moment that they wouldn’t ever know—couldn’t ever know—about themselves.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Why work a retail job when you’ve just found out you aren’t real? Why bother with anything when your entire world is going to end around bedtime?”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot

“Being a cop, a detective on real cases, is mostly about boredom. Sitting around doing nothing, pushing paper, talking to people. Waiting. It’s about waiting for something to go wrong. And when we get called, when we have something to do, it means that by definition we’re too late.”
― Brandon Sanderson, Snapshot