I decided to divide the collection into two halves: the first consists of pieces mainly on individual writers, musicians or filmmakers; the second consists of autobiographical works, expanded to include a few reflections on politics, general literary issues and sometimes my own writing. Each half has a specific character. Many (if not most) of the figures discussed in Part One are outside the mainstream or the canon: they have been marginalised either by their gender, their aesthetic, by some awkwardness of temperament or even (from the British point of view) simply by having the bad manners to write in a language other than English. Hence 'Marginal Notes'. In Part Two I noticed there was another emerging theme: the importance of doubt to (my) writing, its potential as both a liberating and an inhibiting force, culminating in my Tolkien lecture on this subject. Hence 'Doubtful Statements'.' - - Jonathan Coe, July 2013
