"a very nice fictional young man"

The Independent just interviewed A Series of Unfortunate Events author Lemony Snicket. When asked what he thought of Harry Potter, he replied:

Harry Potter seems like a very nice young fictional man. If I were in the habit of befriending fictional people, I'd be happy to make his acquaintance, but the trouble with fictional friendships is that you tend to find yourself sitting in a café talking excitedly to an empty chair. After several hours, the staff will probably force you to leave, even if there are still uneaten madeleines sitting on your plate, all ready to be covered in strawberry jam. Normally, if you were being treated unfairly, you could count on a friend to help you, but a fictional friend - even one with fictional magic powers - will probably just stand there with a confused and fictional look on his or her face.

Definitely quote of the day material, I thought.

I keep trying to conjure a convincingly calm and non-fictional look for my own face, but somehow I don't think it's working.