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Woodlouse, the preamble doesn't really but there are plenty of hints in the puzzle itself?

I'm still not seeing how the two surnames, given by the pairs of "special" clues, relate to the final quotation. The "obvious" interpretation of the 9+9 instruction seems to relate more to another, famous, work. More hints please!

Have you looked at he spare words from the four clues, the surnames are a hint but the spare words pinpoint the location in a very famous work

I'm only about 2/3 there with the gridfill, and happy to plug away with that - it's become quite fun.

But I have some questions about entries I've already filled in : surely 11D is "I WILL", and isn't the last clause of the preamble unnecessary ? For 6D I've entered LISKS, assuming the definition comes from 21. But I'm struggling to see what the intermediate answer for 6D was. Liski is a place about halfway between Ukraine and Stalingrad, any connection ? Do they make toffees there ? Similarly in 8D I've entered DHARNAS (definition from 11), but have no idea what the intermediate form was.

Hi meursault, I agree re 11d.
6d. Kissel from artel.
8d. Hardpans, H + ard + (snap reversed)

Meursault,

No, that last clause of the preamble is justified, because Chambers only contains a listing for 'I'll'. Pre-treatment answer for 6D is a Russian pudding beginning with 'K'; that for 8D is HARDPANS.

Finished the crossword, after a struggle, but cannot parse 1A. Any hints? Thought this was an excellent puzzle, and the grid construction is superb.

crucifer,

In 1Ac, "the one choosing" is a definition for a treated form of one of the other across clues. That leaves the clue as "Master, second matron". Take the common one-letter abbreviation for "Master" and add a five-letter word meaning "second" (think of "the first or the second" as meaning "the one or the -----").

I'm at the vexing stage of having done a full grid, worked out the two nine-letter words, noted the hint to the location of the quotation and identified the two characters, but the final penny hasn't dropped so I'm still missing the quotation. Time for a break, I think.

Thank you, Wintonian. I was fixated by "second =mo". Not my favourite clue in the puzzle.

Was held up for ages by having the 1st letter of 24D as W. The wrong number one!

Thanks Ginge and Demeter. I think what I was suggesting is that not every multi-word answer is going to be in the dictionary. Where would it end...