Acting is the hardest job in the entire world. By far. Harder than ditch digging.

My older sister was at the cusp of new wave, and I had older brothers from my father's first marriage who were rock 'n' roll guys, so I was exposed to a lot of popular culture.

Screenwriting is like ironing. You move forward a little bit and go back and smooth things out.

I'll rebel against powers and principalities, all the time. Always, I will.

It's a gamble you take, the risk of alienating an audience. But there's a theory - sometimes it's better to confuse them for five minutes than let them get ahead of you for 10 seconds.

My dad was this sort of avant-garde guy who did all kinds of weird things. He was a true original and anybody who met him never forgot him.

I am always looking for that nuance, that moment of truth, and you can't really do that fast.

My writing has a lot to do with who I am, and what my life is like, and my relationships to people.

You write who you are. But you also cheat, and youwrite what you want to be. It's embarrasing to be the guy who madethe movie, knowing you're not exactly who you want to be.

Film school is a complete con, because the information is there if you want it.

There’s a lot for screenwriters to steal from songwriters, in terms of getting to the point.

Our deeds and actions can change the heart of men.

A man may study because his brain is hungry for knowledge, even Bible knowledge. But he prays because his soul is hungry for God.

How we feel about our families teaches us and helps us know the importance of feeling.

Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.

If you understand what you're doing, you're not learning anything.

I hate traveling and being away from my family. But I like meeting my readers, as what I write is actualized in them. Those encounters are exhilarating to me.

I can't fix the world. If you want to make a difference in life, you have to direct your energies in a focused way.

It is not possible for one to teach others who cannot teach his own family.

Allow motion to equal emotion.

The I is always in the field of the Other.