By the end of the first decade of writing, I considered myself a confirmed failure in the eyes of the world.

Somewhere along the way America became a giant mall with a country attached.

It took me 10 years to write a story that pleased me - that I could look at after it was published and not cringe.

It is sort of weird being honored for the worst day of your life.

Late bloomer' is another way of saying 'slow learner.

I never listen to music when I'm writing.

Americans are incredibly polite as long as they get what they want.

There was no such thing as perfection in this world, only moments of such extreme transparency that you forgot yourself, a holy mercy if there ever was one.

If you could figure out how to live with family then you'd gone a long way toward finding your peace.

The funny thing is, about the time I let go of any aspiration toward worldly success, that's about the time I started writing decent work.

I kept going back while I was writing the novel - which never sold, may it rest in peace - and by the time it was finished I had too many connections to Haiti to walk away.

She knew there was something dark in her then, when she left the alley and the shadows followed.

your body is not a temple, it's an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.

The fine art of preparing sushi is something that you watch and learn.

I consider myself a poet first and a musician second. I live like a poet and I'll die like a poet.

Grown-ups do a lot of complaining!

Saving New York City from bankruptcy is like making love to a gorilla. You don't stop when you're tired; you stop when he's tired.

Women are special custodians of all that is pure and religious in life.

Dying should not be a taxable event.

One of the keys to our present definition of good taste is that it is better to be kind than to be 'correct.' There is no situation in which it is smart to be nasty.

Five hours' New York jet lag and Cayce Pollard wakes in Camden Town to the dire and ever-circling wolves of disrupted circadian rhythm.