I'm an ecumenical reader, grew up with all sorts of fiction, teach writing, went to the Iowa Writers' Workshop, so my tastes and interests are broad.

If you are writing any book about the end of the world, what you are really writing about is what's worth saving about it.

Behind every writer stands a very large bookshelf.

My inventing time is all done under the influence of aerobic exercise. Basically, I do all my thinking while I run.

I grew up during the Cold War, when everything seemed very tenuous. For many years, right up until the fall of the Berlin Wall, I had vivid nightmares of nuclear apocalypse.

We live, we die. Somewhere along the way, if we're lucky, we may find someone to help lighten the load.

This ravishing world. This achingly bittersweet, ravishing world.

I have any number of completely dark obsessions and fascinations, and none of this was present in my profile or my growing profile as a writer.

What strange places our lives can carry us to, what dark passages.

My theory of characterization is basically this: Put some dirt on a hero, and put some sunshine on the villain, one brush stroke of beauty on the villain.

My rule has always been, write the next part of the book that you seem to know well. So I won't necessarily write chapter two after chapter one.

When you arise in the morning think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love ...

He that dare not die, dare scarce fight valiantly (475).

I think we all have our own mission, duty, fate in life so for me somehow I think I am always walking on the edge of life and take risks.

The Sun represents the right half of the body and the Moon the left half.

In degenerating programmes, however, theories are fabricated only in order to accommodate known facts

One man's insanity is another man's genius; someday the world will recognize the genius in my insanity.

Acting is the only thing I'm even vaguely good at and acting is something that I think I do know about.

I'd like to be remembered for music that moves people, that takes them some place else, that means something to them, reminds them of a good time or place, some memory, some positive moment.

To me, getting notes, honing the part, and refining the role is the real fun of the play.

Modern society has not rid itself of religion, as it fondly believes; it has merely replaced the historical religions by a host of idolatrous cults struggling for possession of the soul of man.