I must say also that it's never worked to my disadvantage that I have long, blond hair.

People forget years and remember moments.

When I was teaching at Harvard in the 1970s, I went to Project Incorporated in Cambridge and took photography classes. I didn't even know how to aim the camera in those days.

Because I don’t work with an outline, writing a story is like crossing a stream, now I’m on this rock, now I’m on this rock, now I’m on this rock.

Clichés so often befall vain people.

I think almost always that what gets me going with a story is the atmosphere, the visual imagery, and then I people it with characters, not the other way around.

I don't write about things that I have the answers to or things that are very close to home. It just wouldn't be any adventure. It wouldn't have any vitality.

There is some reason, obviously, that you are drawn to your material, but the way in which you explore it might come to be quite different from what you would expect.

Nobody can assume that, to a writer, everything is off-limits.

I like a lot of Margaret Atwood, I like much of Alice Munro. Again, if you were to ask me about male writers, there's often a novel I admire, but not all of their works.

It's often been said that I'm an extremely depressing, cynical writer. I've never known what to make of that.

If you can't focus then how do you expect to make your dreams come true?

You learn almost as much about a thinker from what he reads—in particular, what he likes and what he disdains—as from what he writes himself.

our life has one chance in this world

One day we both are going to realize that our Friendship was worth the fight.

We are kind of one step removed, not really in the center of things.

Political Correctness doesn't change us, it shuts us up.

I have lived the American dream in every aspect, and now I hope to make a very big impact in helping the planet.

Some people are destined to be deep thinkers. I am not one of those people.

I'm a little territorial and defensive.

One of the things I preach to all my staff is never be frightened to make a decision.